When it comes to handmade gifts, finding good crafts for boys can be tough. There are a zillion cute little girl tutorials, but somehow the poor little boys get left out of the fun. One sure-fire hit is always the classic toy car road, a place for the Matchbox collection to whiz back and forth. Most kits of road sections, however, take up a lot of storage space. (Not to mention that they hurt when you step on them!) Jen from Lil Mop Top came up with a genius and green solution: she cut up an old pair of jeans, painted on some dotted yellow lines, and voila! Endless hours of entertainment for practically no cost! A few tabs of stick-on velcro help hold the roads firmly in place on the carpet; if you have hardwood floors, try gluing small pieces of textured shelf liner to the backs instead. When it comes time to put everything away, the entire thing rolls up to store inside a salvaged jean pocket, and if any pieces are left laying bout, they are easy on the toes! [how to make fabric roads for toy cars]
Project estimate:
- Old jeans, on hand
- Yellow paint, on hand or $1
- Velcro, on hand or $1
Total: Free and up
4 Comments
Michelle L.
Great idea! Going over there right now!
Timmi
This is such a great idea! Thinking of making a set for my nephew.
Jen @ lil Mop Top
Thanks so much for sharing my blog post. Great idea to put shelf liner on the back- maybe I will do that with my set! :)
Mai
Too cute! I saw this a few days ago but haven’t had time to do it yet. Every time I walk past a pair of jeans I have to resist the urge to cut them! LOL. I was wondering if you’d be willing to share a few more details. For example, did you use the front of one pant leg for one or two roads wide. (Did you basically just cut the seams off, or did you split them again down the middle?) I really want to do this, but I’m trying to get a better picture of how before I begin. Thank you very much!