Cut 12 cups out of the egg carton bottom. Trim
the edges and then paint the outsides. Use each
cup to create a bug by gluing on eyes and
punching a hole for the mouth, centered on the
edge. Then, punch three leg holes in each side.

Cut the pipe cleaners into 4-inch sections. To
create each set of legs, insert a pipe cleaner
piece through one side hole and out the other
side. Bend the center up inside the shell and
shape the ends for the legs and feet.

For antennae, poke two holes above the bug's
eyes (use a pushpin or the end of a paper clip).
Push a pipe cleaner through one hole and out
the other, bending it into shape.

MATERIALS
Plastic bowl or pan
Nontoxic fabric dye
White socks
Rubber bands
Pennies
Rubber gloves
Plastic spoon

Begin by covering your work area with
newspaper. In a plastic bowl or pan, dissolve a
packet of nontoxic fabric dye, such as Rit, in
hot water according to the package directions.
Add more hot water until there is enough to
cover a couple of pairs of socks.

Dampen the white socks with clear warm
water, then bundle them up in rubber bands. To
make stripes, wrap three or four thick rubber
bands around the foot and top of the sock. To
make circles (great for the heels), pinch a
section of the sock and tie, about an inch down,
with a rubber band. For a pattern of tiny rings,
slip pennies or buttons into the socks and wrap
bands around them.

Wearing rubber gloves, submerge the bound
socks in the warm dye and stir occasionally
with a plastic spoon. After 20 minutes or so
(the color will lighten after the fabric is rinsed
and dried), run them under cool water,
squeezing until the water runs clear. Remove
the bands (and any pennies), smooth out the
socks, and rest them flat on newspaper. Let
them dry overnight. Wash separately from the
rest of the laundry the first few times to keep
any bleeding dye from tinting other clothes.