Our Leprechaun Trap!

My kindergarten daughter came home with this month's family project for March... to make a leprechaun trap.  I had no idea what that meant, so after a little Googling, I found some cute ideas.

Here's what we came up with.

The idea?  We trick the leprechaun to go up the ladder to find his shiny treasure, he falls through the top, and he's stuck!

Here's what we used:

Old oatmeal box (I KNEW I'd find a use for it!)

A plate (to trace the rim)

Green felt for wrapping the box

Light green felt for making a few shamrocks

Stiff felt for the rim

Black duct tape (for the hat-belt)

Yellow felt (for the buckle)

Dowels (for the ladder)

Stick pieces (for the steps)

Hot glue

Skewer (for the sign)

Green paper for the flimsy hat top

Mini gold glass marbles

Trace the plate onto the stiff felt to make the base.

Wrap the oatmeal can with the felt (use hot glue).

Tuck the excess where the cylinder box bottom is.

Glue the oatmeal box to the stiff green base.

Cut out the middle of the hat lid.

See... it fits back on and will make the "trap"!

Use the black duct (Duck) tape.

Looks like a leprechaun hat, eh?

Here are the tiny glass marbles we used.  I found this on Michael's clearance just yesterday for 99 cents for both little bottles!  I used half of one bottle (with lots of 'em escaping over my counter and floor, too!)

My daughter helped now that the hot glue wasn't used as often.  She spread the glue stick on the paper so we could sprinkle on the gold.  (This was round two...)

Then, she helped sprinkle the gold marbles.  We need to make the top as eye-catching as possible to attract that pesky leprechaun and make him step onto the hat.

She pressed it into place.  Notice the tear in the top.  I hope it's not too visible for Mr. Leprechaun.  It's causing the hat top to be weaker yet.  (BTW, the little green shamrocks were glued on earlier... forgot to photograph that).

Next, we made the ladder.  I had two precut dowels and just added a few broken twigs to make the ladder with hot glue.

My daughter made the sign.  You know those devilish little leprechauns never do what they are told... gotta remind him that it's shiny up there, though!

Then we left a little trail of gold going from the sign up the ladder.

The gold trail.

Ha ha!  Our leprechaun trap!  We'll get him this year!  (Or maybe he's too wise to get trapped?)