yarn and twig spiderwebs {kids can do it}
Friday, October 19, 2012 at 08:55AM 
If you're looking for a fun kid's craft between now and Halloween, this should fit the bill: cool spiderwebs that are easy to put together, easy to personalize, and won't cost you a thing if you have some leftover yarn or string lying around.
We're making these at a church party next weekend, and my kids have had a good time going on "stick hunts" with me to find a couple hundred twigs. This time of year it's easy to find small sticks or twigs on the ground - just wander through a park that has a bunch of trees with your eyes on the ground and you'll find plenty. This is a great craft for lots of kids (school party anyone?) because one $3 skein of yarn and some hot glue is all you'll need to purchase, AND it's a great craft to do with your own kids because you can spend time together out at a park looking for twigs, and then again at home putting the spiderwebs together.
Here's the rundown:
Start with three of four twigs of the same length (mine are about 8 inches long). Look for twigs that are fairly straight and skinny but not bendy. Hot glue the twigs together in the middle, layering a twig, hot glue, another twig, more hot glue, etc., and finish off with a little extra hot glue. Let the glue dry completely. (Remember to use a cool temp glue gun in you're letting your kids help with the glue.)
For webs of this size, I used about three yards of yarn. You can stick one end of the yarn right into the hot glue as it begins to dry. To begin weaving on the yarn, wrap it around the ball of glue a few times. Then wrap it over and around one stick and across to the next stick where you'll go over and around again, then on to the next one (as shown in the photos above). You can go clockwise or counter clockwise - whatever feels most comfortable. When your web looks good, tie the yarn to the last stick you've wrapped and then use the extra tail of yarn to hang your web. Pop a dollar store spider ring into the center of the web and you're finished!
Most elementary school age kids love this sort of thing and will want to make webs in different colors and different sizes - if you have plenty of twigs and yarn they might stay busy for an hour or two. This could be something fun to do after school on Halloween to keep the anxious kids occupied until it's time to head out on the great candy crusade.
Linking to some of these parties:
Monday: Skip to My Lou | Brassy Apple | Craft-o-Maniac
Tuesday: Tip Junkie | Ladybug Blessings | Sugar Bee Crafts | The Blackberry Vine | Hope Studios | Funky Polkadot Giraffe | Not JUST a Housewife | Homework Today's Assignment: Be Inspired | Shwin and Shwin
Wednesday: Handy Man, Crafty Woman | Southern Lovely | Sew Much Ado | SNAP | Someday Crafts | The NY Melrose Family | Printabelle
Thursday: Somewhat Simple | House of Hepworths | Momnivore's Dilemma | The Shabby Creek Cottage | Yesterday on Tuesday | Fireflies and Jellybeans | The Taylor House
Friday: Chic on a Shoestring Decorating | The Shabby Nest | Stuff and Nonsense | Naptime Crafters | It's a Hodgepodge Life | At The Picket Fence | 504 Main | Blissful Bucket List
Weekend: Tatertots and Jello
Reader Comments (3)
I love it! How fun to weave..... I bet kids love this project.... :)
This is so cool! My 9 year old daughter would love to make these as well.
We'd love it if you'd share it at our linky party this week: Family Recipes and Crafts Linky Party
Hope you stop by!
My children are going to love this! Thanks for the idea. It seems we used to make these when I was a little girl. So long ago, except out of toothpicks and string. Fun!!