If you’ve got superhero fans, you will not want to miss this adorable kids’ craft! Kids will have a blast creating their own jointed and posable superheroes out of very simple materials. Pipe cleaners, straws, beads… You probably have most (if not all) of the supplies on hand!

It’s amazing how much personality you can get with some pipe cleaners, beads, and straws! This fun craft for kids is also a fun homemade toy!

The boys had a great time posing their superheroes. They come up with much better action poses than I do! (This is true for LEGO scenes as well! They are so helpful with posing figures for me.)

This project is a variation on our pipe cleaner ninjas craft. If your kids are ninja fans, you’ll want to check those out as well.

We made most of the superheroes with two arm segments, but then Owen created this smaller version and I LOVE it! So cute!

Ready to make some Pipe Cleaner Superheroes?

First, grab your supplies:

  • Pipe cleaners
  • Felt, for capes
  • Straws – we used paper straws, but regular straws are just fine (and much cheaper)
  • Googly eyes
  • Pony beads
  • Wooden beads – we used 3/4 inch diameter beads
  • Tacky Glue
  • Hot glue
  • Scissors
  • Markers – we used Sharpie oil based paint markers. They bleed less on wood than regular Sharpies.

Step 1: Start by drawing hair and superhero masks on the wooden beads.

Step 2: Glue on googly eyes – SO CUTE! Then draw a little mouth.

Step 3: Grab three pipe cleaners. Twist them together in the middle. I found that three “twists” was enough to hold them securely together. Then adjust them so that they are in the arrangement shown.

Step 4: Slide three pony beads onto BOTH of the bottom two pipe cleaners. This will form the body.

Step 5: Cut a straw into 8 one inch segments. (Or feel free to adjust the size!) We found that we could get 7 segments out of each straw, so you’ll need two straws per superhero, with quite a bit left over.

Step 6: Build each limb by sliding on a straw segment, then a pony bead, then another straw segment.

Step 7: Bend the ends of the pipe cleaners into hands and feet. I found that it helps to wrap some of the excess around the wrist or ankle to make it secure. Then trim off any excess ends.

Step 8: Slide the head onto the final two pipe cleaners. Then trim off the excess.

Step 9: To make the head more secure, attach it with Tacky Glue. Squirt some glue onto the pipe cleaners. Then slide the head on. We had a little bit of glue ooze out at the bottom of the head. Just wipe off the excess with a paper towel.

Step 10: Cut out a cape from felt and use hot glue to attach it to the backs of the arm segments.

I made an S for the back of this cape, but we didn’t decorate any of the other capes. They are cute either way!

Then make more superheroes with different colors! I thought the paper straws really increased the fun level on this craft. They come in such fun prints! However, they definitely cost more than regular plastic straws.

Looking for more superhero craft ideas?

9 Comments

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  1. Kirsten Jul 10, 2019

    Hi! I just wanted to let you know, we, my son and I, appreciate all the crafts and LEGO ideas and activities you share. Thank you for sharing your creativity and fun! :-)

    Reply
  2. Jean May 24, 2020

    Love all of your great ideas.
    Thanks for sharing.
    You are so artistic!

    Reply
  3. Sandi May 28, 2020

    These are adorable! Can't wait to make them with my sons! We are doing our own summer camp themed weeks during the pandemic, and next week is super heroes!

    Reply
  4. Jim Jun 16, 2020

    I didn't know how to make one of the superheroes! And I found this website! Such a great resource! My son loves them!

    Reply
  5. Jen Jul 25, 2020

    My kids loved this! We made a superhero, ninja, and ballerina. We didn’t trim the tops of the pipe cleaners so we used them for hair. Our ballerina has pigtails and our superhero has a mohawk! We used cupcake liners for the ballerina skirt.

    Reply
  6. Dawn Smith Aug 18, 2020

    Thank you for sharing all of your really cool ideas!!!

    Reply
  7. Daisyheadfayzie Nov 10, 2020

    Thanks for this amazingly fun craft! I did it with a group of kids today who loved it. The only tricky part was keeping the eyes on the wood bead. I eventually just used a glue stick and a q-tip. We used the ends of the pipe cleaner that came out of the top for hair. They were so creative with different hairstyles.
    So appreciative for this post.

    Reply
  8. Linda Mar 15, 2021

    Hi Sarah....we have 2 grandsons of 7 and 10 who are inquisitive and creative! Whenever I'm stumped for activities to do with them, I find the perfect one (like this one!) that I can use here on your website. Thank you again for your generosity in sharing your ideas so readily and for your diligence in keeping it all going!!

    Reply
  9. Crazy Aunt Barbara Aug 9, 2022

    Young and old had a fun time all weekend making these. So much fun that several adults made 2!

    Reply

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