Fun With Boxes: Cardboard Crafts for Kids
Ranked #28 in Arts & Design, #217 overall
Don't Toss That Cardboard!
This Squidoo lens focuses on ways to re-use everyday cardboard items. Adapt these ideas to fit your homeschooling or family crafts needs and your definition of recycling will change. When you pour your last bowl of cereal, you'll save the box and think CRAFTS! After you open a gift, you'll set the box aside for future projects. Recycling isn't work...it's fun!
May this lens be just the beginning of creative fun for your family, classroom, or children's group.
New to Squidoo? Make your own lens today!
Cardboard Tip #1
Your life and mine is filled with boxes. Products come with layers of packaging, much of which gets tossed out. Think about the crafts potential of each scrap of paper, each box.
How is Cardboard Made?
Everything you've ever wanted to know about cardboard
Imagine if everything had to be shipped in bulky wooden crates. The weight and expense of moving products from place to place would be enormous. Cardboard not only weighs less, it is a cost-effective way to ship. Processing of cardboard is a fascinating journey from tree to pulp to corrugated layers.
The craft ideas on this lens would not be possible if not for cardboard. Check out this website for a step-by-step explanation of this single product and how it is processed. You'll come away with a better idea of what it took to create that single sheet of cardboard you've been shaping into a fun family craft.
Get Organized!
Tips on organizing your life and your recyclables
- ThriftyFun's Organization Ideas
- ThriftyFun.com invites visitors to share their organizational tips for crafters who like to collect recyclables.
- Use Recyclables to Get Organized
- With a little creativity, you'll reorganize your home and recycle at the same time.
- Organize with Recyclable Boxes
- Never buy boxes again! Here's how...
Creative Valentine's Day Crafts
Save money and have fun!
Valentine's Day is a great time to create special cards for friends, grandparents, neighbor, pastor...whoever is special in the lives of your children. With little assistance, a child can create a one-of-a-kind card that's sure to warm a heart. This elephant card is such a cutie! It uses heart-shaped cardboard pieces, like a shoebox. It takes about an hour.Want a place to stash all the Valentine's cards this year? I love these Valentine's mailbox ideas, submitted to FamilyCorner.com by parents and teachers.
Now, let's be realistic. Not everyone has the time or creative drive to create crafts from cast-off cardboard. But here's an idea: When you receive their store-bought cards, think about repurposing them. Once you've enjoyed them and a birthday or other holiday has passed, why not turn them into something fun and reusable...like a placemat? I fell in love with this idea when I ran across it, and it's an easy crafts for a group setting, as well. All it takes is a few used greeting cards, clear Contac paper, scissors, colored construction paper, and any extras (ribbon, buttons...any pretty embellishments) and TA-DA! Look at what you can make!
The reason I L.O.V.E. this idea is that we receive cards throughout the year. Imagine a Christmas card placement...Valentine's placement...Thanksgiving...birthdays. The list goes on. I'm sure you'll think up events of your own, too.
Have fun creating!
Fresh Ideas to the Rescue!
- Free Kids Crafts - Egg Carton Cat
- Free kids craft ideas including free printables, holiday crafts, coloring pages and more!
- Alphabet Noodle Bracelet - Simple Crafts for Kids
- Make a unique bracelet using alphabet noodles, cardboard, and yarn.
- Bird Supply Box
- Make a nesting supply box for birds.
- Alphabet Lacing Cards - Chapter 8: Educational Crafts
- This craft is featured in chapter 8 of the About.com Guide to Family Crafts book.
- Box Barn Craft - Enchanted Learning Software
- Box Barn Craft. You can make this barn using a cardboard box , scissors, and paint.
- Sugar Bush Crafts and Projects -Chinese Dragon
- Sugarbush Kids is a site for Kids, Families, Teachers and Organization
- Little Log Cabin Craft - Enchanted Learning Software
- Little Log Cabin Craft. You can make this wonderful twig house using a cardboard box , twigs, and hot glue.
- Make a box town - Enchanted Learning Software
- Make a box town with things found around the house.
- Thanksgiving crafts for kids!
- Beatrice is a wonderfully creative mom with a passion for crafts that don't cost a lot of money. Visit her blog and be blessed!
Books to Spark Recycling Ideas
Locate a Recycling Center
Website
So you're cleaning out your garage, and find yourself facing a stack of cardboard. It's more than what your family could use for crafts, yet you don't want to just toss it out with the trash. What to do?Earth911.com offers a great solution, in the form of a search engine geared for recyclers. Simply type in the material you want to recycle (i.e. cardboard), add your zip code or the name of your town or a town near you, and wait a few seconds.
There, wasn't that easy?
Create a Post Office
Transform a large appliance box into endless fun!
The first time my husband hauled home a refrigerator box, I thought he'd lost his mind. What would we do with it, and where would we keep the monstrosity?
All it took was a quick glance into my kids' big, begging eyes to convince me that this was something they could really have fun with. Our son was 5 and our daughter, 3. Rare was the day when they didn't create something with crayons & paper, paints, or scissors & strips of colored construction paper. Crafts was as much a part of their day as eating and breathing.
I decided to help only with the parts they couldn't do themselves. I figured they'd make a clubhouse, but after a few whispers, they announced that they were going to make a post office. I helped them cut a door out of one side, and a service window out of the other. A small basket held used envelopes (they loved the official postmarks and postage stamps that were already on the recycled mail) and a toy cash register and coins helped them make change for customers.
Kids will come up with some of the most fun ideas for re-purposing an oversized appliance box. Just step back and watch the magic begin.
Sing Along with iTunes
Crafting to the music
Music lightens a mood and adds a fun backdrop to any crafting event. I've chosen lots of lively kids' songs to get you started. Turn up the volume on your computer or iPod and sing along...
| Track | Artist | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ants Go Marching | Cedarmont Kids | 100 Singalong Songs for Kids | |
| Pop Goes The Weasel | Peter Pan Kids | Nursery Songs Sing-Along | |
| Bingo | Countdown Kids | 100 All Time Children's Favorites | |
| On Top of Old Smokey | Happy Kids Band | Traditional Children's Songs | |
| Daisy, Daisy | Kids United | Kids - It's a Small World | |
| John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt | Elmo & Kids | Sesame Street: Kids' Favorite Songs |
Cardboard Tip #2
Make a sketch of how you'd like to use your box. Add notes so you won't forget your creative idea. Remember to list supplies you'll need--preferably items you already have on hand. (We're recycling here, so let that be your priority.)
Want More Kids' Crafts?
Check out my other crafts lenses!
The Many Uses of Cardboard
Fascinating blog post at JosieOfficeDesign.com
Celebrating his invention...
This Isn't Your Grandma's Kitchen Stool!
...because functional furniture doesn't have to be fancy
Ever dreamt of owning a cardboard stool? Nah, didn't think so.
But just imagine the uses you could find for a sturdy, 2-foot-tall stool that has been tested by humans up to 200 lbs.?
And can I just say, it will cost you only a few bucks' worth of supplies?
There. I bet you can't wait to build one yourself. Full instructions for another fun family cardboard crafts project.
A New England proverb...
Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.
Living in a Cardboard Home?
View this amazing slideshow!
Cardboard Tip #3
If you're gardening in a weedy area, lay sheets of cardboard over the area. Wet the cardboard thoroughly, then spread 2-3 inches of organic material, followed by gardening soil. Wait about 2 weeks for any grass or weeds to die, then plant.
Grandparents, Take Notice!
Make a fun memory together
Not Just a Box
Buying toys is easy. Just hand over the money and you can take home anything your heart desires. Keeping a child entertained is harder. How many times have you bought the latest-greatest toy, only to find that your child grew bored with it in a couple of weeks?Toys don't last, but a healthy imagination can come up with a myriad of ways to use one simple box. Hand your child an empty box and see what happens.
The box can be as small as a tissue or Bandaid box, or as big as a shipping box for a kitchen stove. (Call a local store and they'll sometimes set a day each week when their oversized cartons are left out for preschools and parents to pick up.)
I played with a box when I was a child, and my kids did, too. One large appliance box became a post office, a veterinarian's clinic, a spaceship, and finally, a house with curtains hung in the cutout windows and carpeting on the floor.
Forget those name brand toys. Make a phone call and see if you can locate a castaway appliance box. Your kids will thank you for it, and they'll spend hours creating fun from simple cardboard. It's the best kind of recycling ever.
*Thanks to GarrettWI for this great cardboard playhouse image at Flickr. Visit his Cardboard Creations group for more fantastic examples of cardboard recycling.
Nothing Says Thanksgiving Like a Recycled Cereal Box!
Take a long look at that cereal box your family just emptied at breakfast this morning. What could you make? Any ideas?Here's a fabulous website that has come up with super ideas for Thanksgiving. Materials are easy to find, beginning with an empty cereal box. Artists Helping Children has a pageful of ideas you can start on today.
Feeling Boxed In?
The Freedictionary.com defines "boxed in" like this:
Adj. 1. boxed-in - enclosed in or as if in a box; "boxed cigars"; "a confining boxed-in space"; "felt boxed in by the traffic"
Christmas Cardboard Crafts
Don't toss that cardboard! There's plenty you can do to transform it into Christmas decorations you'll be able to use year after year.
Think of more lightweight cardboard, too--not just the heavyweight boxes things are shipped in. What about cereal boxes...popcorn boxes...shoe boxes? Can you imagine the fun your kids will have, turning throwaways into something usable?
Below are links to some fantastic Christmas ideas. Please add to the list, and let's see how long we can make it! Remember to reload your browser window, then vote!
If you've come up with a unique craft that works, or if you found one in this list that you especially like, please consider leaving a comment Guestbook. It's good to hear which ones work and which ones aren't challenging for kids. Thanks.
From Junk to Art
Give new life to old cardboard
- Trash to Treasures
- Check out the variety of recyclable projects on this website. There's something for everybody here.
- Kaboose.com
- Make a recycled cardboard Pokemon Digimon Fan for kids.
- Decoupage Card Boxes
- Some cards are just too nice to throw away -- which was exactly the thinking behind these snazzy decoupage boxes @Disney Family.com
- Box Buildings
- Kids can create all kinds of cool structures -- from houses to high-rises, metal shops to museums -- with household boxes and a few found objects.
- Doll Couch
- Kids can give diminutive playmates a posh place to perch with this fabulously furry homemade sofa crafted from a tissue box
- How to Make New Bookmarks From Cardboard Train Tickets | eHow.com
- How to Make New Bookmarks From Cardboard Train Tickets. If you take the train often enough, you’ll find yourself throwing out train ticket after train ticket. All this extra cardboard does is accumulate in your recycling bin. Instead, consider r...
What's Fluting?
Cardboard is made of two distinct kinds of paper formed into three layers. Two layers make up the liner, and the crinkly layer is called fluting.
Read more about the manufacture of cardboard.
8 Cardboard Crafts
Make something with cardboard today!
Cardboard crafts have long been a mainstay of preschool classrooms, VBS, and home crafters. It's cheap, easy, and fun. Nowadays, it's also smart, as we seek ways to recycle instead of toss out.Lucky for us, the internet has a massive amount of ideas from parents and teachers, all for the borrowing. I've scoured the 'net and found some I think you'll enjoy. Follow the link and see what you think!
Train Costume
Pirate Ship
Box Guitar
Finger Puppet Theater
Easy Easel
Heart-Shaped Box
Oatmeal Box Cradle
Old-West Town
*Thanks to visualbasher for the "Cardboard Monster" image.
More Cardboard Crafts Ideas
(You're running out of excuses, aren't you?)
Cardboard Tip #4
Shred cardboard into fine strips and line your pet's bed with it. Cardboard creates a soft, insulated bed for Fido. He might even thank you.
Good Ideas Straight from the Crafters' Mouths
What to do with all those boxes?
So, you say you'd like to find creative ways to use all that cardboard packaging and boxes. But where to begin?
Someone wrote to ThriftyFun.com:
"I find myself throwing out cardboard cereal boxes and things like pot pie boxes, etc, and I hate doing it, but I don't know how to recycle them as fast as we use that stuff. I don't have kids at home anymore, so I don't really need them for craft projects. Any ideas would be appreciated no matter how "far-fetched" they are. Oh, and I should point out that there is no household recycling pickup in my area."
Here are a few great replies from crafters who have discovered clever uses for cardboard boxes and other cardboard recyclables.
Be sure to visit my other fun crafting lenses:
Fun With Paper Bags: Ideas for Craftsy Kids
Fun With Cans: Ideas for Craftsy Kids
Fun With Fabric: Craft Ideas for Families.
- Make a cereal box tote
- Make this one-of-a-kind tote!
- Create a Covered Gift Box!
- Make a pretty covered gift box for your next surprise.
- Reuse Cardboard Tubes
- What to do with those cardboard tubes inside toilet paper, gift wrap, and oversized photo prints?
- How to Get Rid of Musty Cardboard Odor?
- Love the cardboard, but hate the smell? Freshen up those recyclable boxes in a hurry.
- Recycle cigar boxes
- So, you've inherited Uncle Harry's 67 cigar boxes? Here are some creative uses for them.
- The Crafty Crow
- What can you make with an egg carton?
Attention Parents...
Most children are eager learners. Give them a project and they'll run with it. That's why it's important to start early if you want to teach them responsible recycling.
Don't assume they're too young to help. Even the youngest
Running Out of Cardboard?
More crafts for busy hands...
If you're sick and tired of crafts, ignore this section. If you're itchin' for more, you're going to love the endless possibilities. Plus, imagine how your kids will brag. Even if you don't feel craftsy, here's something for everyone.
All it takes is a willingness to learn.
- DLTK's Printable Crafts
- Imagine an online index filled with printable resources for kids' crafts? DLTK is that a a whole lot more.
- EnchantedLearning.com
- Crafts for kids. Kindergarten, preschool, and elementary school crafts. Make wonderful, simple crafts with things found around the house.
- Nutshell critters kids craft.
- Free craft projects for kids of all ages. Join the crafting fun at Craftown.
This craft project is for nutshell critters. - Fall leaves placemat.
- Easy and inexpensive leaves crafts to make with children. Step by step instructions.
Cardboard Flower Ornaments
Elise is an amazing crafter!
Looky at what Elise does with cardboard...
- Cardboard Flower Ornament crafts
- Elise's view of cardboard is very different from the average person. You'll never view cardboard the same after visiting her beautiful blog.
Rate Yourself!
Where do you stand as a recycler?
"The beginning is the most important part of the work." - Plato
------------------------------
Unusual Uses for Cardboard
Unique ways to recycle that cardboard...
Every so often, I run across some uses for cardboard that are...well, let's just say they aren't what you'd expect. Read on.
What? A Cardboard House?
Traffic Control in New Zealand
Cardboard speakers
Life-size cardboard objects
Are you craftsy?
Share your favorite crafts project here...
-
Reply
-
jimmyworldstar
Feb 2, 2012 @ 1:26 pm | delete
- A cardboard playhouse sounds like a great idea, with the base of the box and the flaps you can easily make it so.
-
-
Reply
-
mistyblue75605
Jan 30, 2012 @ 3:49 pm | delete
- cute! Thanks :0)
-
-
Reply
-
allcutestuff Jan 17, 2012 @ 8:39 am | delete
- thanks for sharing
-
-
Reply
-
seedplanter
Jan 17, 2012 @ 4:41 pm | delete
- And thank YOU for taking time to leave feedback. I appreciate it!
-
-
Reply
-
servantoftheLord
Jan 16, 2012 @ 9:59 am | delete
- Great ideas! My four-year-old and I do a lot of crafting. He loves making a drive-through restaurant out of cardboard boxes.
-
- Load More
Seedplanter's RSS Feed
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byTweet Me!
Follow Seedplanter on Twitter
- seedplanter
- aka Bonnie
- 2,373 followers
- 2,603 following
-
- Morning Hush 8x10 Photo Art Print soft by bbrunophotography http://t.co/72yY0ORR via @Etsy #decor #art #interiordesign #photography
-
- Chartreuse Grassy Field Study 2 11x14 print by bbrunophotography http://t.co/zxabWFVV via @Etsy #art #decor #interiordesign #photography
-
- Chartreuse! ==>http://t.co/Hjtj1rTH via @Etsy #art #photography #decor #interiordesign
-
- Thinking of Spring - The Green Leaves are Emerging by Glenn White http://t.co/otY7pLYb via @Etsy
-
- Garden Delights 11x14 Fine Art Print lupine by bbrunophotography http://t.co/9DLdL2Nf via @Etsy #photography #art #decor #interiordesign
Boomerang!
Go back to selected areas of this lens
- Cardboard Tip #1
- How is Cardboard Made?
- Get Organized!
- Creative Valentine's Day Crafts
- Fresh Ideas to the Rescue!
- Cardboard Calls...Are You Listening?
- Recycle All Those Leftover Boxes!
- Books to Spark Recycling Ideas
- Locate a Recycling Center
- Create a Post Office
- Create a Fun Cardboad House
- Sing Along with iTunes
- Cardboard Tip #2
- Cardboard Fun!
- Want More Kids' Crafts?
- The Many Uses of Cardboard
- Celebrating his invention...
- This Isn't Your Grandma's Kitchen Stool!
- A New England proverb...
- Imaginative Recyclers
- Living in a Cardboard Home?
- Cardboard Tip #3
- Grandparents, Take Notice!
- Just in Time for Thanksgiving!
- Not Just a Box
- Nothing Says Thanksgiving Like a Recycled Cereal Box!
- Crazy Cardboard Chair!
- Feeling Boxed In?
- Christmas Cardboard Crafts
- From Junk to Art
- What's Fluting?
- 8 Cardboard Crafts
- More Cardboard Crafts Ideas
- Cardboard Tip #4
- Good Ideas Straight from the Crafters' Mouths
- Attention Parents...
- Running Out of Cardboard?
- Cardboard Flower Ornaments
- Rate Yourself!
- Unusual Uses for Cardboard
- Are you craftsy?
- Seedplanter's RSS Feed
- Tweet Me!
by seedplanter
Contact me
Photographer & writer with a passion for God, family, and a good creative challenge. View my gallery.
more »
- 84 featured lenses
- Winner of 13 trophies!
- Top lens » Fun With Boxes: Cardboard Crafts for Kids
- This lens »
Won purple star
Explore related pages
- Fun With Cans: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun With Cans: Creative Crafts for Kids
- Fun With Paper Bags: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun With Paper Bags: Creative Crafts for Kids
- Fun with Fabric: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun with Fabric: Creative Crafts for Kids
- Fun With Buttons: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun With Buttons: Creative Crafts for Kids
- Fun with Foam: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun with Foam: Creative Crafts for Kids
- Fun with Socks: Creative Crafts for Kids Fun with Socks: Creative Crafts for Kids
Featured Lenses
What I Do When I'm Not Squidooing
Fetching RSS feed... please stand by