How to Make a Pipe Cleaner Cactus
Have fun making this adorable pipe cleaner cactus! This 3D cactus craft is really easy to make, a fun summer craft for kids of all ages.
Yield: 1 pipe cleaner cactus
Cost: $2
Materials
Instructions
Find what you need:
- Gather your supplies and materials.
Make a tall pipe cleaner cactus with arms:
- To make the main part of the tall cactus hold 8 green pipe cleaners together.
- Bend them a bit at the half-way point.
- Wrap one of the pipe cleaners around the half-way point to secure the group together.
- Make the group of pipe cleaners flat again, spreading each of the pipe cleaners out evenly.
- Now scoop up the pipe cleaners and pull them so they come down from the center. You can hold a finger on the inside center to help you do this.
- Gather the pipe cleaners together so they're even at the bottom and push down on the center to round out the bundle a bit.
- Then wrap a few of the pipe cleaner ends around the group, about 1 inch above the bottom.
- To make a small arm for the cactus you'll need 1 pipe cleaner cut in half.
- Hold the 2 halves together and twist them in the center to connect them. (The same as you did for the full pipe cleaners.)
- Fold the ends down and twist the bottom to create a smaller version of the tall cactus.
- Then fold the bundle down just above the wrap and up again after about 1/2 inch.
- Repeat the same steps to make another arm using 4 pipe cleaner halves this time.
- Make a gap in the side of the cactus where you'd like one of the arms to sit.
- Hold the arm in place and add hot glue to the bottom section.
- Push the main cactus pipe cleaners back together, holding them in the glue until it dries.Repeat, adding glue above the arm of the cactus, gluing it together so there isn't a visible gap.
- Repeat, gluing the 2nd arm to the other side of the cactus, placing it either higher or lower than the first arm.
Make a short rounded cactus:
- To make a rounded cactus you'll need 8 pipe cleaners cut in half (16 sections). Keep them separated into 2 equal groups.
- Twist 8 of the halves together in the middle. Separate the pipe cleaners and fold them down, similar to what you did with the tall cactus.This time don't spread them out all around, though. Keep them together to one side, creating a rounded half of a cactus.
- Repeat with the other bundle of pipe cleaner halves, leaving 1 half out. Then add a line of hot glue to one of the outside pipe cleaners.
- Connect this pipe cleaner to the outside one on the second bundle.
- Glue the other side together too, creating a full round cactus.Wrap the final pipe cleaner half around the bottom of the bundle to keep it together in a round shape.
- To make a blossom for the cactus, wrap a pipe cleaner around a pen or pencil, creating a coil.
- Remove the pen and slide half a pipe cleaner into the middle of the coil.
- Bring the pipe cleaner together and twist it, creating a rounded shape.
- Slide the pipe cleaner ends inside the coil as well and spread out the coil, creating a circle.(We used green pipe cleaners for this, but you could make a colourful flower too!)
- Use hot glue to attach the flower to the side of the cactus, near the top.
"Plant" the cacti:
- Fill a 3-1/2 inch clay pot with sand. But make sure you tape up the hole in the bottom first!
- "Plant" the cactuses, sticking the bottoms into the sand until they're fairly secure in place.
- Then top up the pot with sand.(Keep reading below for other options, if you don't want to add sand into your pot.)
- Your pipe cleaner cactus is complete!
- Now have fun making more cactuses in various colours, shapes, and sizes!
Video
Notes
Looking to use up your pipe cleaners? Here's a few of our favourite pipe cleaner crafts:
Pipe Cleaner Tulip
How to Make a Pipe Cleaner Dog
3 Strand Pipe Cleaner Bracelets