Crafts don't need to be a strain on your pocketbook or on the environment by using what you have available in your home. With some loving imagination, you and your little ones can transform toilet paper rolls, milk jug lids, and pipe cleaners into a festive love train. This Valentines craft for kids can be fun for the whole family to share in as each member can decorate and customize their own train car. So scavenge through the house, see what you have available, and get onboard the love train!
Things you will need:
- Empty toilet paper rolls
- Plastic milk jug lids/bottle lids
- Pink or red pipe cleaners
- Buttons (pink, red or purple)
- Pink/red paint and paintbrush
- Ribbon (optional)
- Wine cork
- Cotton ball
- Tacky craft glue
- Paper (red, pink, purple or patterned)
- Heart stickers
- Letter stickers (optional)
- Scissors
- Tape
- Hole puncher
Steps for Making a Valentines Love Train (Scroll to bottom for pictures and click to enlarge)
- Have your little ones decorate the toilet paper rolls. They can paint them, color them, wrap them in paper, decorate them with stickers, ribbon, or all of the above. For wrapping the rolls, they can glue or tape the paper on.
- Once the rolls are decorated, use your Tacky craft glue to glue the buttons into the insides of the lids for the wheels. Younger children can decorate the wheels by putting a sticker in each one.
- Next, apply generous amounts of glue onto the flat sides of the lids. Glue two onto each side of the roll for the wheels. Hold while drying.
- With a hole puncher, make a hole in the bottom of each roll's end where they will connect to the next car, except for the last one.
- Cut your pipe cleaners to the size you want connecting each train car.
- Have them thread each pipe cleaner end through the holes of the connecting train cars and twist each pipe cleaner around itself to connect the cars. Repeat until all rolls are connected.
- For the smokestack, they can twist a long pipe cleaner (or two twisted together) around a wine cork. When they reach the top of the cork, the end can be poked under the wound pipe cleaner to hold it in place.
- Gently pull apart a cotton ball and glue it onto the top of the wine cork.
- Apply glue to the cork's bottom and glue to the front of the connected train.
Kids will love this easy Valentines craft, especially when they can pull it around the house for a festive journey. Displayed on a shelf, the love train makes a great Valentine's Day decoration. This is also a fun classroom craft as each student can decorate their own train car and when linked together, the end result will fill their little hearts with pride.
Lara Smith - is a freelance writer with a Bachelor of Arts in English, History and Religious Studies.
