Wood craft blocks offer a great starting point for thousands of different DIY projects. You can turn them into just about anything — it all comes down to your imagination! These wooden cubes look great on their own and can be used to complement tons of different interior design projects and crafting ideas. From ornaments to educational tools, you can decorate and style these blocks to meet your specific needs. And once again, the only limits are your imagination and your drive to create something truly amazing to behold!
If you’ve never tried wood block crafts before, you probably have a few questions that need to be answered first. For instance, what differentiates wood blocks for crafts from non-crafting blocks? What sizes are available to buy? What can you do with wood crafting blocks? Finally, where can you acquire high-quality wood blocks for crafting at affordable prices?
In today’s guide, we will answer all of these questions and more, so let’s get started!
What Are Wood Crafting Blocks?
Wood crafting blocks are symmetrical wooden cubes that are made to be painted or simply displayed as part of DIY arts and crafts. Birch wood crafting blocks (made from hard wood) are not meant for carving, as they have already been shaped to look great as they are, which is why so many DIYers love to paint or decorate them right out of the box!
Made of solid birch wood, these blocks are strong enough to stand the test of time, but also malleable enough to work in a lot of different settings. While craft “blocks” are typically squares, they can also be rectangular or oblong. That said, the term “block” generally denotes a cube that is equal dimensions on all sides.
When breaking down the different uses of wood crafting blocks, they can often be put in one of three unique categories: building blocks, structural components, or decorative objects. There is a certain degree of crossover between these categories, but let’s dive into each so that you can better understand how to use wooden blocks for your own projects!
Building blocks are most often associated with educational toys or therapeutic tools. For example, a child may use wooden crafting blocks to build a small castle or learn how shapes and objects interact with each other. You could even create a fun, educational wooden block puzzle to help younger kids learn and grow!
When discussing structural components, wooden crafting blocks can be used for small-scale structural support. Let’s say you’re designing a tiered planter box to put near your kitchen window. You could use wooden blocks to provide foundational support at the bottom of the box. Just keep in mind that most small wooden blocks for crafting are not designed to support large objects on their own, so don’t expect these blocks to do all the heavy lifting on their own! Instead, you’ll need to consider using one of our larger blocks for structural support.
Finally, wooden blocks are great for decorative purposes. In fact, this is where they really shine! Whether you want to paint your wooden blocks with beautiful designs and fun messages to display on your coffee table or simply use them to create artsy bookends, there are tons of ways to put wooden blocks to use in your home!
Wooden Blocks For Montessori
Montessori is a teaching method that focuses on child-led exploration and discovery. For younger children, Montessori wooden blocks are a great way to help develop a wide range of skills and abilities, from problem-solving to creativity. More specifically, wooden blocks can be used as part of a larger curriculum to help develop and enhance the following:
- Motor Skills - Picking up both small and large wooden blocks for crafts can help children expand their motor skills and hand-eye coordination. As they work more with the blocks, they can quickly learn how to use their hands to stack, balance, and arrange the objects in unique ways. This helps combines the physical effort with the cognitive skills required to see how objects interact with one another.
- Spatial Awareness - Building blocks are the foundation of developing spatial awareness, as they help teach children about the relationships between different shapes. Over time, this gives children the skills to understand the basic concepts underpinning important subjects like geometry.
- Imaginative Play - Wooden blocks are like the original Minecraft, giving children the ability to create entire worlds and structures from their imagination!
- Cognitive Skills - Blocks can be used to develop a wide variety of cognitive skills related to math, science, and even language.
- Social Skills - In many cases, wooden blocks can be used to help children work and play together. The blocks can serve as tools that allow children to cooperate, communicate, and share with one another.
Popular Crafts With Wooden Blocks
At Woodpeckers, we like the natural beauty of wood crafting blocks just as they are. That said, it can be a lot of fun to paint and style your blocks to match your unique preferences. So, let’s take a look at some popular crafting ideas to pair with wooden blocks ranging from 1” to 5” in size:
- Homemade Dice - If you get smaller blocks (between 1” and 2”) you can easily paint them to create your very own playing dice! You can use these dice to break out at parties or get-togethers and play games ranging from poker to backgammon!
- Alphabet Blocks - Do you have a young child who is just learning their ABCs for the first time? Or perhaps you’re a teacher who wants to add a special DIY craft to the classroom? Either way, you can use wooden craft blocks of varying sizes decorated with different letters of the alphabet. It’s the perfect way to blend education and fun!
- Holiday Ornaments - Since wood blocks are like a blank canvas, they make a great accompaniment to other decorations during the holidays. You can turn your blocks into small snowmen or little Santa Clause tree ornaments — just to name a few!
- Custom Photo Blocks - Do you have special photos that you want to display in your living room? If so, you can attach your photos to the flat surfaces on wood blocks and showcase them throughout your home. Alternatively, you may choose to give someone a custom photo block for a birthday, anniversary, or any special event!
- Message Blocks - Message blocks offer another great way to help kids learn. By applying chalkboard paint to a 5” block, your kids can use the blocks to write erasable messages with chalk!
- Baby Shower Gifts - Finally, if you want to come up with something truly unique for a soon-to-be mother, you can't go wrong with a DIY craft gift! You can paint your blocks with blue or pink colors, decorate them with baby names, or simply add messages of hope and happiness!
As you can see, there are a LOT of different ways to turn wood crafting blocks into beautiful works of art! If you can dream it, you can do it — especially if you opt for the high-quality wood blocks available at Woodpeckers. With just a little bit of practice, you will be creating truly amazing DIY art in no time!
Did you enjoy our wood crafting blocks guide? Be sure to check out our shop to find the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one!
