Tom and Hen 4x4 turkeys

I should begin by saying this wasn't my idea. It was done for an activity at church, but I'm pretty sure the idea didn't come from the girl who was in charge either. Like most things, I'm sure someone thought of it, someone else copied it, and no one recalls exactly from whence it came.

The original design, or at least the design on display was made from a 2x4, a paint stirring stick  and tongue depressors. If you type in 2x4 turkey, you'll get quite a few hits on it and can design your own from what you see. There are step-by-step tutorials on many of those sites, but I'm pretty sure. . . well that wasn't a kind way to phrase it, so I'll finish by saying most people could figure out how do do it by looking at the finished product.

My daughter made the nearsighted turkey and my niece made the one with the sparkley pink eyes. See how creative one can be by adapting a basic design?


I used a 4x4 because it is common knowledge that no one wants an emaciated turkey; plus I had scrap 4x4's.

Also I used mini wooden spoons because they were more feather shaped. I might go back in and add some more to make a fuller tail, but I don't hate it as is. Additionally I painted the back sides of the "feathers" because if I want to use it for a centerpiece it needs to have a more finished look. Also I covered the back end and tail feathers with scrapbook paper for the same reason.

Since I had the space, I used mod-podge on the sides to fasten on decorative paper. That was more my brother's idea, but I liked it, so I added it. If using it for a centerpiece you could also put thankfully minded quotes on the side or names to make place cards for the formal dinner I'm sure most people enjoy on a family-filled holiday.Lastly, and probably most importantly, I added the feet. Turkeys in this day and age are so large with breast meat they cannot breed naturally. That may seem like a random comment, but the 4x4 turkey is much more like the turkey bread for Thanksgiving dinner and while ordinarily you might think the feet would be on the legs underneath, I imagine this to be a strain on its joints, so the feet are out in front as it lazily squats on the ground. 

To my knowledge, the turkey hen does not have nearly as full of a tail as the tom, but in this case the only gender distinctions I made were the placement of the bow, the eyelashes, the gobbler, and the hen is covered in glittery mod-podge while the tom has a matte finish.