Lion, rabbit or monkey: inspiration for animal-themed carnival masks
Whether lion, tiger, rabbit or monkey: the animal world offers countless ideas that you can cleverly use to make a fun animal mask. And that brings delight for young and old, because animals are always on trend. So grab some craft scissors, pens and a suitable template and get together for an afternoon of crafting with your friends. It's much more fun to create great animal masks together during carnival crafting.
However, it is important that the crafting instructions match your child's interests and age. Especially for more difficult projects, your assistance and support are particularly important. Let your children decide for themselves which steps of the instructions they want to tackle with your help and which they can already manage on their own.
Why do children enjoy making animal masks so much?
Animal masks are not only fun to look at, they also help your kids get to know the world of their favourite animals better. While making the masks together you can talk about the different characteristics and abilities of the animals. That way, it won't only be your children who learn something new, but you as parents too.
Crafting for carnival, and crafting in general, boosts your children's fine motor skills. You can also get creative together and let your imagination run free. But most importantly: you spend precious time together. And you have lots of fun doing it.
Make your own masks: materials for the best animal masks
When crafting individual animal masks you can all kinds of materials to use. Many of them you probably even already at home. We've listed some materials and supplies for making animal carnival masks here. That way you can see at a glance what you need to implement your craft ideas.
Materials and supplies for crafting animal masks
Paper, card, cardboard box
Paper plates
colored construction paper
translucent paper
felt
old newspaper
egg cartons
balloons
elastic band
straws
needle & thread
craft glue/adhesive or paste
pens & paints
acrylic paint
pearlescent markers
brushes
craft scissors
Craft instructions for animal masks - fun ideas for every age
HABA has for you the four best craft tutorials compiled that are suitable for children of all ages. You probably want to get started right away, so ready, set, go. Grab your craft supplies and be creative!
Cardboard animal masks for crafting and coloring
A great carnival craft idea is animal masks from old cardboard boxes. Whether with or without a template, you can design the animal motifs freely with all your creativity.
The best part: you also do a lot of good for the environment. You reduce your waste and give the old boxes new life. We wish you lots of fun implementing our instructions.
Required materials:
colored construction paper or card
an old cardboard box
pens & paints
brushes
craft scissors
craft glue
elastic band
Free download: for coloring
How it's done:
Once you've chosen your favorite animal motif, you can get started right away. To do this, take the cardboard box and sketch the outline of your motif on it with a pencil. If you want your animal mask to cover the whole face, draw the outlines larger. For masks that only go up to the nose, omit the animal's eyes – you can later use face paint here. Now cut everything out with scissors and don't forget the eye holes.
If you don't feel confident drawing the outlines freehand and your child is still too small for it, you can download a template of your animal motif, print it out and stick it onto the cardboard box for the outline. This way you only have to cut out the mask and the respective openings and color them according to your ideas. If you proceed like this, you can skip the following steps, except for the last two.
Once you have neatly cut out the outline and the eye openings of your animal mask, you can now make the details. Use suitable construction paper to sketch and cut out ears, nose, mane or other animal details.
Use craft glue to attach the pieces to the appropriate places on your mask. Of course, your children can also paint the mask according to their own ideas and thus give it a very individual look.
Finally, attach the mask. It's best to use an elastic band. Pierce small holes through the outer edges of your animal mask with a thin, sharp tool, thread an elastic band through and tie it. Your cardboard animal mask is now finished.
Important: Make sure that the elastic band is not too tight on your child's head and doesn't pinch.
Free download: to download
Make animal masks from papier-mâché
If you want to give your animal masks that special something, you can also make them from papier-mâché. Children especially love crafting with papier-mâché. They can to their heart's content knead, squish and shape.
And the best part: papier-mâché is quick and inexpensive to make. Here you will find a simple guide.
Required materials:
old newspaper
balloons
pens & paints
wallpaper paste
craft scissors
a bowl of water
brushes
spoon
twine
craft mat
How it's done:
Blow up the balloon until it is approximately the size of your child's face and tie it.
Now draw the outlines of your animal motif on the balloon with a waterproof pen. Make sure that the openings for eyes and mouth are large enough so that your children can see and speak well through the animal mask.
Next, stir a few teaspoons of paste into a bowl of water until there are no lumps left. Let the mixture sit until it thickens.
While you wait for the paste, you can make lots of small scraps from old newspaper. Simply tear the paper into small pieces or cut it with scissors.
Using a brush, apply the scraps with the paste to the surface of the balloon. Glue as many layers of newspaper onto the balloon as possible so that your mask becomes stable later. Make sure you do not glue over the outer edges and the borders of your drawn mask and openings. If that accidentally happens, you can, of course, later trim the protruding scraps with scissors.
When you have finished applying the paste-scraps, let everything dry well – you will need some patience here.
When the animal mask is dry, remove it from the balloon and, if necessary, recut the shape with scissors until you like it.
Paint the mask as you like. Let your creativity run free.
Finally, use scissors to make small holes in the outer edges of your mask, through which you thread a twine and tie it on the inside. Make sure the mask does not fit too tightly.
Make animal masks from felt
Felt is ideal for crafting animal masks. The special texture makes them look even cuter than they already are. Due to the velvety-looking felt fibers this creates the impression that the mask resembles the fur of the respective animal. Here we show you how to make your felt animal mask.
Required materials:
felt in various colors
paper
pencil
craft scissors
textile or all-purpose glue
needle & thread
elastic band
How it's done:
If you've chosen an animal motif, you can get started right away. First draw the outlines of your motif onto the paper with a pencil. Then cut out the outline and the drawn openings for the eyes – you now have a template for the further craft steps. Make sure that the planned openings are wide enough for the eyes and also for your child's nose bridge. It's best to hold the outline up to the face and adjust the animal mask as well as possible.
Next come the details. For this, draw all necessary outlines for ears, nose or other parts onto the paper and cut out the individual pieces.
Now you can place the templates of your animal mask on the felt in the color of your choice and trace the respective outline with a pencil.
Further details, such as a lion's mane or the pointed beak of an owl, can be cut out of different colored felts and then attached to the mask with textile or all-purpose glue.
Finally, sew the elastic band to the outer ends on the inside of the mask with needle and thread. Measure beforehand how much elastic you need so that it is neither too tight nor too loose on your child's head.
Your felt animal mask is finished.
Make animal masks from egg cartons
Make new from old. Egg cartons don't have to be thrown away immediately after they've served their purpose. With this DIY idea you can make great animal masks out of used cartons. In doing so you reduce your waste and do something good for the environment. You'll be surprised how beautiful the masks made from old egg cartons look.
Required materials:
egg cartons
acrylic paints
pens & paints
brushes
elastic band
stapler
How it's done:
Egg cartons are great for animal bird masks whose beaks can be especially emphasized and colorfully designed thanks to the 3D effect. First, paint your motif onto the egg carton. This can, for example, be the outline of the eye area including the bird's beak. Make sure you leave enough space for the eyes and also for your child's nose bridge.
If you are happy with the size of the mask, cut your bird motif out of the egg carton. For small children, you as parents should better do this part, as cutting the carton is not that easy.
Once you have cut out the outline and the openings for your child's eyes, the kids can now get really creative. They can paint and decorate the mask to their heart's content with a brush and paint.
In the end, let the animal mask dry well. Then attach the elastic band to the outer ends on the inside of the mask with a stapler.
Your egg carton animal mask is finished.
An alternative to crafting animal masks
If you or your child have no time or inclination, to make a cheeky animal mask, paint funny animal faces.
At carnival most children love to be painted, so take out your face painting supplies and decorate your child's face to match the animal costume. You'll see, with carnival face paint you can create all kinds of motifs on the face.
However, there are a few things to consider. Children should only come into contact with makeup from the age of two. In addition, you should only use products that are water-based to prevent possible skin irritation and breakouts.
Frequently asked questions about making animal masks
When should we start crafting our animal masks?
Which accessories go with homemade animal masks?
Which animal masks are particularly suitable for my child's age?
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Image credits
Bowl with paste © abasler - stock.adobe.com Reindeer mask © Sergey Filimonov/Stocksy - stock.adobe.com
Colorful egg cartons © Manuela Ewers - stock.adobe.com