Red Ted Art - Make crafting with kids easy & fun

Cute & Easy Crafts for Kids

  • Home
  • START HERE
  • Preschool Crafts
  • Easy Crafts for Kids
  • Paper Crafts
  • Free Printables
  • About
  • Join Our Newsletter
  • Cookies, Privacy Policies & Disclosure

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette

August 9, 2021

We ADORE Toilet Paper Crafts for Kids. This week’s book & craft has been “brewing” for a while…   I am not sure why haven’t done it sooner, maybe I thought Red Ted was still too young. Well, he is in terms of  crafting, but he isn’t in terms of painting, sticking, helping and of course PLAYING! So, we embraced the craft – a great one for children 5yrs+ or with a helping adult!!! Red Ted loves the resulting Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe marionettes!!! These Giraffe Puppets where inspired by the wonderful Picture Book Giraffe’s Can’t Dance. More on that below!

Without a further a do…

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionette

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionetteNote: This post was first published in May 2010 (wow!!) and has been updated and reshared with you!

The Picture Book – Giraffe’s Can’t Dance

Giraffe’s Can’t Dance, by Giles Andreae. Early this week, I already reviewed “Giraffe’s Can’t Dance”. Here we have it again: I have to confess to picking this book up, because I like the “format”. Our version is a smallish board book. I also liked the rhythm and rhyme of the book and Red Ted liked the bright colours. Here we have the story of a Gerald the giraffe that is, well, a little clumsy on his feet. Each year the jungle holds a jungle dance and Gerald feels left out has he is so “rubbish”. Sadly he wanders off… however, a small cricket helps him discover his “inner self”. A lesson: we are all good at something, as long as we find the right way for us. Hurray! Happy Ending.

Today we are going to make Gerald as a fun Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette! The materials are very simple!

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette

Toilet Roll Giraffe Materials

  • 2 loo rolls per Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe,
  • 1-2 sheets of A4 in contrasting colours (red & yellow in our case),
  • paints (red & yellow, I prefer acrylics as they don’t get so dry and crumble like some poster paints),
  • brushes,
  • scissors,
  • glue and later
  • chopsticks and string (not shown in photo, as only decided to add these later)

How to make a puppet with Toilet Paper Rolls

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionette

2) Paint two loo rolls yellow. Red Ted decided he “wanted” red, so I decided to make 2 giraffes with him. So we painted another 2 loo rolls red. I helped him, as he was getting a little tired!

3) We then dabbed on some spots in the contrasting colour with cotton wool. I think lots  of paint gives it nice “texture” to your toilet paper roll Giraffe!

4) Let it dry.

The Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Puppet’s Legs

Start on the legs.

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionette

5) I didn’t have yellow paper, so I quickly “made” some with cotton wool and watered down paint… Just means you have to wait for it to dry. I only did one side. Don’t think it matters if one side is white and the other yellow. If your children have a longer attention span, they can help with this too!

6) Cut the paper in to even strips. I made mine about 1cm wide and used a ruler to help me (marked one sheet, but cut four sheets in one go). The neater and more even you cut, the better!

7) The “tricky bit”: Take one yellow and one red strip. It is kind of like pleating the two pieces of paper. Glue down the first two bits and then alternately fold over. Once you get to the end of the paper, I glued on another strip.  So each leg and neck is made of 2 yellow strips and 2 red strips of paper. Glue top down.

8) Make 5 for each giraffe (so we made 10 – got a little boring, I admit). Whilst I folded. Red Ted did some play gluing and play folding with extra strips of paper! I also made 2 smaller sets (about 1/2cm wide) in one colour for the horns and cut out some “ears”.

Assembling the Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionette

9) Cut down one loo roll for head (about 2/3rds)

10) Glue legs and neck on. I used cloth pegs to keep them in place whilst drying.

11) Glue on horns, ears and draw eyes/ stick on googly eyes

Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette. How to make a Giraffe Puppet from Toilet Paper Rolls. What to make with Empty Toilet Paper Rolls #toiletpaper #toiletpaperrolls #toiletrolls #giraffes #puppet #marionette

I found at this point that the giraffes were finished, but no so easy to play with, as the neck kept flopping about. So I decided to make marionettes out of them – I used some take away chopsticks (but lollipop sticks will do) and garden string!

12) FINISHED!

We then revisited the story at bedtime. Red Ted was delighted! And the Gerald and Geraldine have indeed been doing LOTS of dancing!

What have you made using Toilet Paper Rolls? Let me know in the comments below!

Fancy more easy TP Roll Crafts for Kids? Check these out!!

«
»

Filed Under: Kids Craft, Loo Rolls 85 Comments

Comments

  1. TheMadHouse says

    May 26, 2010 at 7:32 am

    This is a really cool idea. I love it

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 26, 2010 at 8:06 am

      Thank you ๐Ÿ˜‰ we certainly had fun with them…. wonder how long they will “Live” – but then we can make somem more..

      Reply
  2. mummakesafilm says

    May 26, 2010 at 9:43 am

    Looking forward to when my little one is old enough to do things like this – looks fun!

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 26, 2010 at 9:48 am

      ๐Ÿ˜‰ I will be making them again when Red Ted is 5+. but dont underestimate th 2yrs olds now.. he LOVED the painting and watching me fold, whilst he glued… he feels really proud of “his” giraffes!!! Go on.. do it “earlier” than you think you can!!!!

      Reply
      • Vicci says

        May 29, 2010 at 6:28 pm

        Lovรฉ to Know what he glued. Bet hรฉ had fun though, can you do goats next?

        Reply
        • Red Ted Art says

          May 29, 2010 at 6:30 pm

          Send me a good book on goats (can be french too!!!) and we can give it a go ๐Ÿ˜‰ xx

          Reply
  3. Michelle says

    May 27, 2010 at 12:53 pm

    This is so cool!!! I can’t wait to see if my library has this book and make this project with Emily. I will totally be making my own too!!

    Thank you for sharing and linking up to stART ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  4. Amy @ Hope Is the Word says

    May 27, 2010 at 2:50 pm

    This is adorable! I love it! Kudos to you for attempting a rather complicated activity with such a little one, too. ๐Ÿ™‚

    That book looks really cute, too. I haven’t run across it at any of our libraries.

    Thanks for linking up to Read Aloud Thursday!

    Reply
  5. Natalie says

    May 27, 2010 at 4:45 pm

    Those giraffes are awesome. We also enjoyed this book a lot.

    Reply
  6. Little Wonders' Days says

    May 27, 2010 at 4:57 pm

    We love that book. I love how you did the craft. They turned out so cute!

    Reply
  7. April says

    May 27, 2010 at 7:19 pm

    Ooooh, I love the giraffes that you made. What a perfect storytelling prop. I remember learning how to make those “pleats” in step #7 when I was a little girl. I used to use them to make my own pop-out cards.

    Reply
  8. JDaniel4's Mom says

    May 27, 2010 at 7:38 pm

    These are the best. I loved seeing them in action.

    Reply
  9. Charlene says

    May 27, 2010 at 8:18 pm

    Wow what a great idea….and it came out so nicely. Love it! Dropping by via stART!

    Reply
  10. Christianne @ Little Page Turners says

    May 27, 2010 at 9:39 pm

    LOVE this! Way too cute. It is nice when they’re a little older – you have a whole new world of crafting opened up to you. But you’re right – they joy of playing with the craft is fun at any age. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
  11. Janelle says

    May 27, 2010 at 10:49 pm

    Love those folded legs. They look like a lot of fun to play with.

    Reply
  12. Anne@LittleSproutBooks says

    May 28, 2010 at 9:39 pm

    adorable! I’m going to tuck this away until my guy is a little older – but looks like tons of fun!

    Reply
  13. Parenting in Blue Jeans - Jennifer Bruining says

    June 2, 2010 at 12:20 pm

    So cute! You’ve got mad craft skills!

    Visiting from WFMW

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      June 2, 2010 at 12:33 pm

      ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
  14. meninheira says

    June 4, 2010 at 12:49 pm

    Oh please, is so, so cute!! thanks a lot for joining to my blog party! (now the theme is “laundry”)

    Hugs from Spain

    meni ^-^

    Reply
  15. Jenn says

    June 7, 2010 at 11:52 am

    Awww! So cute and sounds like a great bookl I’ll have to check it out. Thanks for linking up!

    Reply
  16. Diehl Art Gallery says

    June 23, 2010 at 4:28 pm

    Such a great art project, thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  17. gnee says

    June 30, 2010 at 8:39 am

    Love the book and your fabulous giraffes…of course they can dance!

    Reply
  18. Steff says

    June 30, 2010 at 9:45 am

    Genius- and so cute!

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      June 30, 2010 at 1:19 pm

      thank you! We had fun!

      Reply
  19. Nikki says

    June 30, 2010 at 12:49 pm

    That is soooooo sweet! My son will love that! Thanks for linking up to gettin ‘crafty on hump day ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      June 30, 2010 at 1:19 pm

      OOh, would be fabulous if you made one with your son! Go on, you know you want to!! Thanks for hosting!

      Reply
  20. Its Sew Stinkin Cute says

    July 1, 2010 at 2:31 pm

    Wow, thats incredible! I love it, but might feel the same way about Laci being too young, plus her attention span is super short. I will have to keep this in mind. As always, thank you for linking (BTW- I took care of the links on Wednesday’s post for you). ~Julie

    Reply
  21. Laura Ingalls Gunn says

    July 3, 2010 at 4:20 pm

    Oh I adore this project. It is going in my style file for sure!

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      July 3, 2010 at 6:07 pm

      Oooh, fabulous! Do hope you get to make some some day!!! Red Ted loves playing with his…

      Reply
  22. Melissa Howard says

    July 4, 2010 at 3:47 am

    That is way, way beyond cute!!

    Reply
  23. threeundertwo says

    July 4, 2010 at 12:01 pm

    Very cute! Thanks for linking up to Finished for Friday!

    Reply
  24. All Thingz Related says

    July 6, 2010 at 6:45 pm

    What a fun idea! Thanks for sharing @ Anything Related!

    Reply
  25. Audra says

    July 7, 2010 at 3:02 pm

    Once again. Such a cute idea!

    Reply
  26. Gale says

    August 10, 2010 at 5:42 am

    Thanks for posting this! We did this craft and my kids just loved it. You can see pictures here:

    http://scribbleprints.blogspot.com/2010/08/what-my-kids-have-been-up-to-this-week.html

    Reply
  27. Metajugglamum says

    October 20, 2010 at 8:35 am

    U-oh, now I DO need to place an Amazon order. Have poked my nose over this book for ages but don’t have it yet. Worth buying it just so we can make these .. just SO fab!! L will laugh his socks off. Can’t wait to play!

    MJM.

    Reply
  28. Samantha Banister says

    December 9, 2010 at 3:20 pm

    This is an AMAZING idea!!! I can’t wait to try this with my child!

    Reply
  29. tiddlyompompom says

    December 22, 2010 at 10:20 am

    I love these. I have a stash of loo rolls, so fully expect to be making giraffes in the new year ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      December 22, 2010 at 10:55 am

      Oh Hooray!!! Have fun making and PLAYING with these!! ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
  30. @jencull (Jen) says

    December 26, 2010 at 10:26 pm

    oh wow, they look GREAT ๐Ÿ™‚

    Thanks for joining in Blog Gems. Jen

    Reply
  31. B Fryman says

    May 13, 2011 at 12:18 pm

    Those are really cute!!

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 13, 2011 at 2:20 pm

      Aaaah thank you! We had real fun making (and playing) with these.. am surprised we still have them a year later more or less in one piece!

      Reply
  32. Melissa says

    May 14, 2011 at 11:02 am

    We love this book and we read it regularly. Will definitely have to make these! Thank you so much for sharing such a great craft project.

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 14, 2011 at 11:03 am

      Aaaah thank you and pleased you like the book (I think it is lovely)… only think I would do differently on the giraffes is make the neck fatter and shorter… else we love them ๐Ÿ˜‰

      Reply
  33. Heather says

    May 15, 2011 at 2:30 am

    These are so cute! And I love that they’re made with tp tubes – my kids love to hoard the tubes for crafts. We’ll have to try this.

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 15, 2011 at 6:50 am

      Thank you! I am going to try a new animal soon!

      Reply
  34. Isil says

    May 16, 2011 at 12:24 pm

    This is one of our favorite books. Defne will be delighted with these marionettes.

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 16, 2011 at 1:18 pm

      It really is a lovely book! ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
  35. Jennifer says

    May 16, 2011 at 3:18 pm

    Cute! my daughter would love making those!

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 16, 2011 at 3:56 pm

      Do have a go! And would love to see any results!!!

      Reply
  36. SJ @ Homemaker On A Dime says

    May 16, 2011 at 5:42 pm

    Linking this up with us plus the organza flower made the Creative Bloggers’ Party & Hop better and more special. Thank you! And I hope you don’t mind if I ask you again to join us this Sunday ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 16, 2011 at 6:39 pm

      I will be there – have added you to my “linky calendar” ๐Ÿ˜‰

      Reply
  37. creativejewishmom/sara says

    May 17, 2011 at 5:54 am

    these giraffes are wonderful! thanks so much for sharing on Craft Schooling Sunday, great to have you every week.

    Reply
  38. Mama Syder says

    May 19, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    They are fabulous! The way you made the legs & neck is what we used to do with our chewing gum wrappers as teenagers. It would be a competition to see who could make the longest…you triggered a great memory for me x

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 20, 2011 at 9:43 am

      Mama Syder – aaah how lovely! Pleased it brought back memories!! Funny what you get up to as kids!

      Reply
  39. @mummiafelice says

    May 19, 2011 at 7:10 pm

    wow! Your creations never fail to astound me…. FANTASTIC! Thanks for linking up!

    Reply
  40. Michelle Willow says

    May 20, 2011 at 8:05 am

    Saw these year ago and still think they are awesome! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      May 20, 2011 at 9:01 am

      Yes, I am highlighting an “old” post every week!! Thank you!

      Reply
  41. Rochelle Prince says

    March 26, 2012 at 3:18 pm

    yes if you like french cook le repas a domicile fan page

    Reply
  42. Artsy Craftsy Mom says

    March 6, 2013 at 10:17 am

    Wow! this is such a cool idea. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      March 6, 2013 at 11:00 am

      Thank you ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
  43. C bruton says

    February 8, 2014 at 7:54 am

    Love love love this!
    I have a 4 yr old son and 2 1/2 yr old daughter to try it with.
    One thing has anyone tried putting beads in the feet for added weight and ‘clipclop’ sounds?
    I will try and let everyone know. Xx

    Reply
  44. Pinkoddy says

    June 10, 2014 at 7:32 pm

    You have such the best ideas – and these look like they can be a lot of fun too.

    Reply
  45. Bea says

    March 15, 2017 at 12:14 pm

    Awwwhhh… I love this giraffe. What a great storytelling combination. Adorable!
    Hugs Bea

    Reply
    • Red Ted Art says

      March 16, 2017 at 8:45 am

      Thank you!!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. story + art = great stART – Stars, Family & Bunnies « Redtedart's Blog says:
    June 2, 2010 at 5:52 am

    […] stART: Giraffe’s can’t dance – a Giraffe Loo Roll Marionette […]

    Reply
  2. Just for fun! « English Play Group says:
    October 19, 2010 at 10:47 am

    […] made Cat in the Hat hats, marionette Giraffes out of toilet paper rolls and a brown bag mouse puppet as our crafts for the month.ย  Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot […]

    Reply
  3. Nur zum Spass! « Englisch Spielgruppe says:
    November 1, 2010 at 11:18 am

    […] haben im September Cat in the Hat Hรผte, Giraffenmarionetten aus Papprollen, und eine Maushandpuppe aus Frรผhstรผcksbeutel gebastelt. Leider habe ich nicht so viele Fotos […]

    Reply
  4. Story time for under 5s: Giraffeโ€™s Canโ€™t Dance! โ€” Book Reviews For Mums says:
    December 20, 2010 at 7:01 am

    […] you like the sound of this book, hop over to Red Ted Art and see how we got all crafty and made our very own Geraldine and Gerald, the dancing Giraffeโ€™s out of Loo Rolls! […]

    Reply
  5. Red Ted Art's Blog » Blog Archive » Kids Get Crafty – Dog Loo Roll Marionette (Victor van Krumm) says:
    November 23, 2011 at 4:44 am

    […] those that you can make with recycled and nature’s materials – we already made ย Giraffes and some Autumn […]

    Reply
  6. How to Make Puppets [Puppet Theater Review & Giveaway] says:
    October 30, 2012 at 1:34 am

    […] 12. Leaf Bird Marionettes (Red Ted Art) 13. Brown Bear Shadow Puppets (My Little Bookcase) 14. Giraffe Marionette (Red Ted Art) 15. Milk Jug Puppet (Everything & Nothing) 16. Paper Roll Butterfly Puppet (The Outlaw Mom) 17. […]

    Reply
  7. It's Playtime! Reading Activities says:
    March 20, 2013 at 9:10 pm

    […] in the Fast Lane} 7.ย Too Many Fairies – A Fairy Playย {A Mom with a Lesson Plan} 8.ย Giraffe’s Can’t Dance – Story + Art {Red Ted Art’s Blog} 9.ย Cuckoo by Lois Ehlertย  {Rainy Day Mum} 10.ย Charlotte’s Web […]

    Reply
  8. Earth Day Recycles | Laura Dickey says:
    April 23, 2013 at 2:09 pm

    […] Dancing giraffes […]

    Reply
  9. A guide to crafting with a toddler | Three years & home says:
    August 27, 2013 at 7:13 pm

    […] inspiration from Red Ted Art’s giraffe marionettes, we decided that we would make a lion version (CK’s favourite animal). It took us two days, […]

    Reply
  10. Craft Ideas With Toilet Paper Rolls » Playtivities says:
    March 31, 2014 at 12:14 pm

    […] 10. Dancing Giraffes are like real marionettes. […]

    Reply
  11. 60 Homemade Animal Themed Toilet Paper Roll Crafts - Hative says:
    April 17, 2014 at 1:13 pm

    […] Source […]

    Reply
  12. TP Roll Crafts: Koinobori (Wind Socks!) - Fun Crafts Kids says:
    April 28, 2014 at 3:19 pm

    […] you can make with the kids, you will never get bored of this material. We have seen everything from Toilet Roll Marionettes to Toilet Roll Pinatas! Now here we have some fabulous Toilet Roll Koinobori or also known as […]

    Reply
  13. Guess Who Zoo and 30+ Zoo Animal Crafts says:
    April 28, 2014 at 10:07 pm

    […] Giraffe Marionettes {Red Ted Art} […]

    Reply
  14. 100 Inexpensive Gifts You Can Make for Kids | Live-In Nanny says:
    June 11, 2014 at 1:45 pm

    […] Marinette. Red Ted Art takes you step-by-step through the process of making the body for the […]

    Reply
  15. Crafts For Kids That Turn Into DIY Toys - Kids Activities Blog says:
    December 2, 2014 at 12:01 am

    […] Love theater? Make a dancing giraffe. […]

    Reply
  16. 5 Earth Day Crafts Using Recycled Material says:
    April 1, 2015 at 2:58 pm

    […] Giraffe Puppet – Inspired by a book about a giraffe who learns we are all good at something, Red Ted Art shows us how to make a giraffe marionette using toilet paper rolls and paper. Younger kids will […]

    Reply
  17. 26 ways with empty toilet rolls - Domesblissity says:
    January 22, 2016 at 6:22 am

    […] Source: notimeforflashcards.com via Linda on Pinterest   Source: redtedart.com via Dreams on Pinterest Giraffe puppets Source: craftsbyamanda.com via Rachael on […]

    Reply
  18. 7 Days of Giraffe Themed Activities for Tot School - Best Toys 4 Toddlers says:
    July 20, 2016 at 9:09 pm

    […] Monday:ย Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette| Red Ted Art […]

    Reply
  19. Mais ideias criativas com rolo de papel higiรชnico - TempoJunto says:
    April 14, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    […] Achei demais essa “girafa que nรฃo sabe danรงar” do Redtedart.com. […]

    Reply
  20. It's Raining, It's Pouring! 13 Rainy Day Crafts for Toddlers says:
    May 5, 2017 at 4:05 pm

    […] 8.ย TP Roll Giraffe from Red Ted Artโ€™s Blog […]

    Reply
  21. 13 Book Inspired Crafts & Recipes - A Princess and Her Pirates says:
    April 11, 2018 at 2:30 pm

    […] Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe Marionette […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Welcome!

Welcome

Hello! I am Maggy and I love all things crafty and sharing my craft ideas and how tos.

The aim of this site is to provide easy, do-able and fun crafts for all ages.

Categories

Archives

Crafty Blogs

Copyright © 2022 ยท Website Design By Jumping Jax Designs