Pinch-Bug Magnets - how to make pinch-bug magnets

Ranger Rick, June, 2001

Let these pretty pinch-bug magnets hold important messages and show off your best school papers on your refrigerator!

For each bug you'll need:

* a pinchy clothespin

* pipe cleaners

* construction paper

* 1-inch round magnet

* black marker

* craft glue

Here's how to make one:

1. Glue the magnet to the middle of one side of the clothespin.

2. Use the marker to color the bug's "head"--the part of the clothespin that pinches (it's opposite the part that you squeeze).

3. Cut the pipe cleaners into three 6-inch (15-cm) pieces. Glue the middle of the pipe cleaners onto the center of the clothespin below the "head." (See photo at right.) Let the glue dry, then bend the pipe cleaners to look like six legs.

4. Fold a 3- to 4-inch-square piece of construction paper in half. Draw half of a bug's body on the fold so that, when you cut on the line, you will have a shape with two matching sides (see photos). Draw spots or other bug markings on the paper. (Look at insect pictures for ideas.)

5. Glue the bug's body to the pipe cleaners. When the glue has dried, your pinch-bug can get right to work on your refrigerator.