To celebrate Kodomo-no-Hi (Children's Day) on May 5, Japanese families traditionally fly colorful carp-shaped wind socks.

Materials

• 2-foot square of lightweight nylon fabric
• Scissors
• 4 yards of ribbon
• Pipe cleaners

• Fabric glue
• Acrylic paints
• 2-foot piece of string
• Wooden dowel

Instructions

1. Fold the nylon in half horizontally. Position the fold on the bottom. With a pencil, draw an outline of a fish, letting the fold serve as its belly and making a 5 1/2-inch-wide mouth. Cut the doubled material along the drawn line and glue the seam closed along the fish's back.

2. Twist together the pipe cleaner ends to form a ring that's 10 inches around. Slip the ring around the fish's mouth. Fold the edge of the nylon over the ring and glue it down.

3. Glue six 2-foot lengths of ribbon to the fish's tail.

4. Invert the wind sock so that the seams are inside. Then paint on scales and eyes.

5. To ready the carp to fly, use a slipknot to tie the middle of the string to a notch in the dowel top. Snip a small hole into each side of the mouth, push a string end through each, and knot.

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