What do you need?
cardboard (shoe)box
crepe or tissue paper
leaves, twigs, acorns etc (real or fake)
12 little polystyrene eggs
6 little polystyrene balls
wire (thick and thin)
cutting pliers
black paint and a brush
wooden skewers
a large needle
hobby glue
A biologist in the making you surprise on Sinterklaasavond Eve with an ant habitat. The surprise is stuck on a box so you can easily hide a present inside. The larger your gift, the bigger the box you need and the more ants you have to make! :D
Cover a box in crepepaper or cardboard and attach leaves and other forest or garden materials*.
Stick the ant heads on a skewer, prick two antennae in it and paint head and antennae black.
Insert with a toothpick rear and middle body together, paint them black. Put all sticks in a jar to dry.
Cut per ant three iron wires for legs and bend them as in the picture. Give each ant three pairs of legs.
*On the photo left fake autumn leaves from Blokker, on the right fore the viewer real self dried autumn leaves. Both look good.
Bend the legs with pliers in M shape, one leg slightly longer than the other. Later you can pierce one leg in the box.
Paint all legs black, this is a messy chore. Keep the legs in place with a skewer and let them dry well.
First stick the ants head, then middle and hind body on a metal wire with a drop of glue in between.
Glue all the Autumn material on the box, so you get an idea of where you want to place the ants.
Puncture the box with the needle and plug the ants into the holes. Glue the bodies to the leggs.
Divide the ants on the box. Paint bodies and leggs so you see no green or white anymore.
TIP! If you cover box and lid separately the gift is easily found and the surprise remains intact.