Creative Recycling: toddler toys

Hallo Friends,

Here we are with a new post about Giovannino. This boy is turning this week 1 year and now he spends more time awake and super active. He loves to discover new things and he started to show his preferences.

I'm not really used to boys so every time I try to propose quiete activities that turn in destroying activities or excuses to climb something (e.g the shelf, the sofa to reach the window and try improbable escaping). In this last period he is showing us his preferences about games. For example he loves pouring small objects from one container to the other, he love things that goes round etc. So, desperate to make him buy during the day since outside is rainy, I started to make some toys out of recycled items I had in the house (cartons, cardboard, bottles etc).

Some of these failed miserably (they were destroyed miserably after few seconds) other need periodical repair and other where really successful (one...).

Here what we made:

DIY BOOK

Giovanni loves books. I can say that the books are the only toys that make him quiete and relaxed. He loves to listen at us reading a story or leaf through the pages (sometimes even destroying them). So we started to make our own book. I used an old photo album with very heavy pages. Slowly slowly we are decorating the pages. So far we decorated two one with wild animals and another with flowers. In the pages left we added some fabric scraps and some ribbons that we'll remove once the pages will be decorated. We made even a movable page made with cardboard and some round shapes, covered with coloured materials and fixed with brads. With this card he is able to make the rounds go around and even having a multisensorial experience.

A CAR IN A BOX

Giovanni loves the cars. Better he loves the fact that the wheels go round and the steering too. He loves a small car and he goes around with it in the house. So my husband one day come home with a carton and immediately the idea!! I used some tempera colour to paint it red (many coats). With some cardboard pieces I cut 5 rounds that we used has steer and wheels. I fixed them with a rope and a big wooden bead to let them go round (okay I tried with brads but Giovannino was pulling everything out).

To add some details I used some wall stickers with cars and two yellow felt round as lights in front. Couldn't miss the register on the back.

POM POM LOVERS

Giovanni loves poring small objects from one container to another. Especially he loves pom poms because are soft, small enough and coloured (well this are the reasons I imaged). At the beginning he was just moving them from one bowl to the other. Then I made these two toys with plastic bottles and cardboard.

With the vertical one he spends minutes (and is a big achievement) playing with the pom poms always being surprised of how these small balls end in the down part. With the second (the bottle with the window) we are still working on it; of course it requires more concentration because the hole is small.

TIME FOR MUSIC!

Another thing loved buy Giovanni is music; no I correct myself is noise. He loves to go in the kitchen, open the cabinet, steal the pan's cover and enjoy the sound of it while crashes on the ground. I decided (after few minutes of this wonderful music) to propose him something different so I made some maracas with some tissue roller paper (they never miss in the house). I coloured one with acrylic paints and covered the edge with masking tape; inside I placed some dry beans. The other I decorated with a decotape (blu glittered, very much appreciated by the boy) and inside I placed some small bells.