Coffee Filter Turkey Craft for Kids

This fun coffee filter turkey craft uses a tie dyed filter and a clothespin to make an adorable turkey. Great as a Thanksgiving centerpiece or place card.

Turkey crafts are a really fun way to celebrate Thanksgiving with kids. This coffee filter turkey craft is not only adorable, but easy to make with a variety of ages. Simply tie dye the coffee filter and attach it to a decorated clothespin to make. Great as centerpieces on a Thanksgiving table or as a fun preschool craft.

Coffee Filter Turkey Craft for Kids

These adorable tie dye turkeys are so fun to make, the process is almost like magic for kids. Plus, they can use their creativity to make the turkey feathers look however they want.

If you haven’t done coffee filter crafts with kids yet, you are missing out. They make great crafts for 1 year olds who like to color with markers, and for older kids alike. This could be a fun Thanksgiving craft for 1 year and 2 year olds to help make, or for elementary-aged kids to do on their own!

Plus, you can get many of the materials at the local dollar store. The coffee filters and clothespins from the Dollar Store transform into the cutest Thanksgiving Turkeys ever!

What you need to make the coffee filter turkey craft

Coffee Filters

Washable Markers

Wooden Clothespins

Craft Foam, Red and Yellow

Wiggle Eyes

Craft Paint – Brown

Glue Gun and Glue Sticks

Scissors

Paintbrush

Spray Mister filled with water

Non-Stick Craft Mat or Large Plastic Zip Top Bag

Cardboard Scrap

How to make the coffee filter turkey craft

Flatten the round coffee filter on the table and let children color them the color of their turkey feathers. Some children might like to stick with oranges and browns and yellows like we have done, or you might have a child who wants to make a rainbow turkey!

Using many colors might result in a muted brown, but this can be a fun experiment in color mixing as well. For example, colors that are next to each other on the color wheel, such as red, orange and yellow, blend more harmoniously.

Place the colored coffee filter on a craft mat or zipper bag and spritz with water to watch the magic! The colors will start to blend together creating a tie dye effect. Continue to add water until the children are satisfied with the color.

This is a great step for toddlers, as they can color their coffee filter and will love to watch the colors blend like magic. Set aside to dry.

Make the turkey body out of clothespins! Clip the clothespins on a scrap of cardboard and paint all sides with brown craft paint and paintbrush then set aside to dry.

Attach googly eyes using a glue gun with fine tip applicator (this is a job for an adult, unless your children are old enough to responsibly handle a glue gun).

Cut a triangle beak from yellow craft foam and a squiggly waddle from red craft foam with scissors. You can opt to use construction paper for this step as well if that is what you have on hand. Attach the beak and wattle under the wiggle eyes.

While you’re at it, wrap some of the same construction paper around a toilet paper roll and make a toilet paper toll turkey as a friend to your coffee filter turkey!

Fold the dry coffee filters in half and crinkle slightly to fluff, then insert coffee filter into top clip of clothespin.

Create these Dollar Store Coffee Filter Tie Dye Turkeys in just about 30 minutes with coloring and cutting help from the kiddos! Add names to the dry turkey feathers with a marker to create Thanksgiving place cards.