Toddler Gift Idea - Hand Painted Wooden Toys

By Craftycrunchymama
I was looking for some Montessori inspired wooden toys on Etsy but knew I could probably make some myself for cheaper. I love to make toys for Baby J, so when I saw some of the same wooden people and bowling ball pins that were unfinished at my local craft store, I decided to give it a go!
They were pretty quick to make and I'm impressed with how they turned out!

I used Crayola watercolors to paint them, which I probably wouldn't do again because the paint ended up coming off on my hands even after they were dry. I would choose a higher quality watercolor the next time. I did a quick search on how to fix the color bleeding problem and found that a remedy was to soak them in vinegar. It did work pretty well but it faded the color a lot. The above pictures are after they were soaked.

After I was satisfied with my paint job and had soaked it in the vinegar, I finished it with a natural finish of homemade beeswax and olive oil. I used this tutorial to make it and it turned out well!
If you aren't into making your own, you can buy some great ones at Under the Green Umbrella. All of their toys are handmade and finished with non toxic finishes. They make some great little wooden toys that I would loooove to have someday!

Under the Green Umbrella Peg People Bus