This Duct Tape Spinning Garden Bee is the perfect creative project for kids this summer! It is a fun kids activity that will encourage hours of imaginative play. If you are looking for more boredom busting ideas check out all our summer crafts and activities ideas to keep kids active and entertained this summer! The best craft bloggers are sharing fun kids crafts! From making DIY Super Hero Mask to a Water Bottle Bangle Bracelets you will find fun creative ideas!
Happy summer to all the Skip to My Lou readers out there! I’m Amanda from Crafts by Amanda and I’m really happy to be a part of the Fun Crafts for Kids summer series. Kid’s crafts are kind of my specialty, so when asked to participate it was an absolute no-brainer!
Summer means spending lots of time outside, taking care of your herbs and vegetables in the garden, and includes plenty of flying insects, especially the bee. Bees are a very important part of the ecosystem. Did you know that about one-third of the food we eat each day relies mostly on pollination from bees?
We are going to celebrate the bee by using some duct tape and a little string to make this fun spinning garden decoration. Check out the this short video for a quick demo of what we’re making!
For this project you will need:
(Supply list and instructions are for ONE bee)
Yellow duct tape
Black electrical tape
8 large googly eyes
Tools: cutting mat, non-stick scissors, craft knife, hot glue gun, pen
You will also need something round, approximately 4 1/2″ in diameter. I used the lid from a paper mache gift box, but a small paint can will work, or a large oatmeal container.
Make a sheet of duct tape “fabric”. Measure and cut a strip of yellow tape on the cutting mat (for one bee you will need the sheet to measure 11-inches). Measure and cut a second piece the same length, overlapping it slightly over the first strip. Repeat one more time for a third strip.
Carefully lift the sheet of tape off the mat and turn it upside down so that the sticky side is facing up. Measure and cut a strip of tape and place it onto the bottom of the sheet, sticky side to sticky side. Continue with two more strips until you have a double sided sheet.
Trace around your round object onto the tape sheet to get two circles.use scissors to cut out the circles.
Use two small pieces of tape to stick the circles, side by side, to the mat. Measure out a couple long strips of black electrical tape and use a craft knife to cut those strips in half lengthwise.
Place strips of black tape across the bottom of each circle. Place a second strip above that and a third above that, leaving an equal amount of yellow tape showing between each strip.
Turn each circle over and add black strips to the back.
Use scissors to trim off the excess black tape around the circle.
In order for the bee’s stripes to line up properly when assembled, you will need to start off with the stripes opposite of each other. Place one circle with the stripes at the bottom, and turn the second one around so that the stripes are on top. Place one on top of the other.
Hold them together and cut a slit through both circles until you reach the center of the circle.
When separated you will see that one has a cut through the solid yellow area and the other’s cut is through the stripes.
Next, connect the two pieces by intersecting the slits.
Run a thin line of hot glue where the slits intersect to connect them together. Cut a piece of string and glue it in with the slits. Glue one googly eye to each yellow section.
All that’s left to do is hang the bee outside and let the breeze twirl it!
Amanda Formaro is a well-known craft expert and author of the books “Rubber Band Mania” and “Duct Tape Mania“, the first two in a series of craft books for kids. She has been writing and crafting on the Internet for over fifteen years. Find out more on her blog, Crafts by Amanda, where she shares tutorials with step-by-step photos for adults and kids alike.