The chicken or the egg tutorial

Last year we made this chicken and egg hanger for easter. we printed a tutorial in this months MADS magazine and here it is for all the non-MADS members out there!

Materials

1. Craft foam in assorted colors.  We used yellow for the body as well as red and green and a small scrap of orange for the beak. You’ll need 1 bond paper sized sheet for the body and smaller pieces for the other colors.  You can get packs of assorted craft foam at some National Bookstores and most branches of Office Warehouse.

2.  PVA glue ( Elmer’s or any other white glue)

3.  String or yarn and a large needle

4. 2 drinking straws in matching colors

Instructions

1. Down load and print this pattern. You need to size it to fit on a letter sized bond paper.

2. Cut out the chicken body, beak, comb and wattle as well as 6 eggs out of an appropriate color foam. 

Cut out the egg shape from the chicken stomach. Using scrap foam, cut out small strips, triangles, hearts etc to decorate the eggs with. Use a hole puncher to punch out small circles. 

3. Glue the wattle, comb and beak on to the chicken head. Using a black permanent marker draw on an eye. Decorate the eggs with the small scraps of foam. (photo 3) the chick, cut out half an egg shape in green. Trim the top edge to look like grass. Cut a circle in yellow for the chick’s head and a small triangle in orange for the beak. Glue the chick onto the egg, then the grass and then the beak. Draw 2 eyes with a black permanent marker.

4. Once everything is dry thread the needle with a long piece of string. Cut the straws into approx 1-2”  (2.5-5cm) pieces.

5. Starting at the top of the first egg, push the needle through the foam from back to front leaving a small tail. Loop the string around the edge of the egg and make a knot at the back to anchor the string. Next thread a piece of straw on to the string to use as spacer between the eggs. Thread the next egg by passing the needle through the foam from front to back at the bottom and back to front at the top of the egg. This way all the big “stitches”, will be at the back of the foam and not covering all the pretty decorations on the front of the egg. 

Continue alternating eggs and straws until you have 5 eggs on the string.  The 6th egg will be laced into the hole cut out from the chicken’s tummy. Attach this egg the same way, tying off the string at the back. 

Add a piece of string to the top edge of the chicken as per photo, so you can hang the mobile up. 

Variations: you can make this mobile out of cardboard and have the children paint it first. You can also use sequins and beads to decorate the eggs, and for the brave parents, go ahead and use glitter! The children will love it!

Happy Easter!