How to Make a Paper Butterfly Terrarium
This paper butterfly terrarium craft is all about layering natural and handmade elements to create a beautiful scene inside a mason jar. Colour and cut out paper butterflies, then build a miniature landscape on the lid before sealing it all inside.
Yield: 1 mason jar butterfly terrarium
Cost: $2
Materials
- FREE Printable Butterfly Outline (printed at 35, 40, and 50%)
- Alcohol markers (or regular markers)
- Mason jar(s) (32 oz)
- Floral foam
- Twigs (small, dry branches)
- Moss
- Faux flowers and greenery
- Floral wire
Instructions
Step 1: Find what you need
- Gather your supplies and materials.
Step 2: Create your butterflies
- Print one of our butterfly coloring pages at a smaller scale. (Find the link in the materials list above.)We printed our butterflies at 35, 40, and 50%.
- Colour butterflies of different sizes and cut them out.
Step 3: Prepare the lid
- We'll be building our butterfly habitat on the lid of a 32 ounce mason jar. Make sure you have the jar and ring as well.
- Cut a piece of floral foam at least 1-1/2 inches tall to fit in the center of the lid.Since you'll be adding things to the foam, it should be quite a bit smaller than the lid, so it'll fit back in the jar.
- Add hot glue to the center of the lid and attach the foam.
Step 4: Create a display
- Gather a small fallen branch (or two) from outside and push it into the foam.Make sure your branch is short enough to fit inside the jar (5 inches maximum).
- Apply more hot glue around the outside of the foam and cover it with moss.
- Poke faux flower stems into the foam. You can twist or bend the stems so they fit how you'd like.Secure the flowers to the side of the foam with more hot glue and cover the glue with moss.
- Cut a piece of thin floral wire to be about 4 inches long.
- Stick the wire into the foam. Then glue one of the butterflies to the end, using a small amount of hot glue.
- Glue the other butterflies to the branch, placing them at different angles.
Step 5: Close the jar
- Once you're happy with the habitat, carefully and slowly insert the lid into the jar.You'll have to shuffle the lid a bit, pushing the flowers and greenery up into the jar as you go.
- Then twist the ring back onto the lid, securing it in place.
- Your paper butterfly terrarium is complete!
Video
Notes
Looking for more butterfly crafts? Here's a few of our favourites:
Plastic Bottle Butterfly Craft
Flapping Butterfly Craft
Coffee Filter Butterflies