With Valentine’s Day and the school half term holidays just around the corner, we’re sharing a brilliant kids' craft idea from Tracey Radford, author of Make Your Own Zoo and soon to be published Make Your Own Farm Animals.
This project was first published on Tracey’s brilliant kid’s craft blog, Jumble Tree, and we thought her cork bunny was super cute and perfect for some kid’s Valentine’s Day crafting so we’re posting it here too! Head over to Tracey’s Facebook and Instagram accounts for more kids’ craft ideas and keep an eye out for her next book, available on MAKEetc.com in March.
How to make a cork bunny with a heart
Another cork craft idea inspired by my sizeable Christmas cork collection... from something fizzy this time! The shape at the top is perfect for a head so we thought rabbit, and it would make a sweet present for Valentine's day, especially with a little message written on the heart.
You'll need:
A Champagne/cava cork
White paint (acrylic is best)
Pencil
Red, pink and plain paper
Black felt-tip or gel pen
Pink felt tip pen (optional)
PVA/craft glue or a glue stick
Old Christmas/Birthday card (optional)
Paint the cork white, you may need a few coats – acrylic paint is best. While it's drying, fold a small piece of plain paper in half and draw half a long rabbit's ear on the fold. Make it about 6cm (21/2in long) and cut it out.
Before opening your ear up, place it on another folded piece of paper, lining up the folds and draw around it carefully. Cut out the second ear and open them both up - this is the quick way and should keep them roughly the same size.
If you prefer, after cutting out one ear, open up and stick to some spare cereal box card, and when dry, cut out the ear to make an easier template to draw around. Keep the template for extra bunnies! Use whatever method you find best.
For the pink ear middle, the quick easy option is to use a pink felt-tip pen. Draw an outline inside the white ear first, and then colour it in. We decided to use some pink paper. Fold it as in step 1, and draw a shorter (about 5cm/2in) and narrower ear shape that will fit inside the white one. Copy this by following step 2, then rub glue stick or brush a thin layer of craft glue on the back of the pink pieces and glue them in them in the middle of the white ears.
Brush some glue on the bottom cm or so of the ears and fold them in half lengthways, pinching the glued bottom part so the sides glue together - then glue this bit to the sides of your bunny's head. If they're slipping or popping off - lie on its side with a book leaning on the top ear.
While that's drying, cut out a strip for the arms - make it about 1cm wide (1/2in) and 8cm long (2in), though it might need to be longer if you have a big cork.
With a pencil, round off each end and cut carefully around the curve for the rabbit's paws.
Fold the arm strip in half to find the middle and brush or rub some glue either side of the fold, leave the arm ends glue-free. Stick the middle gluey part to the back of your bunny, in the grove just below the head.
Use a fine black felt-tip or gel pen to draw on a face – then while pressing the ears where they attach to the head, use your free hand to press open the top part of the ear, so you can see the pink middles clearly and the ears look fuller.
Lightly fold another small piece of coloured paper in half and draw half a heart on the fold - make it roughly the same height as the bottom section of the cork, below the head. Try now to press too hard on the fold so there isn’t a heavy crease line on the heart. Cut out and open up your heart shape. This is the time to add a Valentine’s message if you want.
Dab some glue or rub glue stick on the paw ends on the inside, and attach one to one side of the heart (make sure the pointy part of the heart is roughly level with the base of the cork). Fold the paw around the edge of the heart, pinching together. Repeat on the other side, keeping the visible paws as even as you can.
TIP: You could stick the paper heart to some spare cereal box card and when dry cut out to make a heart template. Use this to draw around on some old Christmas or Birthday cards to make a more patterned, colourful heart for your bunny to hold.
For more children's craft activities and ideas for recycled crafting, head over to Tracey's blog, Jumble Tree.