This pipe cleaner toddler toy is easy to make and is a great introduction to some basic fine motor skills.
I saw the idea for this cute toddler toy made from upcycled container and pipe cleaners at Engaging Toddler Activities – I just had to make it!
We get through a LOT of Puffs. One day I gave my son an empty Puffs container to play with and it was his favourite toy for, well, at least an hour.
So I removed the Puffs label, cleaned it up, added stickers and made this simple toy for him. Punching the holes in the lid was slightly tricky but I explained the problem to my husband and he took care of it! At first I used cheap dollar store pipe cleaners, but they were super bendy and had very sharp ends, meaning that I had to wind two together and then tape the ends. It worked OK but it didn’t look very pretty. I have since upgraded the pipe cleaners!
At one point I had different colour stickers around the holes to match the pipe cleaners too, but my son has since removed them. I may add them again later when he understands more about colours. But it is still great fine motor skills practice for him!
Update: He has had this simple toy for almost a year (he is now 21m old) and it still holds his attention. It is particularly useful if I need him to be occupied in his high chair for a bit (while I cook his food, or eat mine, for example). He can take the lid off now but that just adds to the options of how he can play with it.
Which pipe cleaners did you buy that do not have sharp ends? I can’t seem to find any that aren’t dangerously sharp.
I think they all have sharp ends. I fold them over, and twist them a bit to keep in place. My son has never has even a scratch from them!