DLTK's Crafts for Kids
Paper Chain Butterfly

This is a fun, simple craft for all ages.  It's also a good project for practicing making patterns.

Materials:

• 2 pieces of white paper or construction paper
• paint in various colors.
• construction paper (2 or 3 colors)
• scissors,
• scotch tape or glue,
• wiggly eyes (optional)
• black marker

Instructions:

Wings:
  

• Set one piece of white paper out on the table.
• Squeeze splotches of different paint colors onto the white paper in a few different spots
• Place the second sheet of white paper over top of the first so all the edges line up.
• Smoosh your hands over the paper to spread out the paint that's sandwiched between the pieces.  You might want a piece of newspaper underneath in case any paint oozes out the sides.
• Peel the pieces of paper apart and set aside to dry (you should have two pieces that are mirror images of each other
• Once the paint is dry, put them back together face to face (paint side to paint side) again.
• Cut a rough wing shape out of the pages.
• Take them apart again and tape the pages together so you have wings for your butterfly
• You can paint around the outside edge of the wings with glitter glue or one of the paint colors you used for the wings.
• Cut about 8 strips of construction paper 2 inches wide and 10 inches long.
• Decide what type of pattern you want to make.  We made a pink, purple, pink, purple...  Pattern for ours.
• Make your first strip of construction paper into a ring and tape or glue it together
• Slide your next strip of construction paper through the ring and tape or glue it into a ring
• Repeat the process until you have a chain of construction paper rings just a little bit longer than your wings.
• Lay your chain onto your wings.
• Every spot the chain lies flat on the wings, use tape or glue to attach them.
• Antennas:
  • Cut two 1/4 inch by 5 inch pieces of construction paper.
  • Wrap each around a pencil to make it curly
  • Fold a tab at the bottom of each piece
  • Glue the tabs onto the top of the head to make two antennas
• Eyes:
  • glue wiggly eyes onto the front of the head
    OR
  • draw two eyes onto the front of the head with a marker
• Mouth:
  • draw a mouth onto the front of the head with a marker