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Materials
Originally, people used wood as the main material for whirligigs. Most of them resembled small windmills. Some designs combine a paper body with a wooden or plastic stick that holds the moving parts. The Sparklab's inventor website offers a downloadable pattern that combines string and buttons to make a musical whirligig, The Science Museum of Minnesota's pattern uses soda bottles and the E-Scout Craft website has an advanced design that uses materials most people have around the house. (See References and Resources sections below.) Create your whirligig with your choice of materials.
Musical Whirligig
The simplest pattern for a whirligig uses 2 to 3 feet of string and a button. Thread one end of your string through one of the button's holes. Then bring the same end back through the second hole in the button. If you use a four-hole button, use the hole above or beside the first end of the string. Tie the ends of the string together to finish your whirligig.
Paper Plate Whirligig
Make a whirligig from a paper plate with the Origami Resource Center's pattern. (See References section.) Either hang this whirligig like a wind chime or play with it. Color the plate with crayons before you start, or leave it plain. Make a hole in the center of your plate with a hole punch or similar tool. Cut the plate in a spiral design, starting at the edge and working toward the center. Put a string through the hole, and secure it with a knot.
Plastic Bottle Whirligig
Make a whirligig with four plastic soda or water bottles and a wire coat hanger. Remove the labels from the bottles and cut the tapered top section off. Make eight evenly spaced vertical lines on two of your bottles. Cut along those lines until you reach 1 inch from the bottom of your bottle. Flatten the strips on these bottles to make spinners. Use a knife or a hot nail to poke a hole in the bottom of all the bottles. Assemble the whirligig by placing one set of spinners on the open end of the other two bottles. Lay the bottles on a table so that you have one spinner between the two bottles and one spinner at the front of your whirligig. Open a coat hanger and straighten it out. Thread it through the holes in all of your bottles. Wrap the ends of the coat hanger with masking tape. Decorate your bottles before you assemble the whirligig. To make it easier to hold, bend the hanger upward slightly after you finish taping it.