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Cardboard Creations.

  • Apr 23
  • 4 min read

Updated: 1 day ago

Your Mom is so poor, she can’t afford to pay attention.

Ironically, this is doubly true because I have terrible ADHD and 90% of these supplies came from the trash.


TRUNK OR TREAT: ALADIN’S CAVE OF WONDER


Theme: Aladin

Difficulty: I mean… it wasn’t a walk in the park.

Time: 2 days

Materials:

  • Cardboard boxes (all shapes and easily foldable)

  • Hot glue gun

  • Packing tape

  • Box cutter

  • Spray paint: grey

  • White thin poster (or white paper)

  • Black thin poster

  • Black acrylic paint

How to:

  1. Fold out large cardboard boxes, big enough to spread across the back of your trunk.

  2. Fold back 3/4 of the way down on horizontal side where top teeth will be.

  3. Use a box cutter to cut half of last quart of the bottom, for the bottom row of teeth and chin.

  4. Fold in top of that bottom piece for bottom row of teeth.

  5. Spray paint the cardboard (not including the folded in parts for the teeth).

  6. Use the box cutter to cut the jagged teeth, leave them brown.

  7. Cut a nose and eyes out of the black poster board. Hot glue down.

  8. Cut white slits for the pupils of the eyes. Hot glue down.

  9. Use black paint to paint on whiskers and face dimensions.





GIANT FLORAL NUMBER

Theme: Claris the Mouse/ Parisian party

Cost: $15 for flowers

Difficulty: Tedious but not terrible.

Time: 1 hour

Materials:

  • Foam poster board (needs to be sturdy and thick, so it can stand up). I used a 20x30”.

  • Hot glue gun

  • Box cutter

  • Craft foam flowers -or-  faux flowers with stems (I used approx. 18 small bags)


Tips:

  • Check the dollar store around Valentine’s Day (for pink/ red/ white) or holidays of colors you’d want.

  • Get more flowers than you think you’ll need, in a variety of sizes.

  • If you get the foam flowers, you don’t need to poke a million holes... but if you get the stem faux flowers, you avoid the finger burning glue gun. I did both, since I tend to learn things the hard way.


How To:

  1. Draw outline of number or letter on poster board. I used the entire length of the board.

  2. If using foam flowers, hot glue the bottoms to the board. If using the stemmed faux flowers, make a hole with scissors or box cutter and poke the stems through.

  3. Start with the largest sized flowers and fill in with smaller.




DIY PIÑATA

Theme: Reptile/ swamp party

Difficulty: Even Martha Stewart would probably just buy one.

Time: 3 days

Materials:

  • Cardboard boxes (all shapes and easily foldable)

  • Hot glue gun

  • Box cutter

  • Streamers

Tips:

Really start pushing your kid into a theme that could call for a piñata that’s easy AF. Think sports themes for balls, or a TV show or movie, (you can just print out a photo of that on a TV square). Or just wait for certain birthdays like #1 or #7… or maybe just buy one?

How To:

  1. Cut a large square or desired shape from a cardboard box. I had to roll and fold separate cardboard pieces for the shape of the snake.

  2. Cut a small hole at the top to fill the inside with candy or fillers of your choice.

  3. Glue a piece of paper over the opening.

  4. Decorate the box- you can paint it, or if going traditional piñata- use fringed streamers or tissue paper. I did both, because I love to slowly torture myself.

  5. Add a string(s) at top to hang the piñata. 




DIY MYSTERY MACHINE

Theme: Scooby Doo

Difficulty: Pretty easy!

Time: 1 day

Materials:

  • Kid's wagon

  • Cardboard boxes

  • Hot glue gun

  • Packing tape

  • Box cutter

  • Acrylic Paint: turquoise, orange, black, neon green (Or neon green poster board)

  • Printed sheet of the mystery gang

How To:

  1. Flatten and fit cardboard to go on top of kids’ wagon.

  2. Either cutout neon green poster for side designs, or stencil it onto cardboard.

  3. Spray paint blue around the stencils (can use newspaper to cover if not using neon green poster boards).

  4. Print out and hot glue window cutout of mystery gang (below).

  5. Stencil “The Mystery Machine” onto top neon green design and paint letters orange.

  6. Hot glue neon green pieces on or paint neon green designs.

  7. Use packing tape to fold and fit together over wagon.








DIY JEEP PROP

Theme: Jeep Party

Difficulty: Even a caveman could do it.

Time: 1 day.

Materials:

  • Rolling bar or table (mine was made out of 4 crates)

  • Cardboard boxes flattened

  • Small rectangular cardboard box (business cards, etc.)

  • Paper plates (large, medium and small sizes)

  • Black posterboard (optional)

  • Spray paint: silver, black, burnt orange (car color)

  • Hot Glue Gun

  • Box Cutter

How To:

  1. Same concept as Mystery Machine (above).

  2. Use the box cutter to cut a square for the windshield and frame of the front of the jeep.

  3. Spray paint cardboard (car frame) pieces orange, or color of choice.

  4. Spray paint disposable 2 large plates (front lights) and three cut cardboard pieces (grill?) black...

  5. Side note- can you tell what a girl I am, by my lack of knowledge in the car parts department?

  6. Spray paint the smaller cardboard box (license plate), 5 small and 2 medium paper plates silver.

  7. Hot glue all the plates and grill pieces onto the car frame.

  8. Paint letters and numbers on license plate.


DIY BRICK WALL PROP

Theme: Mary Poppins Chimney

Difficulty: Brick? Easy. Chimney with smoke? Not.

Time: 1 day

Materials:

  • Kids Wagon

  • Cardboard boxes flattened

  • Smaller square cardboard box (for chimney)

  • Polyester filling (pillow stuffing)

  • Spray paint: black

  • Sponge

  • Acrylic paint: three different brick colors

  • Hot Glue Gun

  • Box cutter

 
 
 

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