Swat! those creepy-crawly pests!

The finished yellow fly swatter for our 18" dolls.

        An old-fashioned fly swatter is a handy tool in the kitchen! Weather the insect pest has wings or crawls on multiple legs, your doll will wish to keep her kitchen clean and her food free of invaders for certain.

       To make the doll-sized fly swatter you will need the following supplies: wire, two cotton balls, dry wall mesh tape, white school glue, acrylic paint (your choice of color) and a threaded needle.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Unravel the cotton balls.
2. Wind the cotton and layer it about a glue covered surface. Twist the cotton down and or roll the wire between your palms to get the cotton to adhere to the wire.
3. Now bed the wire to make a shape similar to the one in the photo below. The shape for the fly-swatter will need a handle and a paddle at the top.
4. Cut a small piece of dry wall mesh tape to fit snug inside of the wire paddle opening and glue this in. Let it dry.
5. Now take the needle and thread and weave this in and out of the mesh tape to insure it is firmly attached.
6. Paint the paddle section only and let it dry.
7. Paste a tiny bug on the fly swatter mesh if you have one.

Left, roll of mesh tape for dry wall. Center, the bent wire part of
 the fly swatter. Right the mesh tape has been both glued in
place and sew firmly to the sides also.