Step-by-step tutorial
Step 1
Gather your materials.
Tip
Missing any of these supplies? Get them from the KiwiCo Store!
Step 2
Reference your Pom-Pom Set Quick Start Guide for detailed steps on how to make pom poms.
Step 3
For Mercury, Venus, and Mars, use the smallest pom-pom winders & trim guides, and the color of yarn that best matches those planets.
Step 4
For Earth, mix green and blue yarn when winding to get a marbled look! When you’re ready, use the second smallest pom-pom trim guide.
Step 5
For Jupiter, mix red, brown, and orange yarn on the largest winder. Then shape it with the largest pom-pom trim guide.
Step 6
For Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, use the medium sized pom-pom winder and trim guide.
Step 7
To make rings for Saturn and Uranus, trace the pom-pom guide that matches their size on a piece of felt.
Step 8
Draw a second, slightly larger circle around the one you traced. (Uranus’s ring should be slightly smaller than Saturn’s). Then cut out the rings.
Step 9
Slip the rings over the planets. Secure with two dots of glue on either side of the planet.
Step 10
Prepare your hoop for hanging! Tie four lengths of yarn to equidistant edges of the hoop.
Step 11
Next, Tie the four strings together in a loop. Hang and adjust as needed to get a level hoop.
Step 12
Attach your planets to your mobile hanger using more yarn or fishing wire. For planets with rings, slip the wire between the ring and the planet before tying your knot.
Tip
Tip: It’s much easier to do this when the mobile hoop is already hanging!
Step 13
Learn more
Our solar system is so big that scientists had to make up a new unit to measure how big it is! An AU (astronomical unit) is the distance from the Earth to the Sun (about 93 million miles). The furthest planets are about 50 AU out (more than 46 billion miles), but even that’s only a tiny part of the solar system. The edge of the solar system is 50,000 AU away.