Simple yet amazing crafts made with milk cartons! A collection of ideas that will captivate elementary school children and toddlers.

chair

Reuse milk cartons! DIY a chair for kids♪

How about making a handy chair you can use every day out of milk cartons? Prepare 24 milk cartons, cardboard, wrapping paper or tape to decorate the chair, and packing tape.

Open up the 24 milk cartons and fold each into a triangular prism.

Bundle them together and secure them with tape, and you’ll have a sturdy chair you can sit on! Milk cartons are amazing, aren’t they?

Pinwheel hat made from a milk carton

Building physical fitness through childcare! [Milk carton pinwheel hat]

A windmill attached to a hat! Here’s an idea for a windmill hat made from a milk carton.

You’ll need a milk carton, scissors, a bamboo skewer, duct tape, and a straw.

Wear the hat made from the milk carton and run—the windmill’s propeller will spin.

It’s a unique idea, perfect for kids who love running and being active.

It’s also fun to customize the design by drawing illustrations of cats, dogs, or monkeys.

Give it a try and have fun making and playing with it!

knitting machine

Professor Rinpei’s Make-and-Play Science: Scarf with a Milk Carton Loom

Have you ever wanted to knit a scarf but given up thinking it looks too difficult? Believe it or not, you can make a “loom” for knitting a scarf by cutting up a milk carton with a utility knife and scissors! Once you’ve made the loom, knitting the yarn is easy.

It’s recommended even for people who aren’t very handy—you’ll be able to do it right away!

car

[Milk Carton Craft] How to Make a Rubber Band-Powered Car

Pull-back cars that start running when you pull them back and let go are very popular with kids.

You can make one at home using a milk carton or plastic bottle caps.

Since there are some detailed steps using bamboo skewers and an awl, please help younger children with the work.

By adding colored paper or using markers, you can create your very own original car!

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Tani Satoko

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Goldfish and poi

Goldfish Scooping

Here’s a craft idea where you make both goldfish and a scoop (poi) using milk cartons.

Because the goldfish are simply cut out of the carton into fish shapes, the original design is crucial—choosing which carton to use can be part of the fun.

The poi is also simple: just roll up thin strips of the carton and add a handle, so anyone can easily create a goldfish scooping game.

What you stick inside the ring is another key point: using thin washi paper makes it feel like authentic goldfish scooping, while a mesh strainer bag lets kids focus on the scooping motion.

You can also adjust the difficulty by making the poi harder to hold or changing the weight of the goldfish.

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kappamaki

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Naruko

Handmade Instrument [Click-clack Naruko]

Would you like to make a clapper (naruko) with a charming click-clack sound? Cut the corners of one panel of a milk carton into rounded shapes, fold the panel in half, and make a slit at the center of the crease.

Next, fold two panels of the milk carton so each becomes one-quarter of the original width to form a handle.

Insert this handle into the slit you made and secure it with tape.

Then freely decorate the milk carton with drawings, and attach four plastic bottle caps so they overlap on the inside of the folded section and on the upper part of the inserted handle.

That’s it! Simply shake it side to side to make a click-clack sound, so even small children can easily and enjoyably join in musical play.

Paper airplane launcher

Let’s make a paper airplane launcher using a milk carton! This craft is amazingly simple and quick to make, and you only need items you likely already have at home: a milk carton, rubber bands, scissors, and a stapler.

First, open the milk carton and cut off the top and the bottom parts.

Staple a rubber band in the center, fold that section inward, fold any excess outward, and then fold a part to make a handle—that’s it.

Fold along the creases, stretch the rubber band and hook it over the opposite corner, set your paper airplane in the gap along the fold, and when you hold the handle and open the milk carton, the paper airplane will launch forward with great force.

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utatane

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