Nature Activity and Craft: Dandelion Lion's Mane

While scrolling on Tik Tok the other day, I found the most adorable and easy nature craft that I knew I had to try. The best part—the only supplies needed are cardboard, a sharpie, and dandelions, or in our case, garden flowers. Bonus: It is a wonderful fine motor activity for young toddlers.

 Step 1: Find a box or any thick cardboard. I used an old box, but a paper plate of heavy card stock will do in a pinch.

 Step 2: Cut cardboard into large oval. It does not need to be perfect, just eyeball it. If you feel compelled to be precise, use a large round bowl as an outline.

Step 3: Use a sharpie or black marker to draw your lion’s face.

Step 4: Poke holes around the perimeter of the circle in order to create the lion’s mane. I used the back of a watercolor brush to do this, but you may use a pencil or really anything you have on hand for this part.

 Once done, your little one is ready to go on a dandelion hunt!

How adorable and simple is this little guy!

 The only problem I ran into is that we didn’t have any dandelions in the yard.  Instead, I took Indigo to our neighborhood’s Friday afternoon Farmer’s Market.  After some delicious strawberry gelato, we hit up the flower stall. I let Indie pick out a small bouquet of her liking. She opted for Sweet Peas and Baby’s-breath.  Indie used a few stems for her project from each bouquet and the rest went into a vase on my kitchen table. It was a win-win for both of us!

The fun did not stop there, back at home, Indigo explored the back yard and picked a few different blooms to fill in the rest of her mane. The result: utter adorableness. 

It is such a fun and versatile little craft. You could cut out a cardboard butterfly or unicorn instead of a lion. The possibilities are endless!  Indie had so much fun exploring the yard. She was delighted upon spotting hummingbirds and finding Roly Polies. Not only was it a great fine motor craft, but also a wonderful excuse to stop and smell the roses!