Ican never throw away a kid-sized shoebox because they are so darn colorful and cute (adult sized-bleh). It’s a good thing they make for great activities as I was running out of room in my closet. Here are three shoebox activities that we tried and loved.
1. Shoebox Train
Take a shoebox lid and cut it in half. Cut squares out of the lid to create the windows and then glue those pieces into the box. You will need to cut out another piece of cardboard for the high roof. For the second tier roof we cut out a hole and inserted a toilet paper roll for the smokestack.
For the other cars, we poked little holes into the boxes with a pencil and strung our twine through. It’s important to add knots or pieces of tape on the inside of the boxes on both ends to secure everything. We finally made little circles for the wheels. You’re probably asking yourself, is all of this worth it? But it’s pretty darn adorable. Tess loved it! Sidenote: This works better on hardwood floors or low pile carpet.
2. Shoebox Farm
- Shoebox
- Animal figurines
- Straw
Simply cut out holes for the windows and the doors, and throw in some straw. You can also go the extra mile and decorate the doors with white tape. When it comes to clean up just throw on the lid! EASY. Tess’s Mooooo and other animal sounds made all of the work worth it!
3. Shoebox Mansion
- Shoebox
- Hot glue gun
- Scrapbook paper
Start by piling up the boxes and once the design is in place secure it with hot glue. We added wallpaper to the inside using scrapbook paper. It was my vision to make this a little house with some shoebox furniture, but Presley decided on a hair salon–so that is what we made happen. It turned out so cool and everyone was happy with the finished product!
