Purr-fectly Cute Black Cat Craft Project

Looking for a fun, interactive craft to pair with Halloween storytime? I’m happy to share this fun black cat craft project with moving eyes that peek side to side, just like our sneaky feline friend in my book Halloween Cuties.

This crafty project is just the right mix of Halloween mischief without being too spooky for little ones. The moving eyes add an interactive twist that kids of all ages will love. Paired with storytime, this would be a delightful and engaging way to make the story come alive!

What you'll need:

• Printable template download [here] for cat pieces

• 9” Black Paper Plate

• Heavy White Card Stock

• Scissors

• Glue (I like using Glue Dots for fast, mess-free assembly)

• Paint Markers

• Pencil

• Everywhere Punch Circle Punch

1-Cut out two round eyeholes that are ~1.5”-2” in diameter. I like to use an Everywhere Punch Circle Punch to cut out the circles because it allows you to punch out circles right in the center of the plate.

2-Download [here] and print the color template I’ve provided on cardstock and cut out the shapes. Or, use the shapes you cut out from my template to trace onto other types of paper if you’d like. I used glitter cardstock here for a little extra sparkle!

3-Glue the ears to the back of the top of the plate and glue the inner ears on top of the ears.

4-Glue the nose/mouth, cheeks, and whiskers to the front of the plate.

5-Cut a long rectangular strip of white cardstock approximately 11” x 3”. Center it on the eye holes behind the plate. Outline the eye holes with pencil on the strip.

6- Color in the circles with the color of your choice. Draw black pupils on your colored circles. Add some eye sparkles in white on top, if you wish!

7-Lay the white eye strip across the back of the paper plate so that the eyes you just colored show through the eye holes.

8-Cut two small strips of white cardstock that are approximately 1.5” x 4.5” (a little longer than the height of your long eye strip). Glue the very top and very bottom of the small strips to the back of the paper plate to hold the long eye strip in place. Make sure you don’t get glue on the long eye strip because it needs to be able to move!

9-That’s it! Have fun moving the cat’s eyes by pushing and pulling the eye strip on either side!

Don't forget to share your creations with me—I’d love to see all the crafty cats you come up with. Have fun bringing this peeking black cat to life and making meow-gical Halloween memories!

Happy crafting,
Joyce