Make Mr Twit's Beard for World Book Day

I've never had to think about the kids dressing up as a favourite character for World Book Day. Their school seemed to buck the trend and just didn't bother...until now that is.
So over the past few days I've experienced the same kind of last minute fretting and dressing up box delving I'm sure many parents are well used to. I've heard tales from friends of things getting wildly competitive, with elaborate hand stitched costumes, and jaw-dropping make up, but can't imagine that happening at our little village school. I don't think? Anyway, after all kinds of ideas, I managed to steer my three towards Simple.
The eldest opted for teenage spy, Alex Rider - so just himself really, plus cool shades; the youngest chose Angelina Ballerina - ballet stuff with paper ears attached to a headband, and the 8 year old came up with Roald Dahl's Mr Twit, because that's what he's reading at the moment.

And Mr Twit is all about the beard.

We made ours out of a cereal packet.
I lightly folded the card and drew half a beard, before cutting it out so it looked even.

It's important to leave longish sideburns, because these are going to be folded over and stapled onto the arms of a pair of glasses. We used an old pair of 3D ones from the bottom of the dressing up box. Now, strictly speaking Mr Twit doesn't wear glasses, but it seemed like a good way to keep the beard in place.
Worth trying it for size at this stage, before getting to work...

Angry little elf..

After painting it black, we scrunched up bits of black paper and stuck them on. Tissue paper would have been better, but I could only find brown, so we have a two-tone beard.

Next, the fun part - making lots of disgusting things to attach to Mr Twit's beard. In the book it says, '..there were always hundreds of bits of old breakfasts and lunches and suppers sticking to the hairs around his face'. And mentions stuff like scrambled eggs, tomato ketchup, minced chicken livers, a mouldy old cornflake and the slimy tail of a tinned sardine.  Mmmm, lovely..

Mr Twit's beard

Our sardine tail is card covered in tin foil, a big blob of paint for ketchup, broken crisps and cornflakes, little bits of old sponge for scrambled egg - and then we added our own things, like some spaghetti, baked beans cut out of foam stickers and little balls of green plasticine for peas.

'..because of all this, Mr Twit never went really hungry. By sticking out his tongue and curling it sideways to explore the hairy jungle around his mouth, he was always able to find a tasty morsel here and there to nibble on...'

Suitably yucky I hope!

Linking up with Red Ted Art's Kids Get Crafty