Handmade toys with cardboard! DIY game ideas that will captivate kids
Looking for summer vacation craft ideas or fun toys the whole family can enjoy? With simple cardboard you have at home, you can handcraft all kinds of games—from nostalgic classics to original creations.
In this article, we’ll introduce DIY ideas for popular games everyone knows, like Whac-A-Mole and marble mazes.
Once you’re done, you can play with family and friends and it’s sure to be a hit! Try making cardboard toys and games packed with the fun of creating and the joy of playing!
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Handmade cardboard toys! Craft ideas for games that will captivate kids (51–60)
Tetris game
Tetris is the quintessential puzzle game where you aim to align rows by combining randomly shaped falling blocks.
How about making a Tetris-inspired puzzle using cardboard? Prepare a piece of cardboard with a grid of square cells and a set of randomly shaped blocks, then try to fill the grid perfectly, just like in Tetris.
If you decorate the blocks in bright colors, the different shapes will be easier to tell apart and it will make the game even more fun.
It’s also great to split the board into two fields and play head-to-head in a versus mode.
Cardboard Badminton
Let’s have fun using recycled materials! Here’s an idea for cardboard badminton.
When you think of badminton, you use a racket and a shuttlecock, right? This time, let’s make both pieces of equipment using scrap materials you can find at home, like cardboard.
What you’ll need: cardboard, an A4-size clear plastic file, tissue paper, a permanent marker, tape, a ruler, scissors, and more.
The way the shuttlecock spins around as it falls is unique and really fun to watch!
hamburger set toy
@mu_aca.origami How to make Anpanman hamburgers#myuakaworkorigamiPlayPlaying housetranslationHow to make
♫ Original Song – Myu Akaorigami – Myu Akaorigami
Items that make pretend play even more fun! Here are some ideas for making a toy hamburger set.
You’ll need cardboard, a styrofoam board, a round template, a craft knife, craft glue, scrap paper, tissue paper, origami paper, tape, red round stickers, pens, and so on.
It’s a handmade hamburger set idea perfect for kids who love to play shopkeeper.
The buns are shaped like Anpanman’s face, which makes it extra cute!
play kitchen
Here’s the perfect cardboard play activity for kids who love pretend play! You can make the “kitchen” they admire that their parents use.
Decorate it colorfully with your own ideas, and even make an oven, shelves, and a faucet with running water—create your very own original kitchen! Once it’s finished, let’s play pretend cooking!
bodkin (drawstring threader)
Let’s make a cardboard lacing activity! You’ll need cardboard, an awl, yarn in your favorite color, and chenille stems (pipe cleaners).
First, have your child draw a favorite picture on the cardboard.
Next, use the awl to punch holes along the drawing, then wrap the yarn around the end of a chenille stem—and you’re ready to go.
A key tip: bend and secure the tip of the chenille stem so it won’t poke little hands.
Tape the end of the yarn to the back so it doesn’t pull through, and enjoy lacing freely! It’s so satisfying to thread the yarn through all the holes.
Give it a try!