DIY Mutant Toys – an upcycled old figurines craft idea
Cleaning out your toy box and wondering what to do with old figurines? This craft idea was an absolute home run with our homeschool book club and my kids have done it on their own several times since then. Not just for kids though- adults will also have fun chopping up toys and Frankenstein-ing them back together! You can get the gist of this project from a single photo, but I did do some experimenting with tools and there are some fun examples below for inspiration too.
Even the kids who normally zoom through arts & crafts were enthralled with making this project. This wasn’t my original idea, I saw it years and years ago from a nonprofit called Happen’s Toy Lab as linked in this blog post. They have lots of cool inspiration linked on their website here, too.
Here is row 1 with some examples from our friends!
Row 2! Wings, heads, and limbs were especially fun to mix together and mix up. Please, whatever you do, don’t go to the dollar store and buy a bunch of cheap toys to try this. Post in your local Buy Nothing group, hit up Facebook marketplace ask friends/family to clean house, and of course thrift to find a great mix! The softer the toy, the easier it is to cut- but don’t forget you can glue things on top of underneath too, not everything needs to be chopped up.
Another batch of my kids favorites!
If you like this blog post, check out these others while you’re here:
- What to do with old toys – upcycle craft ideas
- 20+ upcycled Halloween decor ideas (include a few using old toys!)
- A ‘creative reuse center near me’ map resource! – where to find supplies on the cheap
- 20+ upcycled thread spool crafts
- 35+ easy crafts with old books
Pin this post of DIY Mutant Toys – an upcycled old figurines craft idea with this link or image:
DIY Mutant Toys – an upcycled old figurines craft idea
I’m sharing the simplest of supplies for the base project I’ve shown – but I encourage you to get creative with accessories and add-ons! Some felt and sharp scissors would be perfect for making bow-ties, tiny mutant clothes, and more. Mix in paint pens and change their colors while you’re at it too!
Supplies:
- PVC pipe cutter- I’d never use done of these before but WOW it makes it easy to lop off heads and limbs cleanly.
- Mini hack saw – I was mainly working with kids and this felt way more secure than an x-acto blade or anything of that nature.
- Hot glue
- Pliers – great for twisting off stubborn pieces
Steps:
Step 1- cut off pieces that you want to mix together! Remember you can always cut more off but can’t add more back on easily. Also save pieces that you’ve cut off but aren’t using, for future mutants!
Step 2-Saw off any pieces that weren’t a good fit for cutting.
Step 3- Glue them back together! Hot glue has held up great in our house. Keep mix-and-matching, gluing, and have fun making new little monsters!
