We spotted our first butterlfy of spring today, a lovely white one fluttering by! It felt only right to celebrate with a little butterfly craft. This was a riff on coffee filter butterflies, and was great for helping Travis hone some skills from art class this year.

First, I challenged him to cut out an oval. He decided it would be best to draw it first, then cut.

I made a few additional ovals so everyone could paint one with watercolor.

Little sister included!

Once the butterflies were dry, I showed Travis how to fold them accordion-style, back and forth until pleated.

Finally, we wrapped shiny pipe cleaners around the middle of each one as the bodies, leaving the tips sticking up for two antennae on each.

Fan out the wings, then add string or ribbon and let your butterflies flutter in a pretty window. Fun fact: tell your child that a group of butterflies is actually called a flutter, and see if they can guess why!