Splatoon looks like it’s going to be Nintendo’s next big hit, and it’s easy to see why. Paint flies through the air and decked-out characters, called Inklings, strut their stuff in this all-ages game coming out at the end of this month.

After playing through the demo, my kindergartener was ready to be an Inkling herself! With a little bit of inexpensive craft foam and paint, she was transformed into an Inkling ready to jump into the paint-soaked fray.

What You Need

• 12″ x 18″ piece of craft foam
• Headband
• Acrylic paint, one shade darker and one shade lighter than the craft foam
• Glue gun
• Ruler
• Paint brushes
• Pencil
• Scissors

Get Started!

Place the ruler against the long edge (18″) of the craft foam. Draw a line from top to bottom of the foam, and cut out the strip to make the top part of the headband.

Next, cut the remaining piece of craft foam in half. Place one piece of foam on top of the other. Draw a tearshop-shaped tentacle with the top the same width as the ruler. Cut out the teardrop shape from both pieces of foam simultaneously for matching sides.

Use the darker shade of acrylic paint on the bottom of the tentacle to create a gradient design. I chose fuchsia glitter paint for my kindergartener’s pink headband to add a little sparkle.

Allow the paint to dry completely. If you use glitter paint, a second coat might be needed.

Next, paint spots on the teardrop shapes in both the lighter and dark shades of acrylic paint.

Allow the paint to completely dry. Flip over the teardrop shapes and repeat the design on the other side of the foam.

Once the tentacle shapes are completely dry, use the glue gun to attach them to either end of the foam strip you cut earlier.

Next, squeeze a small line of hot glue in the middle of the craft foam strip. Place the headband on top of the glue and press the strip into place.

You may add glue if you’d like the strips to have a firmer hold to the head; my daughter preferred to have the tentacles swing around as freely as they could, so only the top of the headband was glued to the foam.

Your Splatoon headband is now complete!

To complete the look, grab a black superhero mask and a water gun. Your little Inkling is ready for a turf war!