This is the original idea behind such moneymaking franchises as make a doll or build a bear. The supply cost is minimal, and the rewards are many, with children of all ages eager to participate.
The first step is to get your hands on a bunch of clean new or used socks. Often you can pick up seconds at a flea market, get a large store to donate them, or hold a donation drive in advance asking the parents of each child in class to purchase and donate a package of socks. If you ask for used sock donations, have a volunteer run them through a good hot wash with bleach!
Next corral all the fabric glue, felt, pipe cleaners, buttons, yarn, rick-rack, glitter, pom-poms and googly eyes you can find, along with clothespins, flat, wide rubber bands and fabric scraps. Again, a local fabric outlet, dollar store or thrift store would be a good place to pick up inexpensive bits of this and that, and you can ask for donations as well.
An indoor space with lots of tables and chairs is the best venue for this type of fundraiser – perhaps a community center or a large classroom. Set up long tables with different stations, and organize volunteers to help younger children. If you can manage to swing some small glue guns and have enough adult help, the sock puppets will last a lot longer!
As usual, make sure you fully publicize the time, date and cost of your fundraiser. You can sell one sock puppet for $10, or two for $15. Have them pick up a sock at the first table, and move on to a seat where they can put features on. After they have googly eyes and a yarn mouth firmly attached, they can move on to the next station, where volunteers have been preparing outfits for the younger kids and older ones can get creative.
A skirt or cape can be made by gluing to clothespins to a board, about six inches apart. Cut a rubber band, and stretch it between the clothespins. Apply dots of glue about every ¼ inch to the rubber band, and lay a strip of fabric six inches wide by the desired length of the garment across the stretch band. When the glue dries, the band can be unclipped from the pins, and will gather the material as it contracts. The cape or skirt can be applied to the sock with a glue on the back side of the band.
Make little flat beret hats out of felt circles with a pom-pom on top. Hair can be made of yarn or cotton (you can spray paint cotton balls in advance for brown, black or red hair). Pipe cleaners can be used for mustaches or to make stiff animal ears that will poke up. Be creative!
Have refreshments for the parents who aren’t volunteering, and make sure to leave your space clean when you leave. With minimal outlay and maximum profits (not to mention fun!) this fundraiser is sure to be a hit for all concerned.
