Hellobee

I like the idea of butterflies. They’re so pretty, they do wonderful things to help your flower garden, and their metamorphosis is truly amazing. But way they flit and flutter isn’t my favorite. That’s where felt butterflies come in. They stay still and there’s a creative element when you design your own on a felt board, which is even better.

Making this activity is so easy because you’re really just cutting out felt pieces. But those basic shapes can quickly become so many beautiful butterflies. It’s quiet and will give your child hours of entertainment!!

You will need:

Felt
Freezer paper(optional, but helpful)
Embroidery Floss
Tools: Pencil, Iron, Scissors, Needle

Butterfly Felt Board Activity PDF

While it helps to have a felt board to hold the pieces in place as your child works, it’s not essential. You can lay a sheet of felt on the table, or let them design their butterfly on a tray.

The easiest way to cut felt accurately is to trace the pieces on freezer paper. Be sure to trace the patterns on the non-plastic side.

Trace at least one butterfly body, and trace at least two of all the other shapes. Each of the pairs of shapes should be from the same color felt.

I cut my freezer paper into smaller chunks and fit as many shapes as I could. Each piece of freezer paper is for a different color of felt, and many of the shapes repeat so there will be lots of pieces to work with.

Iron the freezer paper onto the felt with the shiny side down. Then cut out the pieces. After you cut them out, peel away the paper.

You’ll want to have a bunch of shapes to work with! Divide the pieces into larger wing shapes and smaller design pieces.

Embroider the face on the butterfly. I used french knots for the eyes and back stitch for the mouth.

Now it’s time to design a butterfly! Demonstrate to your child how they can choose a few wing pieces for the base.

Next, add some details. You’ll notice that my butterfly is very symmetrical, like real butterflies are. But you don’t have to limit your child, especially if he or she is very young. In fact, I bet you couldn’t limit their creativity if you tried, and that’s awesome!

Add the body to the middle and your butterfly is ready to soar!

Now, pull off the pieces and start again with another fluttering friend. Or, if you make several body pieces you can create a kaleidoscope of butterflies (that’s the official name for a group of them!).

You can use this activity to teach symmetry and pattern making. Make one half of the butterfly and ask your child to form the second half to match. You could even take turns so they are making the first half.

When they are first learning this, you might pull out the pieces that you used so they don’t have to hunt for them. As they become familiar with the challenge, let them search as well as complete the design.

Another way to extend the designing challenge is to ask your child to make a butterfly using only certain colors or working with a limited number of pieces. Or perhaps working with a minimum number of pieces, which might lead to some creative layering!

My favorite way to build a butterfly is to use all of the colors and put them in rainbow order!

Happy crafting!