Finger puppets are very popular with children and encourage children's imagination. Funny finger animals and men are placed on each finger and bring them to life. This allows you to tell stories and act out a real puppet theater piece at home. Due to their small size, imaginative finger puppets can be made without much effort.
Traditionally, finger puppets are crocheted using leftover wool. Crocheting such small elements and details can be a real challenge even for professionals. If you are not experienced in this skill but still want to bring joy to your little child, there are numerous other options for making individual figures. We also introduce some of them.
Finger games are only possible if several puppets are available. This allows you to play out a funny and very creative story. These little figures encourage the child's creativity and let their imagination run wild. They also take up very little space and can be brought anywhere. We recommend that you think about a theme and design the finger puppets accordingly. First, draw on a piece of paper how you actually imagine the characters. You can also print out ready-made templates from the internet, some of which we offer below.
A popular material for all crafts is felt. You can also make finger puppets in simple steps. First, get pieces of felt, also scissors, a needle with thread and a felt-tip pen. Now draw the figure on one side, on the back, of the felt material. Here we offer variants on the theme of forest and forest animals. The representation of the typical forest animals does not have to be very detailed. On the contrary, the funny finger animals look cuter when they are simply designed.
When designing the figures, forget about their typical characteristics. Stay true to the orange color of the fox fur and specifically emphasize the owl's large eyes. In addition, the felt color should match the fur of the real animal. Children remember small details, so it's worth putting more effort and creativity into the DIY project.
The basic shape describes the shape of a finger as accurately as possible - elongated and rounded at the top. You can easily do this if you place your fingerprint or handprint on a piece of paper and draw it.
The animals naturally have accommodation in the forest. Our characters also need one of these so that the story really works. Make accommodation for the finger puppets out of felt too. To make this, use a larger piece of felt and cut it into the shape of an autumn leaf. All you need is a ribbon to tie the 'envelope'.
One of the easiest variants is to create them out of paper. This works perfectly and is a good creative activity for small children. You can also use ready-made templates from the Internet or you can let your creativity and imagination run wild and draw some funny characters yourself.
There are two options for the paper figures. One variant is to design the figure for each individual finger. Otherwise, you put two fingers in place of the figure's actual feet. Fas works particularly effectively with human figures because the fingers recreate their legs in a fun way.
You are welcome to use this template. Print them out and give them to your child to color. Figures of this type can be easily designed yourself. You just have to plan the openings for the fingers or legs and cut them out later.
Paper figures can also be made very easily for each individual finger. These work in a similar way to paper egg cups, only the diameter should be a lot smaller. Draw a figure of the animal or a funny person. Leave a 2-3 centimeter wide strip behind the figure and cut it out like this. The figure can be painted or simply made from colorful cardboard.
This template will help you make a paper finger toy for your child. This craft idea is particularly suitable if you need to produce several figures yourself quickly. All you have to do with the help of the children is cut out the figures and fix the strip of paper at the back with scotch tape.
The last variant is particularly simple, is suitable for small children and requires materials that are available in every household. All you need for this craft project is a rubber glove, scissors and felt-tip pens or markers depending on your preference.
First, cut off the fingers of the glove using scissors. The second and last step is to color the rubber fingers and draw funny faces on them. Your children will definitely be happy to take part in this joyful task.
