Tired of Bored Kids? Keep the Kiddos Entertained with these 5 Products…

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More Crafts/DIY

kinetic sand play

Who else appreciates toys that encourage creativity and provide hours of fun for active kiddos? I’m sharing five of my favorite “Go To” toys that have been well worth the investment as they have proven to keep my kids engaged over and over again. As a work from home mom, I appreciate the times when my kiddos are able to entertain themselves while also involving their creative sides!

Rainbow Loom

1.) Rainbow Loom

The Rainbow Loom Rubber Band Crafting Kit is a plastic tool used to weave colorful bands into bracelets, necklaces, and charms. It provides hours of creative fun and contains directions for easy bracelet designs. YouTube is a great resource for more of the advanced bracelet tutorials. My kids enjoy following along to those tutorials and often recreate some unique bracelet designs.

And as kids start collecting different colors bands, you’ll want to snag a box to keep all the creations organized and tidy! We have utilized and LOVE this Large Organizer Case which has a handle, room for the actual loom and lots of storage for bands. It makes sorting easy!

*Note that it is recommended for ages 8 and older.


kinetic sand play
2.) Kinetic Sand

Kinetic Sand is essentially squeezable sand that can be molded, mimics the look and feel of wet sand, and the best part – it NEVER dries out! It’s made with 98% sand and 2% Polymers.

Pictured above is the Kinetic Sand Ice Cream Treats set that has lead to hours of creative play at my house! Although this sand costs more than Play-Doh, it definitely lasts longer and cleans up much easier than Play-Doh! My kids are 8 and 10 and still love to play with Kinetic Sand!

*Note this is recommended for kids ages 3 and older.


Beados
3.) Beados

Beados are colorful beads that join together with just a spray of water! Create fun designs in 3 easy steps by making, spraying with water, and then drying. Use your imagination to make your own creations, or use their fun templates if preferred. This toy is relatively new to us, and my kids are already hooked! I like that there is no glue or heat involved. Pictured is the Beados Shopkins Season 3 Studio Design.

*Note that this is recommended for ages 4-15.


Magnetic Tile Art 2

4.) Mini Magnetic Tiles

Decorate a boring fridge with colorful magnets painted by your little ones! This Magnetic Mini Tile Art Set has all you need to create cute 2 inch pieces of mini art, perfect for hanging on the fridge or any metal surface! My kids had a blast with this fun activity and I was impressed with the quality of the magnets. This would make a cute gift to decorate for Grandma or friends/family members!

*These tiles are recommended for ages 8 and up.


perler beads summer activity

5.) Perler Beads

Perler Beads is a childhood classic activity that never goes out of style! It’s a process of creating a design on a plastic reusable pegboard with colorful beads and then melting the beads using an iron (yes, an adult does need to help with this) and paper. If you can dream it, you can create it!

There are different shaped pegboards you can purchase and hundreds of patterns available to print online. We have this 6,000 Multi Count Bucket- Multi Mix and have used it for HOURS. It also makes a great rainy day activity and is fun for a play date!

*Recommended for ages 6 and older.


Do your kids have a favorite toy that encourages creativity?


 Lina (lina@hip2save.com) loves cooking new recipes, thrift store shopping, and DIY home decor projects. 
Join The Discussion

Comments 17

  1. Kelly

    Quixels are also cool. Kind of like the boy version of beado’s. You make a design by using cubes that fuse together with water.

    • Lina (Hip's Modern Martha)

      Oh cool! Love that idea – Thanks!

    • angela

      Yup was going to suggest Quixels too. But vacuums hate them.

  2. Lana

    When I was growing up we ‘got’ to wash windows for saying we were bored. 🙂

    • Heather C.

      Lol! Same here!

  3. mikeB

    Want to know how to solve the bored kids problem? Ask them to do a lot of chores around the house. They will find something fun to do instead of yard work, vacuuming or cleaning up their rooms… lol

    • angela

      Organize dresser drawers! That’s a fun one.

  4. jennifer

    My kids like to play in the the plain old sprinkler that we use to water our tomatoes. I have also seen where you can poke a bunch of holes in a 2 liter bottle(pinterest), attach it to a garden hose, then throw over a tree limb for a neat make-your-own sprinkler. We always love homemade play dough and I let the kids use my cookie cutters, potato masher, etc to make stuff with. Sorta basic I guess but they really work. We have the kinetic sand and I even like to play with it myself, lol!

  5. Traci

    Much harder to find but more fun for the younger set are the perler biggie beads. I have bought them at Joann so my 4 year old wasn’t as left out when 7 year old brother discovered the small ones but they both probably use the big beads more- they even have made bead guns.

  6. Krista

    We are so lucky to live in a community with so many free summer programs, mostly at our library, that we have been so busy this summer my kids celebrated when they found out that I didn’t have anything planned this afternoon and they could play with play doh at home!

  7. MrsFelix1004

    Oriental Trading Company has the rubber bands for .98 cents for 500 bands. The normal price is $4.00. Not sure on shipping but they also have if you refer a friend you get $10. Look at their clearance stuff they have a lot of good deals. Also if your kids are board try teaching them a new card game like uno or war. Our favorite is side walk chalk. We look up some cool images on yahoo and try to draw it. I have three kids so they each try and the neighbors are good about judging.

    • Lina (Hip's Modern Martha)

      Yes -oh my gosh Uno is awesome! We love that too 😀👍

  8. Cat

    Potholder looms! Hobby Lobby sells the metal ones (the plastic breaks to easily). They are in a strange spot in the store so if you can’t find them, ask!

    • Lina (Hip's Modern Martha)

      Oh cool – thanks Cat

  9. Kristen

    The Kinetic sand is very cool, but it is definitely not for all kids. My three just put it everywhere. It was horrible to try to clean up and is much harder to clean than play doh. I have no idea why it says above it is easier, it is sand! Oh and it stained the clear plastic trays they were playing with it on so be careful the surface you use it on. Good with older kids, my seven year old had a lot
    Of fun and clean up for her was reasonable.

  10. Michelle

    These are all neat ideas that my kiddos would love. My problem is this: I’m a minimalist and hate clutter. Once done with these crafts I’ll find bracelets, painted tiles, completed Pearler Beads and completed Beado beads laying around. And what do you do with them? It’s just another thing for me to pick up off the floor, end table, coffee table or desk. LOL!

  11. Meredith

    My daughter has all of them items mentioned in this post. They keep her (us) busy for hours!

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