A fun craft activity and a gorgeous addition to any home, wood crafting allows you to personalise items such as wooden boxes, clocks, photo frames, and all sorts of other goodies. A great way of inspiring your children’s creativity, we have a wide range of craft wood cutouts that little kids (and even some of the big ones) will enjoy decorating in their own personal style.
DIY wood craft projects are a great way of spending time with your kids, while inspiring them to express themselves creatively. Fun and rewarding, wood craft allows children to play with colour and design, while rewarding them with a personalised and functional object that they can use for many years to come.
Made from thin and light wood that’s specifically designed for crafts, our precut wooden shapes are perfect for creative DIY crafters of any age. Even better, our wood cutouts and supplies are relatively inexpensive, making them an easy and affordable crafting activity for kids of all skill levels.
To help get you started, here are some things to know about wood craft activities for kids.
Acrylic paints are a fabulous option for decorating craft wood. We suggest you stick to student-grade acrylics, rather than the more expensive artist-grade ones if this activity is for the kids.
Another popular paint option for wood craft is washable poster paint. This paint bonds well to wood, is quick drying, low-odour, and easy to clean (even off clothing), making it a particularly good option for children who like to make a splash. It’s also fairly inexpensive, so you won’t have to worry too much about kids who tend to be generous with their paint application.
For the best results, we recommend sanding and priming the wood prior to painting, as working on unprimed craft wood may result in unsatisfactory results due to its high absorbency. Priming with gesso helps to seal and protect the wood while also assisting with paint adhesion.
We offer a broad range wood craft supplies online, including a variety of wooden shapes and cutouts to work on. Which one is best will depend on your child and the occasion. Our range of wooden boxes make fabulous storage containers or jewellery boxes for kids, while a hand-made wooden photo frame can be fitted with a family photo and given as a personalised gift for a loved one. You can even paint up a clock to add a fun and functional pop of colour to your home.
If you’re struggling to decide which craft wood project or shape to buy, consider the interests and preferences of your child. For example, the budding animal-lover may enjoy painting up a cat, dog, or butterfly, while kids who love pirates may enjoy the experience of designing their own treasure chest.
If you’re still not sure what to get, consider sitting down with your kids and letting them go through our range of craft wood and shapes, picking out their own wooden cutout to decorate. Kids love being involved in choosing their own creations!
Wood craft is all about creativity, so why should you stop at just paint? There’s a wide range of other materials that you can stick to your project, including beads, gemstones, feathers, buttons, and glitter! To give your kids complete creative freedom, you may wish to gather up a number of different materials to experiment with.
Once a wood craft activity has been completed, you’re best to seal the piece to ensure that it stays protected against dust, stains, fingerprints, warping, rotting, and discolouration. There are a range of mediums and sealers that you can use to keep DIY wood craft projects looking their best:
A white, paste-like gel that’s often used to thicken paint so that it retains brushstrokes, gel medium dries clear, meaning it can also be used as a sealer. There are a variety of finishes available, including gloss and matte.
Durable, smooth, and fast drying, Mod Podge is a popular sealer for acrylic paint, decoupage, fabrics, and more. Many types of Mod Podge dry clear, but there are lots of different finishes available, including gloss, matte, and even glitter!
An oil-based varnish that’s extremely long-lasting and great for creating a protective coat on wood surfaces, polyurethane varnish is an excellent option for sealing wood, and comes in both glossy and matte finishes. Please take care to use this varnish in a well-ventilated area.
As it’s an oil-based varnish, polyurethane doesn’t wash off with water. That means all clean-up will require paint thinner or mineral spirits.
An effective sealer that offers great protection for painted surfaces, most wax sealers are non-toxic and relatively easy to apply with a brush. Make sure to wait a full 24 hours before applying wax to ensure that the paint has fully cured.
Here at Riot Art & Craft, we live for creativity. Don’t forget to share those gorgeous wood craft creations with us on Instagram by tagging @riotartandcraft on your posts.
