Toddler-approved fun! DIY toy ideas for 2-year-olds
At around age two, as a sense of self begins to emerge, children start to assert themselves clearly.
Their curiosity and desire to say “I want to try!” become stronger, which expands their range of activities.
They can also perform finer finger movements, widening the kinds of play they enjoy.
It’s wonderful to support their physical and emotional development through lots of play.
With that in mind, here are some recommended handmade toys for two-year-olds.
From toys that use the fingers, to sound-making items, to things perfect for pretend play—this collection is packed with handmade toy ideas that two-year-olds will be captivated by.
Find the ones that best fit your child’s stage of growth and give making them a try.
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Toddlers Will Love It! Handmade Toy Ideas (11–20)
Cute zodiac felt finger puppets!

Not just for kids—you’ll want to make and collect them for yourself too! Here’s a cute finger puppet idea.
You’ll need a template, felt in various colors, eye parts, scissors, stuffing, thread, and a needle.
It’s great for those who are good at crafts, but if you’re not confident or you’re a beginner, you can also use fabric glue to stick the felt pieces together and aim to finish that way.
If you customize the mane and eye parts, you’ll end up with a horse that has a totally different look.
goggles

Let’s make “goggles” that change the colors of the world you see and explore the room.
Cut cardboard into a goggle-shaped frame, apply glue, and attach colored cellophane.
Attaching the colored cellophane is something children can do, so let them choose their favorite color and work on it together.
The teacher can trim off any parts sticking out from the frame, punch holes so the goggles can hook over the ears, and thread rubber bands through.
When you put on the goggles and look around the room, it transforms into a completely different scene! You can just picture how delighted the children will be.
Felt ice cream with a chick

It’s fun because you can stack them! Here’s an idea for chick-themed felt ice cream.
Felt is known for its soft touch and warm texture.
It’s relatively easy to work with—simple to cut and sew—so it’s a great material for beginners in handicrafts and crafting! This time, let’s make chick felt ice cream using felt.
What you’ll need: brown felt cut to 10 cm × 16 cm, three colors of pastel felt cut to 7 cm × 13 cm, embroidery thread, stuffing, and magnets.
Its cute look is sure to catch children’s interest!
Musical Instrument Crafting: Guitar

We’d like to introduce a DIY musical-instrument craft: a guitar you can play once it’s finished.
Prepare four paper cups, three rubber bands, a felt-tip pen, tape, and scissors.
First, place the bottoms of two paper cups together and secure them with tape so they don’t shift.
Next, make three slits in the rim of each of the remaining two paper cups.
Insert these slit cups onto the taped-together cups, and hook the three rubber bands onto the slits so they don’t cross over like an X.
Finally, pluck the rubber bands to check that they make sound—that’s it! The steps are simple, so give it a try!
Puppet horse

You can put it on your hand and make the mouth chomp! Here’s a handmade horse puppet idea.
You’ll use a sock, foam sheets, felt, yarn, and googly eyes.
Stack two half-circle pieces of foam sheet and tape the straight edges together, then attach them to the cut end of the sock with a hot glue gun.
Line the contact surfaces of the foam with pink felt and glue on teeth made from white felt.
Finally, add the facial features, a yarn mane, and felt ears—and you’re done!
Handmade toys you can play with during the New Year

Try making New Year’s crafts that you can enjoy and play with even after they’re finished, together as a parent-child activity.
You’ll make a spinning top, a kite, and a hanetsuki set (paddle and shuttlecock).
For the top, draw pictures on the sides of a paper cup, cut four evenly spaced slits and flare them open, then attach a plastic bottle cap as the handle.
For the kite, slightly offset and layer two sheets of origami paper and glue them together; attach sparkly tape as the tails to complete the body, then add a lactic-acid drink bottle as the handle and tie on kite string.
For the hanetsuki paddle, use cardboard and disposable chopsticks: cut two paddle-shaped pieces from cardboard, sandwich the chopsticks between them, and glue.
For the shuttlecock, tie a knot in the middle of some raffia (suzuran) tape, press a small ball of tissue onto the knot, and wrap it with origami paper.
Toddlers Will Love It! Handmade Toy Ideas (21–30)
An educational toy made with pool cues

Let’s have fun with our fingertips! Here’s an introduction to an educational toy you can make with a pool noodle.
You’ll need a pool noodle, a utility knife, a paper towel holder, ribbon, a wide tapioca (boba) straw, tape, pom-poms, and tongs.
After cutting the pool noodle into large, medium, and small pieces, you can use the paper towel holder to thread the pieces onto the pole and play! You can also use the ribbon and straw for lacing activities, and even play pretend cake shop using pom-poms and tongs.
Give it a try!



