How to Make All Your Own Toys for Boys and Girls

Doll

• 1

  Lay a cotton bandana on your table, so it is open and flat. Place a ball of wool roving on the center of the bandana to create a head for your doll.

• 2

  Lift up the corners and twist the head into shape in the middle of the cloth. You want to form a head approximately 4 inches wide. Add more wool roving, if necessary, to create a bigger head. Twist together to create a ball shape in the center of the cloth.

• 3

  Tie yarn at the bottom of the formed ball to hold the wool roving in place. This is your completed head. Hold the head so the fabric falls down.

• 4

  Knot two free corners of the bandana to make hands for the doll. This doll may be given to young children and may be used as a teether.

Natural Blocks

• 5

  Collect old tree branches after you have trimmed a tree or find branches from a local park. You may also ask gardening services if they have wood they are planning on throwing away. Any type of wood may be used for this project.

• 6

  Trim off any smaller branches from larger branches with a saw or pruning shears. Also, remove any leaves for this project. Keep the bark on the branches, or you may separate them as other toys.

• 7

  Saw the branches into various sizes for stacking, piling or other general building. Create pieces that will act as blocks about 3 to 10 inches in size, and saw thinner pieces about 1 to 2 inches thick for play plates or pretend ponds.

• 8

  Use a carving knife and cut off any sharp edges from your sawed branches. Use sand paper to make smooth surfaces on all the pieces.

• 9

  Rub beeswax or linseed oil on the wood blocks to polish and finish. The natural blocks may be used for building towns, creating environments for play, or anything a boy and girl may think of.

Bark Boat

• 10

  Shape a piece of bark, approximately 6 inches long, into a boat shape with a knife or saw. Sand, if needed, to remove any sharp edges.

• 11

  Drill a 1/2 inch hole about 1/4 inch deep in the middle of the hull. This will be the hole to glue your stick mast into place.

• 12

  Cut a piece of fabric into a triangle or square shape for the sail. Be sure it fits on the stick you have found for this project. Glue it into place. Allow it to dry completely.

• 13

  Glue the bottom of the stick mast into the hole you bored in the hull of the sail boat. Allow it to dry completely before sailing it in a bathtub or pond.