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How to Make Toy Blocks

Handcrafted wooden toys are some of the most special gifts you can give a child, and homemade wooden blocks are among the easiest and most basic for a beginner to create. If you want to make your own blocks, you can often use scrap lumber left over from other projects. You can leave the wood raw, or give it a non-toxic finish. You can craft blocks in any shape and size your imagination can generate.

Things You'll Need

Scrap wood
Pencil
Ruler or T-square
Handheld sander
Radial arm saw

Instructions

- 1
  Use your pencil and straightedge to mark out the shapes of your blocks on your pieces of wood. Create an assortment of shapes of varying thicknesses and lengths: you want a large number of good stacking shapes; a smaller number of platform shapes; and a smaller number of creative, irregular, decorative shapes.
- 2
  Cut out the shapes with a radial arm saw.
- 3
  Sand the blocks smooth, rounding off any corners or edges.
- 4
  Leave the blocks natural, or finish them with a paint or varnish that comes in a container marked with the "AP Non-toxic" seal or "AP Certified Non-toxic" label. If you choose a water-based dye, you'll need to sand your block, dye it, re-sand it, and then seal it.

Construction Toys