Welcome back to this week’s Kids Crafts – when we made clothes pins mermaids! We adore Mermaid Craft Ideas!! Clothes pins mermaids have been “yet another” craft that have been on my mind/ to do list for AGES! I was waiting for my kids to be big enough to actually have a go and make some themselves. And as our clothes pins pirates showed it is very clear quite how much Red Ted LOVES colouring clothes pins. One week Red Ted’s nursery was “doing Mermaids and MerMen” and this was my opportunity. Mermaids and Mermen we made!
Red Ted was hooked. He made pin after pin after pin. Then The Imagination Tree girls came to visit and we made more. Then another friend came to visit, and we made more. We must have made 15 in the space of 3 days!
I then decide to make on for our Craft Book. And at today’s photo shoot (yes, we are the photo shoot stage), we added Red Ted’s AND my mermaid. LOVELY! Am so pleased, they both went in!
Dolly Peg Mermaid DIY Materials:
- Old fashioned dolly pegs – you can get them here: US / UK (affiliate links)
- Craft Foam/ Funky Foam
- Glitter (optional)
- Sequins (optional)
- Yarn/ Wool
- Pens
- Paint
- Scissors
How to make your clothespin Mermaids
Red Ted’s: Painted his Mermens’ bodies in his chosen colours. He then asked me to add the face to his men (for some reason he just didn’t want to). So I did it for him. Take care – to draw the face on the side of the pen, that then allows you to add the fins. You don’t want the men to be looking right or left. As with our clothes pin pirates, he then dipped the head in glue and then the glitter pot.
I then cut out a semi circle out of funky foam, shaped it into a fin and we glued it in place.
My mermaid: I painted the fin in a blue – the same colour as the fin. Once dry, covered it in PVA glue and sprinkled glitter on. Added two sequins for the bikini bra and made hair from wool (several strands of wool, died strategically in two places, see small image).
Done.
Pip Squeak did have a go. But this naughty mummy forgot to photograph them (BAD ME!). Her’s are all bright pink, with glitter hair. (But no fins… i.e. they are just dollies, I think that is why I didn’t add them to the Mermaid/ Mermen photo!).
Done. I hope you liked our Clothes Pins Mermaids and that you have a go too!
More gorgeous Mermaid Craft Ideas here
Carolyn @ Mama's Little Muse says
August 8, 2012 at 4:08 amYou always do THE BEST crafts! I love this mermaid/merman idea. I know a few kids who will enjoy this too! Thank you!
Lorie says
August 8, 2012 at 12:14 pmOh my goodness. My daughter is in a mermaid phase big time and will LOVE these! Thanks!
Red Ted Art says
August 8, 2012 at 12:26 pm@Carolyn – you are too lovely! Thank you so much for saying such lovely things!!
@Lorie – I have been DYING to make a mermaid with mine for ages now. So pleased “the topic” came up at nursery !Enjoy!
Emma @mummymummymum says
August 8, 2012 at 12:28 pmooooh they are too cute Maggy! I love the Ariel one. xx
Emma @sciencesparks says
August 8, 2012 at 12:28 pmi’m now adding clothes pins to my shopping list 😉
Red Ted Art says
August 8, 2012 at 12:42 pmYou should! 🙂
Red Ted Art says
August 8, 2012 at 12:43 pm(Actually I bought mine “in bulk” on ebay.. these kind of clothes pins tend to be only available in crafts stores?)
Aly says
August 8, 2012 at 4:58 pmI just showed 4 yo and she loves them.She’s just ran off to tell 6 yo (soaking in the bath) about them.I know what we’re doing tomorrow now 🙂
Red Ted Art says
August 8, 2012 at 5:08 pmAwe! How cute!!! 🙂
Sian says
August 8, 2012 at 5:13 pmis 8 too old to make peg dolls ?
is just a tiny bit the wrong side of 40? : )
Red Ted Art says
August 8, 2012 at 5:31 pmNEVER TOO OLD!!!
JDaniel4's Mom says
August 8, 2012 at 8:38 pmThese are really cute!
Maxine of the Magic Belles says
August 8, 2012 at 10:01 pmThese are ADORABLE!! Am going to show 6-yr-old tomorrow, who will immediately want to make these.
On a strangely related note, heard of a man today who used to run the ‘Dolly Factory’ in Kent (a barn in a field!) making these clothes pins. I love that name so much (the pegs are also known as dolly pins!). Anyway, it’s recently been demolished as he moved to Lithuania where it’s cheaper to make them. 🙁 – probably why you got them in bulk from ebay!
I’m rambling, but thought I’d share!!
Thank you!
Maxine
x
Red Ted Art says
August 9, 2012 at 6:54 amNooooo really? What a shame! What random little facts the are in the world!! Would have loved to have gone to a Dolly Factory!
Sian says
August 9, 2012 at 7:25 amphew!
Red Ted Art says
August 9, 2012 at 7:50 am🙂
The Monko says
August 9, 2012 at 9:55 pmOh my goodness these are so cute
The fairy and the frog says
August 10, 2012 at 9:27 pmAmazing! I know a ‘Fairy’ who’s gonna want to make some of these asap!
Bethany @ No Twiddle Twaddle says
August 11, 2012 at 5:55 pmI love them. I would have never thought of using glitter for hair!
Red Ted Art says
August 11, 2012 at 6:05 pmOh the glitter is Red Ted’s idea. Through and through!!!
Johanna GGG says
August 12, 2012 at 1:35 pmI love your mermaids – when I was young I loved doing dolls out of old clothes pegs so they bring back memories (though mine were very old fashioned). We saw clothes pegs just recently and now I wish we had bought some – must head back and buy them to make mermaids
amber says
August 12, 2012 at 4:10 pmThese are really cute.
Red Ted Art says
August 12, 2012 at 4:34 pmThank you Amber!
Johanna – how wonderful that it brings back so many memories! Here is to making more!
Isil says
August 12, 2012 at 9:59 pmvery pretty!
Pink and Green Mama, MaryLea says
August 15, 2012 at 9:35 pmAdorable! The girls and I love to make Clothespin Mermaids and Disney’s Family Fun Magazine actually paid me for the rights to the project 2 years ago — they used them in their magazine then rebranded them into an Ariel/Little Mermaid craft for their princess crafts site a while back. Love the way you all made them as a play-date craft activity — they are adorable! : )
Here’s a link to my craft in the magazine — http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/a-mermaids-tale-1022594/
Warmly,
MaryLea
(pink and green mama)
Pink and Green Mama, MaryLea says
August 15, 2012 at 9:36 pmLove the sequin bra tops too!!! : )
Red Ted Art says
August 16, 2012 at 6:31 amOh my goodness, MaryLea your mermaids are ADORABLE – I love love that that multi coloured wool, simply perfect!
creativejewishmom/sara says
August 16, 2012 at 7:53 pmAdorable! thanks so much for sharing on Craft Schooling Sunday!
Ness @ One Perfect Day says
August 21, 2012 at 4:05 amI LOVE these! Great instructions for the hair too. I’m pinning this to the Tuesday Tots board. Thanks for linking up.
Emma @Sciencesparks says
August 26, 2012 at 7:55 amAwww gorgeous! S would love them! Thanks for linking up. xx