Pipe cleaners
Pipe cleaners, also called chenille stems or plush wires, are thin wires wrapped in soft fibres that you can bend by hand and that hold their shape. On this page you'll find Meyco Plush Wires and Knorr Prandell Chenille Stem packs, 8 mm in diameter and 50 cm long, always 10 pieces per pack. You can choose from single-colour packs or mixes – Mix 5 and Mix 10 colours, pastel and neon shades, gold and silver. Together with kids, you can turn them into animals, flowers, little figures or decorations for Christmas and Easter.
What can you make with pipe cleaners?
Even young children can craft with them. Most of the time you don't need glue: bend a piece, twist it and join the ends. Wrap one around a pencil and you get a spiral for a tail or antennae; put a few pieces together and you have a spider, a little bee or a snowflake. Pipe cleaners also brighten up a greeting card, a gift parcel or a spring or Christmas decoration. The soft surface feels nice to the touch, and younger children craft with them under adult supervision.
How thick and how long are the pipe cleaners on offer?
All pipe cleaners on this page are 8 mm in diameter and 50 cm long and are sold in packs of 10. An 8 mm thickness is enough for full animal shapes and for wrapping around objects. To cut a long piece into shorter ones, use old scissors or wire cutters, because there's wire inside. When you need lots of colours at once, go for a mix. For a bigger project in one colour, such as green flower stems or brown antlers, a single-colour pack is the better buy.
What goes well with pipe cleaners for crafting?
Pipe cleaners combine nicely with pompoms, feathers, felt or raffia. You'll find these and other materials in the Materials for decorative techniques category, and ready-made drawing and craft sets in the Art and craft sets category.
