Fabrikolo : creative activities for kids

Crafts, science experiments and seasonal activities for kids, with step-by-step instructions, materials lists and tips when things go wrong.

• Peel-off window stickers : Autumn leaves made of coloured glue that stick to windows and peel off without leaving a mark.
• Tumbling box : A small closed paper tube with a marble inside that somersaults all by itself down a slope.
• Cardboard roll stamps : Toilet rolls pinched into hearts, drops or circles to stamp painted patterns.
• Bin-bag hot air balloon : A big, very light bin bag filled with hot air from a hairdryer that floats up to the ceiling.
• Yarn drawing : Draw with yarn coming out of an empty pen, on a frame of sticky tape: the yarn stays wherever your hand goes.
• Little origami box : A square box folded from a single sheet, no glue or scissors, with its own lid — to give with a little treasure inside.
• Surprise box : Two strips of card become a little "Open me" frame. Unfold it and a secret drawing appears through the window.
• Salt dough : Three kitchen ingredients to model leaves, mushrooms or little creatures, painted once dry.
• Monster jar lantern : A jam jar covered in tissue paper becomes a little Halloween lantern, with monster eyes and a grin.
• Autumn wreath : A cardboard ring covered in leaves, paper or gathered on a walk, with an animal silhouette in the middle.
• Cotton bud ghosts : On black paper, dab white ghosts with cotton buds, then draw big round eyes and surprised mouths.
• Cardboard roll bats : A toilet roll painted black, two paper wings and round eyes: a colony of bats to hang up for Halloween.
• Paper plate pumpkin : A paper plate painted orange becomes a grinning or spooky pumpkin, with its stalk, leaf and cut-out eyes.
• Red cabbage magic potion : Purple red-cabbage juice changes colour like magic: pink with vinegar, blue-green with bicarbonate. A real wizard's potion.
• Fallen-leaf hedgehog : Gather leaves on a walk, then glue them on as the spines of a drawn hedgehog. A walk and a craft in one.
• Leaf prints : Paint the back of a tree leaf and press it on paper: all the veins appear, like an X-ray of nature.
• Pine cone bird feeder : A pine cone packed with vegetable fat and seeds, hung outside: then watch the tits come for a feast.
• Erupting volcano : A little bottle hidden in a sand mountain, vinegar, bicarbonate… and red lava that foams and overflows.
• Will it float or sink? : A ball of modelling clay sinks… but the same clay shaped into a boat floats! An experiment to become a captain and a scientist.
• Giant bubbles : A homemade bubble mix and two sticks with a string: bubbles bigger than the kids.
• Cardboard roll tiger : A toilet roll painted orange, black stripes, two round ears: a little tiger for the shelf, or a roaring puppet.
• Disc-braided bracelet : A cardboard disc with 8 notches, 7 coloured threads and one repeated move: you get a round, sturdy bracelet, Japanese kumihimo style.
• Rainbow eruptions : Bicarbonate in a tray, vinegar in every colour in droppers: each drop fizzes into a little coloured eruption.
• Oobleck (magic goo) : Cornflour and water make a weird material: hard as wood when you hit it, runny when you let it drip through your fingers.
• Homemade scratch card : Bright wax crayon colours, a layer of black paint on top, then scratch: drawings appear in colour on the night sky.
• Paper snowflakes : A square of paper folded into a triangle, a few snips, and unfold: a one-of-a-kind snowflake to stick on windows or hang from the ceiling.
• Cardboard roll Advent calendar : 24 cardboard rolls, little papers to close them, and every December morning a door to open: a treat, an activity or a kind note.
• Rain in a jar : A shaving-foam cloud on top of water, drops of colour on it… and suddenly it starts raining in the jar.
• Walking water : Glasses of coloured water linked by strips of kitchen roll: in a few hours the water climbs, crosses from glass to glass and makes new colours.
• Christmas pop-up card : Two snips in the fold of a card, and when you open it a tree or present pops up in 3D: magical for seasonal greetings.
• Yarn spider web : Two crossed sticks, yarn wound from one arm to the next, and a little spider in the middle: a web to hang up for Halloween.
• Cotton bud skeleton : White cotton buds glued on black paper become the bones of a dancing skeleton: craft time and a lesson on how the body is built.
• Ghost and pumpkin snack : Bananas turned into ghosts, clementines into pumpkins: an all-fruit Halloween snack, ready in ten minutes.
• Mummy bowling : Ten rolls wrapped up like mummies, a ball, and let the game begin: the perfect game for a Halloween party at home.
• Witch's hat : A cone of black paper, a wide brim cut from a disc, and golden stars: a real witch's or wizard's hat to wear on Halloween night.
• Paper plate black cat : A paper plate painted black, two pointy ears and big yellow eyes: the witch's cat, as a decoration or a mask.
• Flapping paper bat : A paper bat, a bit of straw and some thread: pull the loop and its wings flap as if it were flying away.
• String balloon pumpkins : A blown-up balloon, orange thread dipped in glue, and once it's dry you pop the balloon: what's left is a light, lacy pumpkin.
• Glowing floating ghosts : Gauze soaked in glue, draped over a bottle, and the next day a ghost stands up all by itself: slip an LED candle underneath and it glows in the dark.
• Hanging paper plate ghost : A paper plate cut into a ghost, big round eyes and long streamers that flutter in the slightest draught.
• Handprint ghosts : Paint the hand white, press it on black paper fingers pointing down, and there's a wiggly ghost. A Halloween keepsake to date.
• Cotton ball ghost : Stick soft cotton balls onto a drawn ghost: a pincer-grip activity for little fingers, with no paint.
• Toilet-roll haunted house : Three or four toilet rolls become the towers of a haunted mansion, with pointy roofs, glowing windows and little ghosts peeking out.
• Cardboard ghost full of treasures : A big ghost cut out of cardboard, then covered in everything shiny lying around: sequins, buttons, scraps of wool. One each, and never two the same.
• Toilet roll Easter bunnies : A painted toilet roll, two big ears and a pompom for a tail: a whole family of bunnies for the Easter table.
• Decorated Easter chocolates : Melted chocolate spooned into little discs, then decorated with sugar eggs, sprinkles and flowers: homemade chocolates to give as presents.
• Bunny egg cups : A strip of card rolled into a ring, two ears and a little face: every Easter egg gets its own bunny for breakfast.
• Glittery bunnies for a bouquet : The grown-up draws bunny outlines with a glue gun, the child covers them in glitter: once they've hardened, you pop them into a spring bouquet.
• Bunny hunt in the foam : A pouch full of coloured shaving foam, taped over a drawing of a meadow: spread the foam with your fingertips and the hidden bunnies appear.
• Little hen garland : Paper circles folded in half turn into plump little hens with a comb, a beak and tail feathers: a colourful garland for Easter.
• Plastic bottle bangles : Rings cut from a plastic bottle, edged with decorated tape and coloured in with markers: brand-new rigid bangles, made from rubbish.
• Surprise carrots to fill : An orange paper cone filled with little chocolates and tied off with a green tuft: for a carrot hunt instead of an egg hunt.