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Once a Duckling > Blog > Let’s make a Paper plate Lion

Let’s make a Paper plate Lion

Blog· Easy Crafts and DIY· Kids Crafts

This colourful paper plate craft will use all of your kids’ craft skills! What am I saying? It will test all of your skills too as you’re sure to want to get involved! Cutting, painting, gluing – it’s all in there. Making this colourful Lion Paper plate craft will keep them busy for quite a while! So what are you waiting for?!

here what you need

  • Paper plates, like these ones
  • Acrylic paint (I used yellow and orange)
  • Paint brushes
  • Large wibbly wobbly Eyes – I got mine from The Range here
  • Pipe cleaners
  • Card stock in bright “earthy” colours (orange, yellow, cream etc).
  • PVA glue

Let’s do this!

Start by painting the paper plate in yellow and orange colours, mixing the colours as you get towards the outside of the plate. It doesn’t have to be perfect! It just has to be colourful 🙂

Cut your paper stock into strips. I used 32 strips of approximately 16 cm of coloured cardstock. As you can see, I used the traditional earthy colours for the lion’s mane, but of course a pink and lilac lion will look absolutely stunning too :). There are no rules .. well, when it comes to chosing colour anyway.

Wrap the strip of card around a pencil or paintbrush to create a bit of a curl. You can either do this for all the strips before you’re ready to glue, or do this gluing them down as you do, one at a time..

Using some PVA glue attach the strips of card to the side of the plate, spacing out the different colours of card.

Next create the second inside circle in the same way. Glue the strips of paper on top of the outer circle, slightly overlapping the strips that are glued down already (see below). Just look at that gorgeous mane …

Next, it’s time to paint the nose and the mouth. I drew the nose and mouth on with pencil first. This makes it so much easier for the kids to fill in/trace with black paint. Finish the mouth by tracing the pencil using a small paint brush, or a Sharpie pen if you prefer.

Whiskers and glue

Next cut 2 pipe cleaners into half, and then into half again for the whiskers. I glued these on with a glue gun for good adhesion. However, I would definitely not recommend this with small kiddoes. This thing gets hot (I know, the clue is in the name, but they really ought to call it a “VERY hot, do not put your fingers anywhere near this” glue gun) If you want to stand back and let your kids have full control, then stick with the PVA glue 🙂

let’s get wobbly!

And now for the fun bit! The googly wibbly wobbly eyes which gives the lion some funny expressions as you move the plate around. It’s just a case of sticking these on and you’re all done! Go on .. give your lion a wobble to create some funny faces! You know you want to..!

I hope you enjoyed this project as much as I did. Don’t forget to share with someone who would enjoy this. Or pin to do with the kids later!

This paper plate craft will test all your kids craft skills. Painting, cutting, gluing - it's all in there! From toddlers to pre-schoolers, kids of all ages (even the adults!) will love getting involved in creating this Lion's head. Let's face it - who doesn't love those large wibbly wobbly eyes that gives the Lion its' cheeky expressions?! This project will keep your kids busy for a long time! What are you waiting for?

Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission if you decide to use my links to purchase something (at absolutely no extra cost to you!). This will allow me to continue to share great ideas and projects with you, so I am very grateful for your support! 🙂

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Hi! My name is Marianne and I’m so pleased you stopped by!  I love decorating on a budget, as well as sharing fun, simple craft & DIY projects to turn your house into a gorgeous home.

But most of all, let’s have some fun along the way – it’s great to see you here!

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