On a weekend or just a rainy afternoon, kids get bored easily. We often reach for the car keys and our wallet to find ways to satisfy them. Instead of doing that, reach for a few supplies and show them how to make some crafts that won’t cause you to burn unnecessary gas or spend money.

Entertaining a kid is easier than you may think. If you know the types of things they like, you are one step ahead of the game. Younger kids enjoy ripping things to pieces. Their little hands find joy in destruction. When the wrecking ball is over, they are still delighted laughing about what they have accomplished. For them, something durable is in order.

One frugal craft that can stand up to the beating (at least for a little while) is to create a town or village for their dolls, action figures, or stuffed animals.

Follow up:

Play Village

You will need:

 Cardboard boxes of all shapes and sizes
 Crayons
 Construction paper
 Glue
 Scissors

The play village is easy to construct. Before cutting into the cardboard boxes, decide what each will be used for. A little girl may want a palace for her dolls. Kids with stuffed animals might enjoy creating a zoo or a farm from their boxes.

Each box can then be decorated with construction paper signs and decorated to their liking. If the kids are small or the boxes are big, they can crawl into the buildings with their dolls or action figures. A play set like this can be used over and over again. If one box rips or tears, throw it out and use another one. Those expensive play sets in the store wish they could last as long.

Other Ideas

Kids can use their imaginations to aid in the craft construction. In school art teachers are the greatest people on earth. They teach us to make pinwheels out of construction paper, pencils and stick pins. Kids can create flowers using tissue paper and pipe cleaners.

Around the holidays, the frugal crafting gets a bit easier. Water, flour, and baking soda can be used to make Christmas tree ornaments and table decorations.

Kids love to role play. With a few cotton balls, construction paper, and crayons, they can create costumes. Pilgrims and Indians, Santa and his elves, a princess, a dinosaur, and other creations are all fair game when the imaginations get going. These crafts are easy to make and take little time so the playtime can begin immediately after.

Who said that crafts couldn’t be edible? Freezer lollipops, Jell-O eggs, chocolate ornaments, and candy necklaces will keep them still at the table and satisfy their sweet tooth when playtime is over.

Use your own imagination and come up with some ideas to entertain kids with frugal crafts of your own. Think back to your own childhood for some inspiration. Don’t forget to ask the kids for their own ideas as well.

Submitted by:

Linda Allen
GirlfriendsCafe.com
http://www.girlfriendscafe.com