8 DIY Fish Crafts for Under the Sea Fun (That Won’t Make You Flounder)

If I see one more macaroni necklace masquerading as a “fish craft,” I’m going to lose my mind. We’ve all been there, right? The internet is flooded with the same tired, glitter-glue disasters that leave more sparkle on your table than on the actual project.

But you’re here because you want the good stuff. The fun stuff. The kind of DIY fish crafts that actually look cool, are enjoyable to make, and won’t have you questioning your life choices halfway through. I’ve been crafting for longer than I care to admit (let’s just say I remember when Mod Podge was the new kid on the block), and I’ve curated a list of projects that are genuinely awesome.

Whether you’re planning an under-the-sea party, need a quiet afternoon activity for the kids, or just want to add a touch of aquatic whimsy to your living room, I’ve got you covered. So grab your glue gun, clear off the kitchen table, and let’s make some waves! 🌊

Why These Projects Are a Catch

Before we jump into the deep end, I wanted to quickly explain why I picked these specific eight ideas. I’m not just throwing random junk at a wall and seeing what sticks (though, that is a valid crafting technique sometimes). I looked for projects that hit a few key notes:

• They use simple materials. You probably have most of this stuff lying around your house already. No need for a special trip to the craft store that somehow costs $80.
• They’re adaptable for different ages. I’ll give you tips on how to make a project work for a toddler versus how to make it more challenging for an older kid (or for us adults who just like playing with paper).
• They actually look good. Let’s be honest, we all want a cute end product. These crafts have that “I bought this at a boutique” vibe, not the “my refrigerator is my art gallery” vibe (though that’s cool too, Mom).

1. The Classic Coffee Filter Fish

This is where it all begins. It’s the little black dress of fish crafts—simple, classic, and endlessly customizable. You’ve probably seen some version of this, but I promise my method gives you the best results without the headache.

What You’ll Need:

• White basket-style coffee filters
• Washable markers
• A spray bottle filled with water
• Googly eyes (because every craft is better with googly eyes)
• Glue stick or tape
• Scissors

Let’s Get Wet:

1. First, have your little artist color all over the coffee filter with the markers. Don’t leave any white space! The more color, the better the final effect. This is also a great moment for a little lesson in color theory. “What do you think will happen if we color a red spot next to a blue spot?” Spoiler: they’re about to find out.
2. Lay the colored filter on a newspaper or an old towel. Now for the magic. Lightly spritz the filter with water. Don’t soak it! You want the colors to run and blend, not turn into a soggy, gray mess. Watch as the colors bleed together to create beautiful, tie-dye-like patterns. Ever wondered why this works so well? It’s because the water acts as a solvent, carrying the water-soluble ink across the paper fibers.
3. Let the filter dry completely. This is the hardest part of the entire craft, I know. Go have a snack. Stare out the window. The suspense is real.
4. Once it’s dry, it’s time to shape your fish. Gently pinch the filter in the middle to create a bow-tie shape, with two round lobes on either side. That’s your fish body.
5. Glue on a googly eye near the front. You can even glue two on one side for a funky, sideways-looking fish.
6. Finally, cut a small triangle out of the back fold to create a tail fin. You can also snip little shapes out of the edges for fins.

IMO, these are perfect for hanging from the ceiling with some fishing line. It looks like a whole school of fish swimming through your house. 🙂

2. Pool Noodle Angelfish

Alright, this next one is a personal favorite. It’s a great way to use up those pool noodles from the summer that are taking up space in the garage. Plus, the result is surprisingly chic. Think modern art installation, not pool toy.

Gather Your Supplies:

• A pool noodle (any color, but bright colors work best)
• A sharp knife (for adult hands only!)
• Sharpies or acrylic paint
• Wooden skewers or dowels
• Ribbon or yarn
• Hot glue gun

Building Your Big Fish:

1. This first step is all you, adult person. Using the sharp knife, cut a 4-6 inch section of the pool noodle. Then, cut a slit from one end to the other, about halfway through the noodle. This slit will become the fish’s mouth.
2. Now, let the kids go to town. Use the Sharpies or paint to decorate the noodle body. You can draw scales, stripes, dots—whatever your artistic heart desires. I personally love using metallic Sharpies for this; they look amazing against the foam.
3. For the fins and tail, we’ll get a little architectural. Cut fin shapes out of the leftover pool noodle pieces. You can make them rounded, pointy, or frilly. Think about the shape of an angelfish—they have long, elegant fins.
4. Hot glue the fin shapes onto the top (dorsal fin) and bottom (anal fin) of your main fish body.
5. For the tail, cut a “V” shape out of the back of the main body. You can also glue on additional noodle pieces for a more dramatic tail.
6. To make it a “yard fish” or a decoration for a plant pot, sharpen the end of a wooden skewer and carefully push it into the bottom of the fish. Push it in far enough so it’s secure.
7. Finally, hot glue a piece of ribbon or yarn just behind the mouth. It looks like a little fishing line, adding a touch of whimsy.

A word of caution: foam and little kids can be a… chaotic combination. There will be foam bits everywhere. But trust me, the look on their faces when they see their giant, 3D fish is worth the cleanup.

3. Upcycled CD-ROM Fish

Remember CD-ROMs? Those shiny discs we used to use before the cloud took over the world? I have a box of old AOL trial CDs somewhere, and I’m convinced they are a crafting goldmine. This project gives them a fabulous second life.

Materials List:

• Old CDs or DVDs
• Craft foam or cardstock in various colors
• Tacky glue or a strong glue stick
• Googly eyes
• Sequins, buttons, or other embellishments (optional)
• Black permanent marker

Shiny Fish, Shiny Scales:

1. First, let’s prep our canvas. If your CDs have labels on them, you might want to peel them off if you can. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s a frustrating 20-minute activity. Your call. We’re going for the rainbow, reflective side.
2. Now, create the fins and tail. Cut out fin shapes from your craft foam or cardstock. A simple teardrop shape for the side fins and a forked shape for the tail works perfectly.
3. Glue the tail to the back edge of the CD so it sticks out. Glue one fin to the top edge and one to the bottom edge. You can also glue side fins directly onto the shiny surface.
4. This is the fun part. Glue on the googly eye. Where’s the face? I usually put it near the edge of the CD, so the whole CD becomes the fish’s body.
5. Decorate the shiny side! The reflective surface of the CD already looks like scales, so you don’t have to do much. I like to add a few sequins or buttons along the edge for extra sparkle.
6. To finish, you can draw little details like a mouth or gills with the black permanent marker right on the CD’s surface.

These look absolutely stunning when the light hits them. Hang them in a window and watch the rainbows dance around the room. It’s a science lesson and an art project all in one.

4. Button Fish Canvas Art

This one is less about construction and more about composition. It’s a fantastic “calm down” craft for a rainy afternoon. There’s something incredibly soothing about arranging buttons.

What You Need:

• A small canvas (any size, but 5×7 or 8×10 is a good start)
• A pencil
• A collection of buttons in various sizes, colors, and shapes
• Tacky glue or a hot glue gun
• Optional: Paint for the background

Crafting Your Button School:

1. Lightly sketch the outline of a fish (or a few fish!) on your canvas with a pencil. Keep it simple—just a basic oval with a triangle for a tail.
2. If you want a colored background, paint your canvas first and let it dry completely. A light blue wash looks great, but don’t be afraid to go bold with turquoise or even a sunset orange.
3. Now, the button arranging begins! Start by filling in the body of your fish with buttons. Place them inside your pencil outline. You can make it solid, or leave some space between them for a more whimsical look. Don’t glue them yet! Play with the arrangement until you love it.
4. Use a smaller button for the eye. A single, shiny black button works perfectly.
5. Once you’re happy with the layout, start gluing the buttons down. If you’re using tacky glue, you’ll need a bit of patience as it dries. A hot glue gun is faster, but definitely an adult-supervised step if kids are involved.
6. For the tail and fins, you can either draw them in with a marker, paint them, or even find some uniquely shaped buttons that look like fins.

This project is a great example of how you don’t need to be an amazing artist to create something frame-worthy. The buttons do all the hard work for you.

5. Paper Plate Rainbow Fish

We’re circling back to a classic, but with a twist that makes it worthy of this list. This isn’t just a paper plate with a triangle glued on. This is a tribute to the beloved Rainbow Fish, complete with shiny scales.

Here’s the Catch:

• Paper plates (the sturdy kind)
• Scissors
• Paint (blue, purple, green, etc.)
• Paintbrushes
• Tin foil
• White glue
• Googly eye
• Black marker

Making it Sparkle:

1. First, cut a triangular notch out of one side of the paper plate. This is your mouth. If you look at the plate now, the notch creates a tail shape on the opposite side. See how that works? It’s not just a random cut!
2. Paint the entire plate (the top side) in cool ocean colors. Let your child go wild blending blues and purples. Set it aside to dry.
3. While the paint dries, let’s make the famous shiny scale. Cut a small square of tin foil. Crumple it up a bit, then smooth it out slightly. This creates texture and makes it catch the light even more.
4. Cut the crumpled foil into a scale shape – a half-circle or a rounded square.
5. Once the plate is dry, glue the foil scale right where the fish’s body would be. The Rainbow Fish only had a few special scales, so you don’t need to cover the whole thing.
6. Glue on the googly eye just above the mouth notch.
7. Finally, use the black marker to draw a little mouth line extending from the notch you cut, and maybe some lines for the gills.

The crumpled tin foil is a game-changer. It’s so much more effective and texturally interesting than flat glitter paper.

6. Wine Cork Clownfish

If you’re anything like me, you have a small (okay, large) collection of wine corks sitting in a jar “for a rainy day.” Well, friend, it’s raining. Let’s turn those corks into Nemo.

You’ll Be Needing:

• Wine corks (real cork works best, but the synthetic ones can be painted)
• Orange acrylic paint
• Small paintbrush
• White and black cardstock or craft foam
• Black marker
• Hot glue gun
• Optional: Googly eyes

Crafting Your Little Clown:

1. Paint the entire cork orange. You might need two coats to get good coverage. This is a great job for kids, just watch out for runaway corks.
2. While the paint dries, cut out the fin shapes from the white cardstock. You’ll need a top fin (dorsal fin), two side fins (pectoral fins), and a tail fin. For a clownfish, these fins have a black edge. So, you can either draw a black border around them with a marker, or cut slightly smaller white fins and glue them onto slightly larger black ones.
3. For the iconic white stripes, cut thin strips of white cardstock or foam.
4. Now for assembly. Hot glue the white stripes around the cork. One right behind the head, one in the middle.
5. Hot glue the fins in place. The top fin goes on the cork’s top, the side fins go on the sides near the “head,” and the tail fin gets glued to the back.
6. Glue on a tiny googly eye (or a small circle of black paper) onto the front of the cork.

These little guys are absolutely adorable. They make perfect little gifts or desk buddies. Plus, it’s a fantastic way to recycle those corks without feeling like a hoarder.

7. Handprint Fish Puppets

This craft is pure nostalgia. I remember making these when I was a kid, and the magic of seeing your own hand turn into an animal never gets old. This version kicks it up a notch by turning them into puppets.

What’s on the List:

• Colored cardstock or construction paper
• A pencil
• Scissors
• Glue stick
• Googly eyes
• Markers or crayons
• Craft sticks (popsicle sticks)

Tracing Time:

1. Trace your child’s hand on a piece of paper. Do it twice if you want a whole family of fish!
2. Carefully cut out the handprint. This is great fine motor skill practice.
3. Look at the handprint. The thumb becomes the top fin, and the fingers become the bottom fins and tail. Cute, right?
4. Glue on a googly eye in the middle of the palm.
5. Use markers to draw on a mouth and maybe some fun patterns or scales on the fingers and thumb.
6. For the final touch, glue a craft stick to the back of the handprint, near the wrist area. This turns your fish into a puppet ready for an underwater adventure.

FYI, these are a guaranteed hit for playdates. Clear off the coffee table, put on some soothing ocean sounds, and let the puppet shows begin. It’s way better than screen time.

8. Fabric Scrap Fish Softie

This one is for the sewing beginners out there, or for parents who want to do a little handiwork while the kids handle the “stuffing” part. It’s a super simple, no-sew (or very-little-sew) plushie.

Materials for a Soft Friend:

• Felt or fun fabric scraps in bright colors
• Fabric scissors
• Fiberfill stuffing (or even old fabric scraps cut into tiny bits)
• Fabric glue (like Fabri-Tac)
• Buttons or felt for the eye
• Ribbon or lace for embellishment (optional)

Stuffing Your Catch:

1. Cut out two identical fish shapes from your fabric. A simple oval with a triangular tail is perfect. You don’t need to be precise, a little wonkiness adds character!
2. If you want to add extra details like stripes or spots, glue them onto one of the fish pieces now. This is the “front” of your fish. You can use different colors of felt.
3. Glue on the eye. A button is lovely, but if it’s for a very young child, embroidering one on or using a glued felt circle is safer.
4. Now, put the two fish pieces together with the right sides (the pretty sides) facing out. Run a bead of fabric glue along the edges, leaving a gap of about an inch and a half on the belly.
5. Let the glue dry completely. I know, waiting is the worst.
6. Once it’s dry, it’s stuffing time! Gently push your stuffing through the gap in the belly. Don’t overstuff, or your seams might pop. You want it to be nice and squishy.
7. Once it’s stuffed to perfection, glue the gap closed. You can even glue a little ribbon or a piece of contrasting fabric over the seam to hide it.

This softie becomes an instant heirloom. My daughter still sleeps with the slightly lopsided one we made years ago. It’s way more special than anything you could buy at the store.

Don’t Be a Fish Out of Water: Go Make Something!

So there you have it. Eight fantastic fish crafts that range from “I can do that with my eyes closed” to “Okay, this is going on my Instagram.” The best part about all of these projects is that they’re just a starting point. Change the colors. Use different materials. Add some glitter (if you’re brave). The whole point is to have fun and make something that brings you joy.

I’d love to see what you create! Seriously, nothing makes my day more than hearing that someone actually tried one of my crafty ideas. Which one are you going to try first? The pool noodle angelfish is calling my name again… I think I hear my garage storage bin whispering to me. 😉

Happy crafting, friends!