Nature Themed Suncatcher Crafts for Every Season

My kids are huge fans of things that sparkle, so it’s no surprise that they love making suncatcher crafts. But we thought we’d take things a step further and move on from cellophane suncatchers to something more NZ style – nature! Then we thought, why not make up suncatchers which coordinate with each season, and here we are today!

Creating Suncatcher Crafts for Every Season

Suncatchers traditionally hang in windows where the sunlight shines through, and were made with coloured glass. Then there’s the child friendly option with the stained glass effect of using cellophane or tissue paper on the glass itself, such as in our How to Make Tissue Paper Matariki Stars blog.

After getting our thinking hats on and some experimentation here at Mud Mates HQ, I am excited to share four nature themed suncatcher crafts which I’m sure kids will enjoy making.

Each suncatcher craft will require your children to first collect a range of nature-based materials including leaves, petals, grass and small flowers. The aim is to select things which are thin, allowing light to shine through. Once you have your collection of nature elements you can create your suncatcher.

Summer – Cut the centre out of a paper plate. Cut a piece of clear book covering/contact paper just larger than the centre of the plate and stick this on to the back of the paper plate. (Have the contact paper sticky side up on the table, and put the paper plate on top).
Stick the nature items in the centre on the covering and then place another piece on the top to seal it. Hang on a window or punch a hole and hang it outside.
Autumn Leaf Suncatcher Craft – Collect a range of different coloured dry autumn leaves. Look for ones which are very thin and dry for maximum colour effects.
Cut off a rectangular piece of sticky clear book covering. Fold it in half, then pull the paper covering off to the fold, exposing half of the sticky plastic. Stick your leaves onto the sticky paper then remove the rest of the paper backing and carefully fold it over the leaves, sandwiching them in between the two layers of plastic. Press down with your hands, avoiding air bubbles if possible. Then stick onto a window for a colourful display.
Winter – Frozen Suncatchers – Find yourself an empty plastic container and fill to your desired height with water. Add your nature collection items and then freeze.
Once frozen, remove from the container and carefully place outside on a table or windowsill to see the colours shine through.
Spring 3D Nature Suncatcher – Hunt out a small box and cut out a square from four sides, not the top or bottom. The aim with the cutting is to leave only a small cardboard frame left to support the box, with plenty of space to add the nature finds on each side. Add clear plastic book covering to the inside of each framed opening, with the sticky side facing out. As this is a larger suncatcher, your child can stick larger flowers, leaves, ferns and even tiny sticks on it. We liked building little miniature scenes on each side and telling stories about what was happening. You could experiment with putting a torch inside the box if the sun is hiding or take it outside and look through each opening.

While the suncatcher crafts are not messy activities to make, our protective kids clothing remains perfect to wear when exploring out in the garden. Head over to check out our range of overpants, coveralls and shoe covers – all designed to let kids be kids and get messy, without you needing to continually do the washing!

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