20 Easy to Make Paper Cow Craft out of Paper Plates

Laura Collins November 21, 2023

How many of you have a heap of paper plates lying in your house and want to do something fun with them? Maybe you have a couple of kids coming for a play date, or it’s a farm-themed birthday party, and you are looking for some quick decoration ideas!

Maybe your kid has a school crafts project on cows, and you are looking for some ideas. Whatever the reason, we have got your back! We have assembled a list of easy-to-make paper cow craft ideas that you can make with old paper plates.

We have some adorable paper cow craft ideas that will amuse you and your kids. It is a great activity to do with your kids and engage their creative side.

So, get those paper plates out, for we are ready to make some paper cows.

1. Cute Cow with a Smart Bow

Look at this adorable cow mask that is as cute as it is simple to make. Take a paper plate and cut out two holes where you want the eyes to be. Paint some black patches on the plate wherever you feel like it.

Now, for the ears, make them out of paper and paste pink ovals over them to make the inner year. Save that pink paper. You need it food the nose. Sketch the nostrils and put a smile on it (you don’t want a sad cow unless maybe your kid has taken an early taste for an emo aesthetic).

Paste a wooden stick behind it so you can hold it and make two horns with them, too. Now it is time for the final touch: fold a piece of paper in a zigzag manner, then pinch in from the middle to form a cute bow. Paste the bow on the stick, and your smart cow mask is ready.\

2. Curious Paper Cow

We love paper plate animals; you can make so many of them for this curious paper cow. You need a paper plate, some colors and, well, a piece of paper.

Make the black spots on the cow in a cloud-like manner. Now cut a sheet of paper and paste some ears on it. Use pink paper to make the inner part of the ear. The same pink paper is used to make the snout of the cow.

Now it is time for the eyes; small blue circles cut out of paper will make for the eyes. Draw black retinas on it, and you are done. To make it curious, draw quizzical eyebrows.

3. Paper Cow with Legs

Are you not satisfied with just the face of the cow? Well, let’s make a complete one with body, legs, and tails. Fold the paper plate in half, and this will function as the body of the cow. Cut four rectangles and cut a small triangle at the end to make the hoofs. Paint the hoofs black and make some black spots on the body, too.

Use paper to make a face, complete with ears and a snout. Add two horns to this one. You can make a nice tail out of thread, and your paper cow is complete.

4. Cute Round Cow with Popping Eyes

We love Disney cartoon animals that have big, expressive eyes. This cute paper cow is all about those big Disney eyes. Take the paper plate and make two big black spots on it on either side. Remember to freehand these spots. They are not meant to be identical. Make 2 horns out of a more sturdy paper or cardboard so they don’t fold over and retain their form.

Make the ears out of paper. We are making a cute cow, so 2 oval ears that protrude to the side are perfect. Make a big snout and then draw two big eyes on paper and paste them on the plate. The 2 white plots on the pupil all have an animated look to them.

5. Deep Dish Paper Plate Cow

If you have a deep dish paper plate, you can make a DIY paper cow. These are fairly easy to make, and don’t worry if they are a bit rough around the edges; as long as you have fun making them, it is all good. So, we start with painting the black spots on the paper cow.

Add two black years with some cool horns next to them. Once you’ve done that, you can stick the eyes on the paper cow. Of course, you can go for paper eyes, but if you want a 3D effect, you can use buttons for them. Paint a curious snout on pale pink paper and stick it on the deep dish paper plate. There you have it, your deep-dish paper cow.

6. Pretty Paper Cow with a Hair Bow

Do you know what we love about these paper cows? It is as simple as they are. They give us a lot of space to be creative. Little additions of details can make a lot of difference to our paper cowcraft.

Here, we are using the bottom side of the paper plate for the face of our paper cow. This gives a 3D effect. You draw the black spots and paste the ears and the snout. Make some holes where the eyes are so you can use them as a mask. To add some, you can stick some paper lashes over the holes. Now to finish our pretty cow, tie a ribbon in a cute bow and stick it near one of the ears.

7. Lovely Paper Cow with Big Horns

You can enhance some features of your paper cow to make it more interesting. Look at the example of the above picture. This is a fairly simple paper cow to make. What we have here are two tiny eyes made out of paper and a pink snout with black nostrils pasted at the lower end so it protrudes out.

To add some fun, here we are making the hair of the cow like melting ice cream. It sets your paper cow apart. Add the ears, and as a showstopper, crown the head of your cow with two magnificent horns.

8. Smart Office Paper Cow

With paper plate cows, it is always fun to add some curious trait or the other. For example, this particular cow in the picture is an office goer. You can have the kids make an entire story about this cow and give it a name.

Pain the spots on the bottom of the plate. Stick the eyes and the snout. Stick the oval ears and cute little horns on them.

Now, to add to the character of Mr. Cow, make a paper tie. You can also use clay or actual cloth to make the tie. Do it to your preference.

9. Adorable Paper Cow with Horns

We have, for you, another one of those Disney animal-looking paper cows. Make two big black spots on either side. Again, do not make them identical. Stick a pink snout in the middle. Over the snout place, big Disney-looking eyes with a sparkle in them(the two light dots.

10. A Two Paper Plate Cow

Here is another interesting way to make the body of the cow with a paper plate. You see, your cow’s front view can be made by sticking two paper plates. A small paper plate in the front will function as the head, and the bigger paper plate will become the body of the cow.

Make cute little eyes from buttons and stick some ears on the smaller plate (you know, the drill).

11. A Paper Cow with Plenty of Hearts

You can have some fun with the beautiful black spots on the cow. They all don’t need to be amoeba or cloud-like. What if those black spots on the cow are all hearts? Wouldn’t that make for a lovely cow?

We think it will, so take your paper plate and cut some heart-shaped spots for your lovely cow. What about some heart-shaped nostrils?

12. A Cute Brown Cow

You know we don’t have to stick to the same black-and-white color palate for your paper cow. Cows come in some other colors, too. We are going to make a brown paper cow. Paint your paper plate in a nice brown color. Paste big eyes with busy brows on; a white or pale pink snout will look good.

Paste your ears and horns onto a cow. Add some hair to your cow, something like a brown taupe, and it will make it look more comical.

13. Paper Cow with Yellow Horns

We think the more colorful your paper plate cow, the better it is. Look at this beautifully colored cow. The pink snout looks adorable. The black and white with pink look pretty. We know we have previously painted the cow horns in classic brown, but why not go for something fun and bright, like the color yellow?

In fact, you can choose to paint the spots on the cow a different color, too; do not shy of experimenting.

14. A Round Paper Cow with Big Horns

We explored an idea like this above; this paper cow is just rounder and uses a different color palate. Here, we are sticking the snout of the cow along the boundary of the circle that is the head. Make two cute round nostrils on it. Two round black dots can serve as the eyes. Go for a peach-colored snout and the ears. And do not forget the dramatic horns.

This is the baby paper cow to the papa paper cow at number 7.

15. Round Paper Plate Cow Mask

This paper plate cow mask is the easiest to make. Remember, if you are making a paper plate cow mask, it is recommended you use a thicker paper plate.

You want a sturdier mask. If you don’t have that, then you can just stick two identical paper plates together.

The rest is simple; you cut two holes where the eyes should be. Stick a snout and make the black spots, and you are done.

16. A Pretty Paper Cow

It is always a good idea to make your paper cows more animated and add some humane features to them. It adds so much intrigue to them. It is not just a paper cow but a character that can ignite the imagination of your children.

Look at the example above. This paper cow is made so much more interesting by adding those pretty little curious eyes and that animated snout.

A little hair, two horns, and a pretty bow complete this cute and intriguing paper cow. What will you name her?

17. A Confused Paper Cow

We like this paper cow; look how much that face says. There are little details here, and they can help achieve such an expressive face for your paper cow.

You can use buttons for the eyes, and when making pupils (the black part on the eye), make one on the bottom and the other on the upper side of the other eye. This will lend your paper cow that confused (I’ve just hit my head) expression and make it so much fun.

Look at the snout on this cow; we call it the sad face snout, which adds to the confused look.

18. Our Perfectly Spotted Paper Cow

Use the concave part of the paper plate to give it depth and paint it. This paper cow is all about its beautifully elegant spots. The spots on the cow are like its winged liner, so draws them with care.

Two cute button eyes and a pink snout will complete this graceful paper cow for you.

19. Big Lashed Paper Cow Mask

Here is another very simple paper cow you can make in a few minutes. Take a paper plate and start painting some brown spots on the bottom; now paste a snout in the middle. Cut out two holes where the eyes are supposed to be and line those holes to make dramatic lashes.

Add two horns (you can even draw them on the pate). Draw two ears, and you have a cute paper cow mask for you.

20. Brown Paper Cow Mask

This mask is as easy as it looks to you. I am sure you have already figured out how to make it. Cut two holes for eyes on your paper plate. Then paint it in brown color. Stick some paper hair on it and donkey-like ears all in brown. Some busy brows add a nice effect to the eyes and make them more animated.

Now, stick a wooden ice cream stick at the bottom so you can hold it in front of your face. There you have it, your brown cow mask.

Conclusion

Paper cow crafts are very easy and very convenient to make. You will have all the supplies you need in your house. There are always changes you can make to them creatively and add your own unique elements to your paper plate cows. You might like to paint the bottom of the paper plate or paint a deep dish paper plate to add some depth.

If you want, you can also make paper cow masks by cutting out the circles for eyes and adding an ice cream stick at the bottom to hold. Add a tie or a bow, or some dramatic lashes; do not restrict your creative mind.

Details like these lend them human characteristics and make them more interesting to kids. We hope these ideas helped you and you are already working on your DIY paper plate cow mask. Get going!