July 3rd, 2009 by admin

Did you know that for every three square feet of scrap lumber approximately one square foot of building structure can be made? Think about this: You will be saving 10 acres of pine and 33 mature trees when you recycle that many scrap lumber!

Now that this interesting bit of recycling information has snagged your attention, let us tap into a more manageable way to recycle lumber scrap. You can turn them into wooden toys blocks! Here is how.

Look for Appropriate Wood Scraps

As much as not all wooden toys blocks are created the same, not all lumber scraps are scrapped the same. You have to avoid pressure-treated wood at all costs because these have been infused with harmful chemicals and preservatives for insect-repellent and rot-resistant purposes, of which the most dangerous is arsenic.

Instead, you should go for naturally-treated wood scraps with various grains. This way, you can have variety in texture and weight that will further appeal to your children's senses. A very good piece of advice: Ask woodworkers about the appropriateness of the wood scraps for toys before you purchase them.

Cut and Shape

Here is where the fun begins. You can cut the wood scraps into any shape you desire - triangles, squares, rectangles, cubes, polygons, stars - that you envision your children can appreciate. After all, imagination is not bounded by the Earth's roundness!

Besides, if your children are going to build imaginary buildings and thingamajigs from the wooden toys blocks, it helps to have various shapes and sizes on hand. Whoever says space skyscrapers have to be cube structures, anyway?

After cutting and shaping, the next step is rounding out the rough edges through sanding. This is a labor intensive process but is worth the trouble splinter safety-wise. You can use a power sander to smooth down the rougher edges and then fine sandpaper for finishing touches.

Words of caution when cutting into shapes: For younger babies, the wooden toys blocks must never be less than 3 inches in size otherwise you increase choking hazards.

For all ages, very sharp and very delicate corners are big no-no's otherwise you risk breaking and piercing accidents.

Color Me Purple

Or any other color you care to paint on. Of course, you can always leave the wooden toys blocks in their natural state with just a coating of natural wood finishes to highlight the wood grains.

You can choose from beeswax, tung oil, almond and walnut oil, mineral oil, and linseed oil; shellac is a natural option, too, except that it can cause allergies in children.

If you wish to color the wooden blocks, then you must choose safe options to avoid health complications like allergies. You can choose from acrylic paints (many colors, easy application, no fumes but look for AP Non-Toxic seal), watercolors (beautiful stains, look for AP Certified Non-Toxic seal) and milk paint (odorless when dry, completely biodegradable, hurray).

Now, your children can enjoy countless hours of fun playing with their wooden toys blocks! At the very least, you augment their cache of educational toys at a lesser cost.

By: Rony Pollock

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For your children, nothing but the best kids' lamps, kitchen step stool and wooden toys blocks from RonJuneShop will do!

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