For Christmas we made the kids a sensory table which quickly became one of their most favorite activities. We have played with beans, rice, water, sand, seashells, rocks, and packing peanuts in it. It has been a car wash and an ice cream shop. We have used magnetic fishing poles to catch magnetic fish. We have washed and painted seashells collected from the beach. There are so many more ideas that we have yet to explore! We store and use our sensory table outdoors which works beautifully because it can get rather messy!
In addition to a sensory table I wanted an outdoor art table that could be used in conjunction with the sensory table as well as for separate messy art projects. I found THE perfect child-sized wood table at the thrift store for only $7.00! It was in great shape and super sturdy although was coated in paint, glue and glitter from the previous owners. No biggie! I just washed it down and painted it dark brown to match our sensory table. I love seeing them sit side by side.
The final project I had in mind was to make was a Lego table. Legos are hands down my kids’ top choice activity these days. They spend a great deal of time building Lego creations and playing with their Lego guys. Sometimes I think we could do away with all the other toys in our house except for our Legos and the kids would be perfectly content. Therefore I have been thinking a lot about how to build a Lego table for them. In fact most of my “pins” on Pinterest are ideas for a Lego table. My criteria were twofold; 1) a table that didn’t take up too much space and 2) was flexible in its design allowing for a variety of Lego play. Here’s what I came up with…
I purchased a bin to store the Legos in that is the same size as the bin in the sensory table. It is actually a really good size and depth for storing our Lego collection. We alternate between the Lego bin in the sensory table and the other bin (holding whatever sensory material we happen to be using at the time). When the Lego bin is not in the sensory table, it fits perfectly on the bottom shelf of our coffee table. This way the kids can easily play with their Legos indoors or outdoors.
Next step was to provide a Lego base for the kids to build on. I purchased a set of 3 Lego Plates and glued them to a piece of wood I found at the “as-is” section of Ikea for $3.00. It was already finished and happen to be the perfect color so I didn’t need to do anything to it. Double score!! This Lego base fits right onto the art table that sits next to the sensory table. This allows us to have a Lego building station or a sensory/art station. I seriously love how it turned out! And it was super easy and inexpensive. In fact the most expensive part was purchasing the Lego plates. Although they were well worth the money because they add a whole new dimension to their Lego creations.
I have pinned so many Lego tables on Pinterest…I wonder if someone will now pin mine? Yep, this is the kind of stuff that excites me now…Lego tables! Can you tell I am the mom of 3 boys?!? 😉
-Sarah
PS. They now make Legos that are marketed towards girls called Lego Friends. Do any of you have these for your girls? If so what do you think of them?
Tags: art projects, art table, DIY lego table, homemade lego table, lego collection, lego creations, lego table, legos, outdoor art, sensory table, thrift store
