Whose Puppet?...Your Puppet! PART 1!

The Alley Theatre’s amazing props artisan, Amelia Templeton, will show you how it’s done with stuff around your house. She’ll mix it up and voila! A new friend, ready to help you create an amazing story. 

Hey, family - stay tuned! Next up, Teaching Artist Juan Sebastián Cruz will share tips on how to make up your own family adventure. You can change a whole bunch of socks into your own sitcom or action-adventure. 

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Materials and Tools

This puppet creation is recommended for grades 3 and up, but younger children can certainly offer helping hands for an adult creator. These sock puppets are capable of entertaining anyone and everyone!

1. Hot glue tool, preferably “Low Temp”

2. Scissors

3. Marker

4. A long sock (crew, knee, or thigh-length)

5. Paper – any kind of paper

6. Glue stick

And tada...

For extra fun, find more stuff around your house: Bottle caps, plastic wrap, broken toys, buttons, little plastic tidbits in that drawer in the kitchen where everyone puts that stuff, yarn and craft supplies, old Christmas decorations, wrapping paper, tissues - look around and find what you like.  

Check back for Part 2, where we show you how to ignite your imagination and bring your puppets to life! 

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Meet the Artists

Alley Theatre Props Artisan, Mixed Media Artist, Marine, Mom

Amelia Templeton is a mixed media artist specializing in her first love, painting. She draws her inspiration from incongruity, defying expectations, challenging assumptions, and a little bit of Marine Corps honed nonsense. After five years in the Marines and a brief Alaskan adventure, she attended the University of St. Thomas and majored in Theatre. After graduation, she worked as an independent contractor for various Houston area theatres, got married, had some kids, enjoyed a Harvey Induced Forced Remodel™ and finally landed her dream job as a Properties Artisan at Alley Theatre in Houston. Follow her on Instagram @malimixedmedia to see personal projects, volunteer work, and backstage looks into her work at the Alley Theatre.

Alley Theatre Teaching Artist, Actor

Juan Sebastián Cruz has lived in Houston for over a decade now but was born in Bogotá, Colombia. He has a strong sense of his dual identity as a Colombian-American and enjoys embracing both cultures. A graduate from Rice University, he earned his B.A. in Visual and Dramatic Arts with a concentration in theatre in 2016. A previous coach at Discover Gymnastics now turned Teaching Artist, he hopes to combine his artistic experience and highly dynamic teaching style to encourage children to move and learn in unconventional ways.