Do a Father’s Day craft with your toddlers they said. It will be fun they said.
So here I am trying to do something simple and enjoyable with my son – a craft. He loves them. He loves to glue. He loves to paint. He loves to cut. I try to play into that with our activity ideas. So here I am trying to do a fun craft for Father’s day, so I can share it with you lovely readers in plenty of time to do one yourself, and we hit a major Pinterest fail.
You see, I started out with one of my favorite things – a paper plate craft. I wrote out “DAD” in Washi tape. Then I gave my kiddo some paints and let him decorate. The plan? To do some dabbing, some lines, some silly patterns only a 3-year-old can understand.
What happened instead? So a good friend of mine (Inez) suggested using egg cartons (empty, of course) as paint holders. So you don’t make a mess with the rest of the paint container. Great! I cut one in half (the 18-egg one) and thought we’d use a couple of them. Nope. I was wrong. I brought out to my kid a container with 6 gaps. And he was insistent I fill all 6! Should have cut it into smaller pieces!! Anyway, so I gave him 6 colors. A bit of each. But what did he do? FULL COVERAGE. He painted over and over and over until my little white plate with green DAD letters turned into a brown mush. The end.
Well, not the end. I tried to salvage it. I’m a blogger after all, “make it work, people!” Right? So I cut DAD out of it and cut the rest into slivers. And I let him glue it onto another paper plate. And when I showed Daddy, he said hey that’s cool he made a camo design. *WIN* Cause Daddy is a soldier, so it worked out after all.
Not what I envisioned, but it ended up fine. So here you go, how to make a Father’s Day craft with your toddler, have it all messed up, and still salvage it.
Father’s Day Toddler Craft
Supplies:
- Washable Paints
- Washi tape
- Paper Plates
- Scissors (preschooler safe scissors)
- Glue
- Newspaper or packing paper for a mess-free workspace (or play outside)
- Egg carton (empty)
More Father’s Day Crafts for Toddlers and Preschoolers
Here are some more lovely father’s day ideas from fellow members of the Influential Mama Network. Which, if you’re a blogger or mama influencer, you should totes join!
Easy Father’s Day Popsicle Stick Craft Seaside Sundays. I love this! And check out another amazing father’s day ideas list from her blog.
Awesome DIY for Dad – King of the Grill Apron! Healthy Happy Thrifty Family
Hug Monster Father’s Day Card Muddy Boots and Diamonds
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Michele @ Confessions of Parenting says
I love toddler art projects! I have such great visions and then I remember my daughter is 2 when it turns out… Well, different 😉 you did a great job of salvaging it! Might need to try this for Father’s Day this year! #WanderingWednesday
Julie says
Haha thank you 🙂 Yes, they do turn out quite different than expected
Sarah says
This looks like a great make! Will have to try it when we send my husband’s parcel out for Father’s Day next month!
Julie says
Would love to see how yours turned out 🙂
Rebecca says
Aw it’s looks great. Anything homemade is always lovely x
Rebecca says
(Www.mummyest2014.wordpress.com)
Julie says
That is so true *hugs*