Coffee Can Owl Craft

I only created this coffee can owl craft because I had an empty coffee can. I finished the coffee, looked at the empty container and thought, I have to do something with this. The container is just to big and sturdy to throw away. The compulsion was too strong. So here we are, and I’m glad I did.

Say it with me, it’s an easy craft! Plus this is a great fall craft to do with your kids. Mind you, when she was painting some of the smaller items I was nervous. But this is a kid’s craft, a fun craft we can do together, so perfection isn’t a thing here. Let’s get to it.

We’re obviously starting off with an empty coffee can, don’t have an empty coffee can? Might I suggest a tiny owl version using a food can or a bell jar? How about a huge owl from a paint can? In any case, I encourage you to look around your house or maybe even a thrift store for an empty container. Or, and this is the easiest route, go buy some coffee. Empty the can and give the coffee to your friend, should you not drink it, and start the craft.

Instead of kids paint, I opted for acrylic paint since it still washes off pretty well. For $7 at a craft store you can get an assortment of twelve acrylic paints so you can do even more crafts! My favorite go-to paint holder is an old egg carton. And I recommend a $5 set of paint brush so you have different size brushes for each area. If you only have one paint brush, you’ll be fine too as long as it’s on the smaller size. And as always, a tablecloth to protect your table. I love dollar tree tablecloths because, well they’re a dollar.

I had my daughter start painting the base of the owl. It will need two coats and I always recommend a foam roller or foam brush for more even strokes.

Once the second coat is on, and dry, you’ll paint in the green belly, brown wings and blue eye base. You should need only one coat of those. Let dry. Here she is coloring in the blue eye base, while I shout – careful, careful! She did great, but if your kid colors outside the line, might I suggest drawing a smaller eye base, then you’ll have room to fix the errors.

After that, you’ll paint the white onto the blue eye base, I did two coats of color here. And then take a thin brush and make an upside down triangle for the nose in orange. Next up, paint the black eyes onto the white circles.

The owl looked a little flat, so I decided to add a bit of texture. I mixed a little brown and white paint together to create a lighter shade of brown, and with a round foam brush dabbed onto top of the dark wing.

The very last step was the pumpkin on the belly. It came about because I thought it looked too blank. I proposed adding feathers or another smaller, round part of his belly but my daughter hated the idea. So out of no where I proposed a pumpkin and she loved it. I will admit the pumpkin does make it look more fall-ish!

Coffee Can Owl Craft

Supplies

• Coffee can
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brush set
• Tablecloth

Instructions

1. Peel the label off and clean the can. Don’t worry too much about getting all the sticky off, paint’s going on top, or you can just put that part in the back.
2. Paint the owl’s base color – we chose a purple-red color. Let dry.
3. Paint the second coat of the owl’s base color.
4. Paint the owl’s green belly, brown wing base and blue eye base. For the owl’s belly we choose green, just a simple little arch and filled it in. For the wing’s base we chose a dark brown, a high small arch. And the eye base is white, do two coats.
5. Paint the nose. A little orange upside down triangle.
6. Paint the black eyes onto the white circles.
7. Texture the owl’s wings.  I mixed a little brown and white paint together to create a lighter shade of brown and with a round foam brush dabbed onto top of the dark wing.
8. Paint the pumpkin on the belly. Stroke the paint brush with a thicker coat of paint in the up and down direction, like a pumpkin. Lastly, take a very thin brush dipped in some brown paint and make a tiny stem.

There ya have it, a super fun, fall coffee can owl craft! If you’re looking for another DIY fall item, try the DIY Yarn Wall Hanging