Of all the masks we’ll explore today, I think that the Cat Mask is perhaps the most versatile. Partly, this is because cats have such a wide range of colors and that adds a lot of potential variety, but also because with a few stripes or spots, you can use the same template to create tigers, ocelots, and cheetahs.
How to build a Kitty Mask:
You will need:
- 1 sheet of dark cat-colored construction paper (such as brown, orange, black, or even yellow)
- 1 half-sheet of light cat-colored construction paper (such as white, beige, or yellow) Hint: The left-over half sheet from the Panda Mask works perfectly for this!
- small scraps of black, pink and green and/or yellow construction paper
- scissors
- something to mark with (like a pencil or crayon)
- string or yarn
- glue
- tape (recommended)
Start by folding the dark sheet in half the short way and, like all the mask-projects, hold it up to the wearer’s face (fold towards the nose) and mark where the eyes fall. Cut out holes for the eyes.
Draw a large half-oval on the folded sheet. Be sure to include a quarter-circle at the bottom to form the chin. Add some triangles in the corner to make ears and cut out the compound shape. (Don’t worry about drawing it “just right.” Every cat is different).
Now we need a half sheet of light-colored paper (fold a full sheet the short way and cut along the fold). Fold in half the short ways and draw three quarters of a lopsided circle (It should be flat at the top and curve almost halfway up at the bottom). Cut out this shape and unfold to make your kitty’s snout.
Cut a triangle out of a pink (or orange) piece of scrap paper to make the nose and glue in the middle of the snout. Glue the snout to the lower middle of the main mask.
Make two more triangles out of pink (or yellow) scraps and paste them in the ears. The pink triangles should be smaller than the ears.
Optional: Whiskers
If you’re making a kitty-cat, it will need whiskers. Tigers or cougars look O.K. without them, in my opinion.
Cut six strips of black (or yellow, or orange, or white if you made a black cat) construction paper. Mine worked out to be about a quarter of an inch by 4.5 inches long. If in doubt, just make yours as long as your fist is wide. Using only a single dab of glue, attach to the snout to make whiskers.
Optional: Eyes
One of the key features of all cats are their vertical pupils. I do NOT recommend this step if you’re going to be wearing the mask for extended periods or if you have to operate any type of machinery.
Cut out two thin strips of green (or yellow or orange) construction paper.They should be around two to three inches long (depending on how tall you made the eye-holes in your mask). Trim them so they taper to a point at one end and glue the non-tapered part to the inside of the mask.
Here we have my Production Manager modeling the completed project. I think that the claw gesture is a reminder of what will happen to me if I don’t make my deadlines.
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