The Cutest Insect Peg Dolls

These adorable insect peg dolls were created out of necessity, out of a need to cheer up a frazzled toddler. But they quickly became my favorite craft – and his favorite toy!

We released our newly “hatched” ladybugs into the wild (aka our backyard). The boys were surrounded by the busy little bugs scampering about, enjoying their newfound freedom. As the ladybugs took off, one by one, Jansen (4) looked increasingly broken-hearted.

“But Mama, will they be OK? Where will they sleep tonight? What if they can’t find their mamas and dadas?” (This kid and his heartfelt concern for others…)

(This post is sponsored by Woodpeckers in return for my honest review of their products.) “Insect Peg Dolls” was originally published in July 2016 and updated in June 2022. 

I took a deep breath and paused (to think of a creative and age-appropriate answer!)

“Honey”, I hesitated. “Bugs live a different kind of life than we do. They don’t live with their mamas and dadas – as you do.” Jansen’s eyes were at this point “bugging” out of his face (please excuse the pun) – while the waterworks were starting to flow.

“How about we go inside and make our own bugs who LOVE to live with their mamas and dadas!” Thankfully he was in FULL agreement with my super creative idea – thank goodness.

My only challenge was “how on EARTH was I going to make bugs!”

I recently bought these adorable wooden peg dolls from Woodpeckers®. At the time I wasn’t sure what I was going to make with them. I just knew that the possibilities are endless and those are the types of craft items I love to have on hand.

Over the next few days, Jansen and I created our insect peg dolls. We went through several prototypes before we came up with a design we both love.

We made a small butterfly family and ladybug, firefly, and bumble bee families as well. Everything came out great (if I must say so myself).

Supplies needed to make insect peg dolls:

• Wooden peg dolls
• Acrylic craft paint
• Black beading wire
• Felt
• Felt glue
• Paint brushes
• Toothpicks 
• Scissors
• Needle-nose pliers

How to make insect peg dolls:

I have worked on peg dolls for a while, looking for the best way to make them as adorable as possible.

These are my methods and the colors I chose to use. I encourage you to pick your own colors and play around with the tools you have available at home. Have fun with it!

Face:

• Paint the face the desired skin color with a small flat brush.
• The face shape is a horizontal oval.
• For this project, I chose light pink. I have also had great success mixing orange with white to get a slightly darker skin tone.
• I paint every peg doll I will be working on that day. This is especially important if you a mixing your own colors. In case you need to go back and fix a face, recreating the exact color is very hard.

Eyes, cheeks, and mouth:

• I use a toothpick to paint the finer details on the dolls, including the facial features.
• Dip the toothpick in black paint and place one quick dot on the face.
• Re-dip the toothpick in the paint before you make the other eye.
• For the cheeks, I use a darker shade of the skin tone, preferably something with a pink hue.
• I also use a toothpick to paint circles as cheeks, but I make them slightly bigger than the eyes.
• The mouth is a bright or dark red. I recently started making the mouth a small heart and I love the look.
• I use a toothpick to make a heart out of three dots.

Antenna:

• Cut a piece of wire.
• Approximately 3” for the smaller dolls and 5” for the larger ones.
• Wrap the wire around the neck of the doll.
• Start with the middle of the wire in front of the doll and wrap it tightly around the back, twist once as close to the neck as possible.
• Straighten the wires so they take the shape of an antenna.
• Use the needle-nose pliers to round the tips into small circles.
• Glue the antenna to the doll by placing a dot of glue on the back of the doll’s neck, where the wire is twisted.
• One small dot is sufficient to keep the wire in place.

Once the paint has dried, you can proceed with the customization.

Butterfly peg doll:

• Start with a peg doll with a face, eyes, cheeks, and mouth.
• Paint the rest of the doll in a bright fun color.
• Be careful to keep the shape of the face a nice oval.
• Make the antenna by following the above-referenced instructions.
• Draw one side (= half) of the desired wing shape on a piece of felt.
  • Fold the felt.
  • When you cut the wings, both sides are uniform and connected along the mid-line.
• Glue the wings along the back of the butterfly. Allow them to dry completely for several hours.

Ladybug peg doll:

• Start with a peg doll with a face, eyes, cheeks, and mouth.
• Paint the BODY of the ladybug red, leaving a small triangle blank in the front.
• Paint the head (except for the face) black, in addition to the triangle on the body and spots on the back.
• Keep the shape of the face oval.
• Use a small brush to paint the black parts.
• Attach antenna as described in the above instructions.

Bumble bee peg doll:

• Start with a peg doll with a face, eyes, cheeks, and mouth.
• Paint yellow stripes around the body. Make small strokes with a thin brush while turning the doll until the two ends meet.
• Use a thin flat brush to paint the rest of the body and the head, except for the face.
• Attach the antenna according to the above-referenced instructions.
• Draw one side (= half) of the wings on a piece of white felt.
  • Bumble bee wings are round, almost like circles.
  • Fold the felt and cut the wings.
  • They are now attached in the middle with a uniform shape.
• Attach the wings to the doll by placing a strip of felt glue along the body of the bumble bee.
• Allow the wings to dry completely before handling.

Dragonfly peg doll:

• Start with a peg doll with a face, eyes, cheeks, and mouth.
• Paint the entire head and body in green or brown colors.
• Leave the face a horizontal oval.
• Draw one side (= half) of the wings on a piece of white felt.
  • Dragonfly wings are long, almost as long as the peg doll is tall.
  • Fold the felt and cut the wings.
  • You will have two connected wings with a uniform shape.
• Attach the wings to the doll by placing a strip of felt glue along the body of the dragonfly.
• Allow the wings to dry for several hours before handling.

Wood products from Woodpeckers®:

• I have been very impressed with the wood products I have bought from Woodpeckers through Amazon.
• Their products lend themselves perfectly to crafts and DIY projects.
• The wood shapes are uniform and without blemishes.
• Their customer service is wonderful with personal attention to each customer.
• They even send you an adorable ebook for inspiration when you purchase their peg dolls.

Jansen’s big “paws” held the wooden ladybugs tight. I sat next to him in the grass, pretending to be preoccupied with something when I really was watching him play. He quietly had the mommy ladybug tuck in the baby ladybug for the night.

And then he started to sing “Jonah Bear, Jonah Bear, you are my little Jonah Bear.” Which is the song I sing to his younger brother every night at bedtime. Just like that, everything was right in Jansen’s world. Thanks to our wooden peg dolls.

I have SO much fun crafting with products from Woodpeckers®. Check out these projects – they are sure to inspire you!

DIY Wooden Garland of Wishes

Wooden Heart Wall Decorations for Every Season

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Halloween Wooden Peg Dolls

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