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Tuesday, September 3, 2013

DIY Pin The Tail Party Games - Tutorial

When it comes to planning a party for kids...Party games are essential. And what better way to keep the kids entertained and occupied than the classic party game, "pin the tail on the donkey"?

Pin the tail on the donkey can be tailored to fit just about any party theme. And, believe it or not, it's easy and inexpensive to make!


For Grace's Bunny Themed Birthday Party, pin the tail on the donkey became pin the tail on the bunny.

You'll need between 1/2 a yard to a yard of felt, depending on the size of the shape you want to make.  I found an image I liked (Wazzyjump), imported it into Block Posters, blew it up to the size I liked and used it as a pattern.  Trace or draw your image onto the felt using chalk, which can be easily erased or wiped off.


Cut your image out and then pin to fabric.  I knew I would hang the pin the tail on the bunny in a door frame, so I needed fabric wide enough to span the door frame.  If you don't want to buy fabric, a frugal option would be using an old bed sheet.


Pin your image into place and sew around the perimeter.

The view from the back illustrates how the bunny was sewn into place.


To finish, sew a hem around the length and width of your fabric background.  *If hanging from a door frame, create a pocket to slide a curtain rod into by folding the top over approximately an inch and a half and sewing the edge down.


I used a similar technique to create the doorway puppet theater.


Decide on a tail.

I used a large white pom pom and double sided tape. 


Hang, give your party goers a spin and watch as they try and pin the tail on the bunny.

Want a no-sew version?  I've got you covered there as well.

For Grace's circus themed birthday party, I made a no-sew pin the fez hat on the elephant.


Cut your details out of felt and glue them into place.

*Ok, so I did sew the curtain rod pocket on the top but you could just pin it up and omit sewing altogether.


For the fez hat, I cut out fez hat shapes out of brightly colored felt, made a slit in the top of the hat and knotted the end of some yard through the hat.  To make them stick, I applied some no sew velcro, the hook side or scratchy side, to the back of the fez hats.  The hook or scratchy side should stick to the felt when your party goers attempt to pin it into place.


You can customize the traditional pin the tail game to just about any party theme.  Pin the head lights on to the car.  Pin the tiara on the princess.  Pin the superhero mask onto the superhero.  Pin the bow onto Hello Kitty.

What version of pin the tail would you make?

Originally shared at One Artsy Mama.

18 comments:

  1. We always have a version of this game at our house parties. My favourite is: pin the smile on the Cheshire cat! Brilliant tutorials, love how you covered both options. I still think the bunny theme is adorable.

    Hugs, Estelle xx

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  2. Love both versions, though the fez on the elephant is quite ingenious. As I was reading the tutorial, I was thinking how is she going to get pins to stick on a peice of fabric hung on a door?? SMH, other media! D'oh! Hey, you ever see those felt boards that you can stick paper cut outs on? I remember them in Sunday School. Is that Velcro? It wasn't as strong but did the job and could work in this application too.

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  3. Great ideas!! I love your puppet theatre and the hedgie!!! For one of my girls, we had a dinosaur party and did pin the teeth on the t rex.

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  4. Love it! I'd have to the no sew method, but then I'd probably just paint it onto a board or poster board and use double sided tape. Great ideas! :)

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  5. Both of those are just adorable. I love the little hats for the elephant..what a colorful version too. You are so creative. :)

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  6. you are one creative woman...who loves bunnies :)

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  7. Love this!!! Don't know how I missed it. I thought I checked your blog this a.m. Oh well, thank goodness for Facebook :)

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  8. Aww, what a sweet bunny! And you know I LOVED every single thing about the circus themed birthday! Grace is one blessed little girl!

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  9. That elephant one cracks me up! Very original. The best I came up with 31 years ago was pin the cookie on the cookie monster. But I was still pretty proud of myself.

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  10. Pin the tail on the donkey has always been one of my favorite games at parties... and still is! I love how you have been tailoring per party theme. Adorable! Pinning it for future use. :)

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  11. You know I'm all for the no-sew version! I loved your bunny game! So you! I would have cut one out of contruction paper and used cotton balls. That is why I am not the party queen!!!

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  12. I loved these pin-the-tails the first time I saw them, and I love them even more the second time! Your party games are always incredible, Amy! I love how clean and beautiful they are - mine are always a little bit wonky and very-last-minute.

    Pinning! :)

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  13. Hi Amy, Love my catch up with WWH blog day. Having a lot of computer issues lately. I hope to get a new one in the next few weeks. Anyhoo, these pin the tail tutorials are so cute! And I'm gonna have to start calling you the Felt Queen, haha.
    Thanks:)

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  14. You know how to make a blogger blush. Thanks so much Amy!

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  15. You are the felt queen, both of them are just gorgeous, love them to bits, your parties are always just too adorable

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