Here are thirty awesome paper roll crafts for kids!

You might prefer to call them cardboard tubes or toilet rolls. However you say it they are a fabulous, free craft material so make sure you don’t throw them away.

What can you make with paper rolls? I’m about to show you.

You might also be interested in 50 DIY toys for kids.

Paper rolls are a hot item in our house. Seriously, we fight over them!

The girls pinch them out of my craft box for whatever project strikes their fancy (they like to build towers and stationary holders) and I’m always using them. Even the dog loves them, but mostly for shredding into a million pieces.

We’ve made all sorts of things from animals to empathy dolls, musical instruments and art projects. I was surprised going through our archives to discover there was only around 30 projects – I was sure we’d made more but the other 100 must still be in my head.

There really is no limit on what the imagination can come up with when it comes to cardboard tube crafting. The more things you make, the more ideas you have and the more things you want to make. It’s a vicious, addictive cycle.

30 paper roll crafts for kids

• These super simple paper roll fish are one of our most popular crafts
• The girls loved making paper roll mermaids when they were preschoolers (the preschooler-made versions you’ll see in the link are soooo adorable)
• Use our printable template to get the shape for these paper roll seahorses. On a side note seahorses are one of my favourite animals because the male gets pregnant and has babies!

• Squash and snip a paper roll to make some cute frilled neck lizards
• A grasshopper which found it’s way into the house was the inspiration for this cardboard tube grasshopper
• These paper roll swans are super easy to make and look fabulous in rainbow
• We made these adorable unicorns for a collaborative craft ebook one year

• Who doesn’t love giraffes? Make one with this easy tutorial
• Ribbit! – This paper roll frog is so cute
• Use our template to make some paper roll dinosaurs

• These paper roll bunnies might look complicated, but they’re not!
• The paper roll foxes are even easier
• The girls loved making these paper roll love bugs for Valentines day one year

• How many ways can you make bunnies from paper rolls? Here are some fluffy yarn bunnies
• Or try this bunny pom pom popper
• This paper roll posy is the sweetest Spring craft idea

• Black cats are cute all year round, but especially on Halloween!
• Batman and Robin were inspired by the Lego Batman Movie
• Use the printable undies to make Captain Underpants
• Recognise this green sheep? It was a favourite book in our house for years

• Did you know a paper roll attached to a paper cup makes an awesome ipod speaker?
• Decorate for Halloween with some paper roll ghosts
• This collaborative art paper roll tree was a project from Barbara Rucci of Art Bar’s amazing book

• If smiley, happy dolls are getting a bit boring why not make some paper roll empathy dolls? They can cry, feel scared and get angry as well (template included)
• Use duct tape and textas to turn paper rolls into experimental art scribblers
• Egg cartons might be the bulk of this egg carton train, but the paper roll engine is the hero!
• Kids will have fun with this paper roll shaker

Christmas in our home could never be complete without a paper roll craft or two!

• Here are the cutest paper roll reindeer you’ll ever see
• This paper roll angel is super easy to make
• We adore our home made crackers at Christmas and make some every year

Whew! There you go. Hope you discovered at least one thing you’d like to make, or something that has sparked a new idea of your own.