This post was contributed by Dyan of And Next Comes L. It has affiliate links, but all opinions are authentic and her own. Please see B-Inspired Mama’s my disclosure policy.
Use the Recycling to Make Some Simple DIY Toys!
Do you hoard cardboard recycling at your house? Yeah…I’m totally guilty, too. I have been saving cardboard tubes (aka toilet paper rolls if you want to be specific) and soap boxes for a very long time. And frankly, my stash is getting too big. It was time to do something with them, like make some more easy DIY toys!
The size of the soap boxes make for a perfect building block, so I figured that we could use the cardboard tubes and soap boxes to make a custom set of building blocks. Since my boys love to do anything that involves tape and/or scissors, I figured we could decorate them with washi tape. I love washi tape! We have done other washi tape projects like washi tape art on the light table and washi tape ornaments, but I could easily do many, many more projects using washi tape.
How We Transformed Our Recyclables Into DIY Toy Blocks
- cardboard tubes or toilet paper rolls
- soap boxes, sealed shut with regular tape – you could substitute any small boxes like those for toothpaste, beauty products, or raisins
- washi tape
- scissors
Both of my boys helped to make these DIY toys, so it was a great craft to work on as a family. Working with tape is also an awesome way to develop fine motor skills in kids, as is scissor practice. Both my two year old and my four year old enjoyed decorating some of the cardboard. They practically spent an hour straight working on five blocks.
My four year old was particularly fond of the numbered washi tape, whereas my two year old enjoyed mixing and matching various tapes. Their finished blocks definitely had character!
While they worked away on their own toy blocks, I made these ones.
Then it was time to build tall towers or fancy houses or whatever else they could dream up. Here is one of my four year old’s towers.
It didn’t take much to transform our recycling into some bright, beautiful building blocks; these DIY toys will certainly inspire lots of imaginative play in the future.
More DIY Toys on Pinterest
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Melissa says
October 24, 2016 at 8:03 PMThis is very cute. Also, you could take those soap boxes apart & turn them inside out. Then decorate them. No labeling to cover up. (I make gift (bag) boxes with all different sized boxes & I learned that trick early on. Less painting or whatnot to cover the labels)
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
October 25, 2016 at 7:00 PMYES! Great tip.
Jill says
April 27, 2014 at 7:35 PMThese are adorable ideas for DIY toys. I will never look at a soap box the same after seeing one example of how you can give them new life.
Thank you for stopping by the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop this week. We hope to see you drop by our neck of the woods next week!
Susan W says
April 26, 2014 at 9:11 AMVery creative and colorful! Thanks for stopping by the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop.
Felissa (Two Little Cavaliers) says
April 22, 2014 at 8:26 PMWhat a cute idea for diy toys!
Happy Earth Day!
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
April 23, 2014 at 10:33 AMThanks, Felissa!