Beat Spring Break Boredom: Coffee Filter Butterflies

This is a fun and super easy project for a child of any age and a sure fire way to beat Spring Break Boredom! 

I give you...Coffee Filter Butterflies!

You probably have everything you need to make this project and if you don't, any of these items can be found at the dollar store.

You need:


Coffee Filters

Markers (Non-washable work best. Not permanent, non-washable. And yes, they will wash out, just not as easily as washable.)


Spray Bottle with Water


Clothes Pins


Optional - 

Black Pipe Cleaners (Or "chenille stems" as they're now called.)


Wiggly Eyes


Lay newspaper down to cover your work surface. Place a coffee filter on the newspaper and flatten it out.

Next, color the coffee filter with markers. You can make an intricate design or simply scribble all over it with a variety of colors.

After your coffee filter is colored. Spray it down with water and allow the markers to bleed and blend on.

After spraying the coffee filter, you can transfer to to a dry piece of newspaper or lay it on a cooking rack to dry. 

While you wait for your coffee filter to dry, you can color the front of a clothes pin with marker.

Once your coffee filter is dry, fold it back and fourth accordion style in about 1/2" pleats. 

Until it looks like this: 

Then fold the coffee filter in half, hold it in the middle by the fold and clip your clothes pin on to it. Your clothes pin becomes the butterflies body and the the coffee filter it's wings. Fan the folds out on each side.

If you have them, you can use small pieces of black pipe cleaners to form a "V" shape, curl each end by wrapping it around the end of a pencil and then clip it in the clothes pin to give the butterfly antennae. You can also glue tiny wiggly eyes to the front of the clothes pin.


Here's a few ideas...


For a more vibrant butterfly, color the entire with coffee filter, filling in all the white.


Instead of using every color marker in the box, color one coffee filter with all warm colors (red, orange, yellow) and one with all cool colors (purple, blue, green) for a nice effect.


Clip the butterflies to curtains in your home to add pizazz to any room.


Glue a magnet to the back of the clothes pin and hang your butterfly on the fridge.


Tie a piece of fishing line around the top of the clothes pin and hang your butterfly from a ceiling fan or from the ceiling to make it look like it's flying.