Most Americans have more toilet paper on hand right now than ever before and those who don’t are having trouble finding any to buy. We always save our TP tubes for re-using and I’m anticipating the need for more toilet paper tube craft ideas in the coming weeks, what with all the toilet paper everyone will be using!
TP Tubes are a wonderful, open ended arts and crafts materials and I think kids of all ages love to come up with their own ideas for how to use them. In case your kids need some new ideas or inspiration, I gathered some of my favorite images to share here.
The toilet paper tube rocket ship looks like great fun and could inspire a whole solar system of crafts. Found on Instagram @ideasconpeques, this cute rocket ship looks simple enough for young ones to help make, and older kids could make it more intricate and detailed.
I can’t get over how cute this TP Tube fireplace is! Originally found in the book “DIY Dollhouse” by Alexia Henrion, this little scene was made by @greengroves on instagram.
I’m loving the cardboard tube sculpture that @artbarblog shared on her instagram feed. Cut the tubes, let kids paint and draw designs and patterns on them, then glue together to make a unique sculpture.
These toilet paper tube robots are simple to make but could provide hours of pretend play. Instructions are at Glue Sticks & Gumdrops and use items you probably have around the house already.
The Squirrely Mind always has projects that are beautiful and accessible. The fish kites are so sweet and a great way to learn more about Children’s Day in Japan which falls on May 5th.
Make a marble track or see how many tubes you can stack in a tower!
DIY Mini Animal Storage: Paint or decorate some tubes and then tuck them into a box for stability. Make a little roof and then add mini animals or any small creature or critter who is looking for a home. Found on Instagram @play_at_home_mummy
I’m saving this spooky cardboard castle idea for Halloween but it could easily be made to house knights or royalty or fairies and elves. A drawbridge seems essential and the details can be ramped up for older kids. The toilet paper tubes make perfect turrets! @littlettreefolk on Instagram.
These cute little hanging houses could be homes for Hatchimals, little animals, peg dolls or little birds. They are a great springtime craft and would look darling hanging on a branch together. @creatingcreatives on Instagram.
My kids have big plans to make a track for a big collection of bouncy balls. They have been saving tubes and cardboard for weeks and think they have enough to get started tomorrow. I showed them this colorful track and they loved the arrows and little viewing windows, so they are going to do some painting and cutting first. Its turning into quite the engineering project and I’m excited for them to get started. This picture is from @franzworks on instagram.
We use toilet paper tubes for these four purposes regularly at our house.
Little gift boxes are easy and pretty cute!
I have stuffed dryer lint into tubes for years to use as fire starters. We primarily use wood heat in our house so this is very helpful!
Start seeds in paper tubes. The whole thing can get planted in the ground and the tube will biodegrade as the stem and roots get stronger.
Bird Feeders. I’ve made these in the preschool for many years and its so fun to watch the birds do their balancing act on the tubes, looking like log rollers with wings!
Pinterest has more toilet paper tube crafts than you can even imagine, and instagram has some good hashtags to use for searching. I hope you find something fun to do with all your tubes, and I’d love to see what you make!