SPOILER ALERT! This is an adorable preschool craft in lieu of the new Minions movie, and I wanted to give you a full tutorial of a quick craft for kids. Toilet paper roll crafts are such a big craft because they are always around and there’s so much to do with them. This is a full tutorial for a cute little minion toy that your child can easily take with them anywhere they go. This one calls for the traditional yellow minions, but you can also change it up a bit and make the evil purple minions.
I feel like as I get older, the more I appreciate the stuff I took advantage of as a kid, or rather what I didn’t take advantage of. I was one of those kids who wanted to grow up way too fast and was way too serious. So as a 22-year old college student, psychologists would say that I have been trying to make up for my childhood by my Disney obsession, but, like wine, those just get better with age. Being a summer pre-k teacher, you quickly find out what your group of kids enjoy and still challenge their motor skills. Recycling is very important to me to begin with, as is green cleaning, so I loved to implement that in the classroom. The best part about this brilliant little kids’ craft is that a free printable pattern is provided, so even the littlest minion fans can join in the fun. They can practice their tracing and cutting skills to bring the minions to life.
Recycled Minion Craft Full Tutorial
Made for AllFreeKidsCrafts by Amanda Formaro
Materials:
- 3 cardboard tubes
- Glue stick
- Scissors
- Black, gray brown and yellow markers
- Construction paper: blue, yellow, white, black
- Minion coveralls and goggles pattern
Instructions
1. Cut a sheet of yellow construction paper in half lengthwise. You can get two minions from each half. Apply glue stick to the yellow paper and wrap it around the cardboard tube. Trim the excess (about half a sheet) and repeat this process for the next two minions.
2. Cut a sheet of blue construction paper in half lengthwise. Take one of the halves and cut it in half in the opposite direction. Now, from one of those halves, cut it in half again, lengthwise. The strips you need measure 2×6-inches.
3. Use the pattern to cut the coveralls out of your blue strip.
4. Glue the coveralls to the yellow tube, lining it up along the bottom of the tube.
5. If you like, you can add the details such as the buttons on the coveralls using a black marker, and the front pocket with the letter “G” onto the front. For smaller kids, you may want to skip this part.
6. Cut a thin strip of black paper, about 1/4″ wide for the giggles. Glue the strip around the head area of the tube, about 3/4″ from the top of the tube.
7. Cut the goggle pieces from the black and white paper. For a minion with one eye, use the larger circles, for two eyes, use the small set of circles.
8. Glue the white circle to the black circle and draw a pupil in the eye using a brown marker. You can add a dot of black to the brown. Glue the eye to the head of the minion overlapping the goggle strap. If you like, you can make the eyes appear to be squinting by adding yellow marker to the white as shown by the minion on the left.
9. Use gray or brown markers to add mouths.
10. If you would like to add hair, cut from black paper and glue to the inside of the tube at the front.
Check out this crocheted Evil Minion Baby Hat! It’s so cute that it’s a crime.
Who is cuter: the evil minions or the yellow ones?
- Why You Should Submit Your Projects to FaveCrafts - February 12, 2020
- How FaveCrafts Celebrated Our 10 Year Anniversary - July 15, 2019
- Best Blogger Contest 2019 Winners! - April 25, 2019
I can relate as I was too serious about growing up fast. These characters are wonderfully silly and bring back the child in many of us. Good idea to include recycling awareness for even the youngest crafters. I also am getting into green cleaning just this week! Making the home fresh without harsh chemicals is a nice change, and affordable too.
I think the yellow minions are so cute! I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I know it will be hilarious. Thank you for sharing this fun, easy craft. As a former preschool teacher, I know how important it is to have good craft ideas in your back pocket. Plus, like you said, the kids can practice their fine motor skills by tracing and cutting the paper. Bonus: there are no messy materials, so the clean-up process will be a breeze!
I’m also 22 years old, and I absolutely LOVE the minions! This craft is such a cute idea and so simple to make for children of all ages! And the recycling aspect just makes it even better! I wish I knew some kids to make these with, but I may just have to try it out for myself!