21 Raring2go! Fun Summer crafting ideas from our friends... SIMPLE BUG HOTEL FOR KIDS Our easy bug hotel is probably as simple and as easy as it gets – there are many prettier and cleverer bug hotels out there, but sometimes, you just have to make do with what you have and also make it easy for the kids to join in. For hundreds more crafting ideas, go to: www.redtedart.com Materials • A large plastic bottle cut into two cylinders. • String for hanging. • Sticks & twigs. • Pine cones. • Bark. • Pieces of moss. • Anything else you can find – bamboo with it’s holes, make natural straws, which are great hidey hole for insects and bugs! Basically any natural materials are great! We also had some broken plant pots but forgot all about them. Other bug hotels include other materials such as corn and drilled pieces of wood – to provide different nooks and crannies. I love the one from Garden Therapy. Have a look for inspiration. But in essence, I would say: “think natural”, “think nooks and crannies”, “think what will last” (e.g. paper could go soggy and leaves will go brittle and break/ disintegrate). It is great to use things from YOUR local environment, as you are looking to attract bugs and beetles and insects from the same local environment. How to make a Simple Bug Hotel: Time needed: 15 minutes. 1. Cut the bottle down to size We cut our bottle down to shape (may I add, that I actually drank 2 litres of fizzy water, especially for this task as we accidentally threw out our last bottle in the recycling?? Argh!) 2. Arrange your materials Check what materials you have and arrange by size and texture – we snapped our twigs to make them a little smaller. Had larger and bigger ones. Arranged pinecones. 3. Decide on the insect hotel location and add twine for hanging If you plan to hang your bug hotel, loop some garden twine round and then start layering your bug hotel. We did one hotel for on the ground and one for hanging from a tree to see if would attract different creatures. 4.Make the insect hotel nice and cozy Stuff it to make it nice and firm, so it doesn’t get blown about! And done!
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