Make a Fun Dragon Puppet for Chinese New Year

By Grandma Sandy | February 7, 2024

Since this is the year of the dragon, I was toying with how to make a dragon puppet. I turned to my favorite free craft material, toilet paper rolls.

Dragon made from toilet paper rolls, two wooden chopsticks, and acrylic paint. — **Dragon with lucky red envelopes to fill with money for the grandkids.**

Chinese New Year, or the Lunar New Year, begins on February 10 and ends at the next full moon. Observed through much of Asia and in Chinese communities worldwide, the New Year is a time of happy celebration.

Original idea for the dragon and finished version, side by side. — **The original test idea and the final, finished dragon before inserting chopstick handles.**

The dragon puppet I came up with has a jointed body and chopstick “legs,” which are really handles so you can manipulate the puppet and make it dance. Here’s a video of a dragon dance, so kids will know what they are replicating in miniature.

A Dragon for Younger Children

This dragon puppet works better as a craft project for an older child, but a few years ago, Little N and I did a simpler dragon when he was four–and we did the project remotely! I put a kit of materials together to send to his home and we crafted together over FaceTime.

The little kid’s version of a dragon breathes tissue paper fire, and if you attach a yarn loop, the dragon can be worn around the neck.

How to Make a Dragon Puppet

Materials

3 empty toilet paper rolls
Acrylic paint of any color
Yarn or string
Thick-nibbed black marking pen (we used a super Sharpie)
2 googly eyes (optional)
White school glue
Feather (optional)
2 wooden chopsticks (1 pair)

By manipulating the chopsticks attached to the dragon puppet, a child can make the dragon move and dance. — **This dragon moves by manipulating the chopstick handles.**

Tools

Large sharp scissors
Small sharp scissors
Paint brush
Hole punch
Blue painter’s tape (optional)
X-Acto knife or a tool with a sharp point, such as a skewer, awl, or nail

The dragon puppet up close shows its teeth and scales. — **The dragon up close; note its sharp teeth and scales.**

This puppet is quite simple to make. Just follow the steps.

Make the Head

Steps for making the dragon head, from cutting the shape of the head, to making the teeth. — **Steps to make the dragon’s head.**

Flatten 1 toilet paper roll in half lengthwise. Cut a “V” from each folded end to the center. (#1) Cut across the top of the “V” to make the blunt mouth of the dragon. Then make zig-zag cuts along both sides of the “V” for the teeth. (#2) Fold in the zig-zag cuts so the teeth is inside the mouth. (#3) Put strips of blue tape to cover the teeth before painting. (#4).

DIY Chinese paper lanterns are made with origami paper. Add a battery-powered tea light for an authentic glow.

Here’s another look (below) at the dragon’s head to show you how the teeth gets bent into the mouth. Cover the teeth with a strips of blue painter’s tape, to protect the teeth when you paint the head. If you don’t have painter’s tape, paint very carefully around the mouth with a small paintbrush.

A close-up to show how to cut the dragon's teeth, fold it into the mouth, then cover the teeth with blue painter's tape to protect the teeth from errant paint strokes. — **Cut the teeth, freehand, with small scissors. Bend teeth into the mouth.**

Make the Body

Once you’ve shaped the head the rest is easy. Cut the remaining 2 rolls in half, crosswise. Take one of the cut rolls and snip a “V” about 1 inch deep, to make a tail. (See photo below.)

The elements of the dragon: head, body and tail segments, lined up in order. Each is hole-punched so it can connect to the next segment. — **Head and body segments lined up with tail.**

Now you’ll have to punch holes so you can connect all the pieces to join head and body parts together.

Punch 1 hole in the top of the head, about 3/8 to 1/2-inch from the cut edge. Punch a hole in the bottom of the head, corresponding to the top hole.

Sample shows how holes should be punched in the body pieces of the dragon puppet. — **This sample demonstrates where holes should be punched on the body pieces.**

Punch corresponding holes in the body segments, except for the tail piece. Each of the body segments should have 4 punched holes: 2 on the top of the body and 2 the bottom of the body. For the tail, punch just 2 holes, because the end of the tail will not connect to another piece.

Paint and Mark

Paint all the pieces and set aside to dry. Draw the features on the dragon’s head–snout, nostrils, and a continuous, curved eyebrow or furrow, across the forehead using a black marking pen. Glue on googly eyes or draw the eyes with your black pen. You can draw the scales now, or wait till the dragon has been assembled.

Assemble your Dragon Puppet

Use yarn or string to tie the dragon segments together. Don’t tie them too tightly or the dragon won’t be flexible enough to dance. I left about a 3/8-inch to 1/2-inch space between segments. If you haven’t drawn the scales, do it now.

Pierce 2 small holes on the underside of the dragon at head and tail (I used an X-Acto knife to cut a small X). This should be done by an adult. Work a chopstick into each hole as handles for the dragon puppet. It’s best to make the holes smaller than the width of the chopstick and wiggle the chopstick into the hole, so it stays in place.

Poke a feather (if using) into the hole, to connect the dragon head to the body. Now let the dragon dance begin!

“Gong hei fat choy.” Wishing you great happiness and prosperity!

A life-size dragon hangs at Bloomingdale's department store. — **Year of the Dragon display at Bloomingdale’s cosmetics counters.**

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