Welcome to another Wacky Workshops project, fun Father’s Day gifts for kids to make.

With three sons and a hubby, you’d think I’d be an expert at gift-giving to men. The fact is, I still find it challenging to decide on the right gift to give the male members of my family.

These fun Father’s Day gifts are easy to make, fun to use, and guaranteed not to break the budget.

The best part is, they are very kid-friendly, which means your children can be actively involved in creating their fun Father’s Day gifts. If you want to know why this is so important, read Why Children Should Make Mother’s Day Gifts – the same rules apply to dad gifts.

FUN FATHER’S DAY GIFTS

1. MAGIC PICTURE CUBE PUZZLE

These are so much fun to play with. You could use photos instead of drawings. However, if you really want to make the Father’s Day gift a child creation, get the kids to do drawings instead.

MATERIALS

• 8 x wooden cubes
• Masking tape
• Glue
• Box cutters
• Please note the size of the drawings may vary, depending on the size of the blocks you use. Below are the measurements needed for 3 cm x 3 cm blocks.
• 4 x landscape drawings – 12 cm x 6 cm
• 2 x square drawings – 6 cm x 6 cm

METHOD

Please note, it’s a good idea to number your masking tape hinges as you go (I didn’t for the puzzle block in this picture). This makes it easier to follow the steps and to fix the issue should you miss a step.

• Tape two cubes together – don’t forget to number them as block pair one.
• Fold one on top of the other, ensuring the folded section of the tape between the two blocks is facing you.
• Tape these together at the fold section of the other tape.
• Repeat for the other three pairs of blocks.
• Place the first pair of blocks on the table so the tape is facing upwards and vertical.
• Put the second pair of blocks next to this so that the tape is facing outwards and horizontal.
• Place the third pair of blocks under the second set so that the tape is facing outwards and horizontal.
• Put the last pair of blocks next to these so that the tape is facing upwards and vertical, forming a rectangle.
• Turn the rectangle over.
• Fold the blocks on the left up on top of the others next to them so that the tape on the top two blocks is facing up and tape each top block to the one underneath at the side of the cube.
• Repeat for the block pair on the right.
• This completes the cube puzzle.

Try it out –

• The top square formed by the cubes is for picture 1
• Pull the left and right blocks down forming a rectangle for picture 2
• Open the rectangle lengthways, forming another rectangle for picture 3
• Fold this rectangle in half horizontally by pulling the left and right sides down so the middle rises, forming another square for picture 4
• Pull the top four cubes in the square down, forming another rectangle for picture 5
• Open this rectangle lengthways forming another rectangle for picture 6
• Once you’ve tested your puzzle cube, cut picture 1 into four pieces, one for each visible block and glue the pieces into place. Please note: It’s good to paint the top of the pictures with glue (such as Mod Podge) to protect them and let them dry before you move onto the next one. I’ve tried using box cutters to cut the pictures after glueing them but found it very difficult not to also cut the masking tape, which holds the whole thing together.
• Repeat the process for the other sections of the puzzle cube.

2. LIGHT UP PICTURE BOX

MATERIALS

• 16 x craft sticks
• Cardboard Square – 11 cm x 11 cm
• 4 x wax paper squares approximately 12 cm x 12 cm
• Markers
• Battery tea light candle
• Sticky tape
• Paint
• Glue
• Wrapping or decoupage paper paint or felt

METHOD

• Have the kids draw dad inspired pictures on the wax paper squares
• Form four square frames using the craft sticks and hold them in place with glue
• Paint and decorate the frames as desired
• Paint or glue paper or felt to the cardboard square
• Glue the drawings face down to the back of the frames. Be sure to centre the drawings.
• Place the frames face down in a row and use sticky tape to connect them
• Stand the frames upright with the pictures facing outwards and connect the first to the fourth with sticky tape.
• Glue to the cardboard base
• Place the tea light candle in the light-up picture box

3. TINY DESK TOP POOL TABLE

This is a super fun Father’s Day gift.

MATERIALS

• Cardboard box template
• Thin cardboard
• Paint, markers, stickers etc to decorate
• Thick cardboard (from a carton)
• Green felt
• Box cutters
• Glue
• Small beads
• Wooden skewer

METHOD

• Print out the box template here onto thin cardboard.
• Cut out the template and have the kids decorate the lid.
• Fold and glue the box and lid.
• Cut the thick card to fit inside the box – I used three pieces so that the top of the pool table was level with the top of the box.
• Next, cut the corner edges of the top two pieces of cardboard to form the pockets for the balls. Cut another hole on each side of the top two pieces of cardboard.
• Glue the cardboard pieces together
• Cover the felt to fit over the cardboard layers and cut out the pocket holes.
• Glue the felt into place and then glue the cardboard stack into the box.
• Use whatever small beads you have on hand for the balls and a wooden skewer, with the point removed, for the cue. You can add a drop of nail polish to the balls to distinguish them from each other.
• A tiny cardboard cut-out creates the triangle.

4. MARBALISED ROCK PAPERWEIGHTS

Kids love mucking about with nail polish and it provides the perfect material to decorate rocks to create personalised paperweights.

MATERIALS

• Nail polish in various colours
• Small container of water
• Smooth rocks

METHOD

• Have the kids drop spots of nail polish onto the surface of the water
• The drops should be close to each other
• Gently place the rock into the water
• When you lift it out, the nail polish will stick to the rock, forming a beautiful artwork

5. PERSONALISED GOLF BALLS

If you’re looking for something really simple and dad is a golfer, have the kids draw pictures on golf balls using permanent markers. Such an easy and fun Father’s Day gift.

Does the dad in your family love to tell jokes? I have just the thing for him – The Wacky Book of Bad Dad Jokes is packed with silly jokes and riddles sure to produce smiles, lots of eye-rolling and maybe even some giggles.

You can claim your free copy here and type ‘lotsoflaughs’ into the password space to download it.

Happy crafting and have a gleeful week, Tamuria