Coffee Filter Turkeys

Gobble gobble! Celebrate the Thanksgiving season with these adorable Coffee Filter Turkeys! The kids will have so much fun creating them at school, Thanksgiving festivities, or whenever!

Easy and Fun Coffee Filter Turkey Craft

Before we know it, October will be behind us and Thanksgiving will be quickly approaching! This time of year seriously flies by. All we can do is prepare as best as we can to make things a little less hectic! And when it comes to Thanksgiving, I’m not just planning a delicious table spread: I’m planning fun Thanksgiving crafts for the kids, too!

This easy and fun Coffee Filter Turkey Craft is such a cute way for kids to celebrate Thanksgiving. It comes together in a snap with just a few household supplies and standard crafting materials. Seriously, coffee filters are the crafting material you never knew you needed… just be sure you don’t run out of enough for actual coffee! I also included an interesting step to get the color of your coffee filters just right, and it involves using a spray bottle!

Make these coffee filter turkeys at home, on Thanksgiving day with the kids, at youth group, or even at school! Since the supplies are so inexpensive, it’s a great option for crafting with the whole class. Whenever you choose to recreate this, I can’t wait to hear how it goes for you — and how much the kiddos love it!

Supplies you’ll need

I love when a craft only needs simple supplies, and this Thanksgiving craft certainly fits into that category! Here is what you’ll need to craft a coffee filter turkey:

• Coffee filters — Just the standard size coffee filters will do! If they’re too big, the turkey’s tail feathers will flop around instead of holding their shape.
• Washable markers — We used shades of brown, orange, red, and a little bit of pink!
• Cardstock, brown, red and orange — One sheet of each color will be enough for several coffee filter turkeys. You can even use scraps, if you have some lying around!
• Jumbo popsicle stick — The popsicle stick supports the turkey so that kids can easily hold them upright.
• Googly eyes — What’s an animal craft without googly eyes! I used a fairly small size here.

How to make a Coffee Filter Turkey

Follow these simple steps to make your own coffee filter turkey this Thanksgiving!

1. First, break out your washable markers in the shades of your choosing. Color your coffee filter all over with the different colors. It doesn’t have to be perfect — just deposit enough color so that it all bleeds together in the next step.
2. Once your coffee filter is colored, give it a few light spritzes of water with a spray bottle until colors bleed together. Kids love seeing the colors melt together — this was our favorite step by far! Then, allow the filters to dry. TIP: I always dry them super quick with a hair dryer! 
3. When the coffee filter is dry, fold it in half and slightly pinch the middle. I think this just adds a little more texture and a better look to the coffee filter. 
4. Cut out a brown body piece, orange beak and feet, and red snood. TIP: for the feet we cut two heart shapes.
5. Glue the feet (the point goes to the back of the turkey) and face pieces to the body piece. Then add on two cute googly eyes.
6. Glue the body to the top of a jumbo popsicle stick. You want it high enough so that kids can fit their hands around the bottom of the popsicle stick, but you also want to make sure there is some support on the back of the turkey.
7. Finally, glue your folded coffee filter behind the body of the turkey, making sure the coffee filter goes slightly below the head. If you’re confused about placement at all, be sure to refer to my photos of the coffee filter turkeys that we made!