Categories: Crafts & Hobbies

Cardboard Box Princess Castle

Every little girl needs a play castle, and if she makes it herself, she’ll really be proud to show it off to her friends! It’s easy for her to make, with a little help from you, and a couple of cardboard boxes. The great thing about this craft is, the castle can be made as small or large as you want, and the craft supplies needed can range from things you already have to things you purchase at a craft store. No two castles need look exactly alike because you and your daughter will choose the colors, themes and embellishments.

Start with a square cardboard box and remove the flaps. The box shouldn’t be too shallow and shouldn’t be rectangular. After removing the flaps cut a rectangle on one side of the box. The rectangle will become the door of the castle so it should be centered on one side of the box. Cut the door squared, rounded at the top, or even cut a double door. To make the latter, cut a “T” shape then fold each side of the cardboard backward to crease.

Turn the box upside down and use it as-is or glue it to a piece of thin craft foam. Make the foam the same size as the bottom of the box, or use a large piece of green foam, and make grass for the castle. Later, you can glue fake bushes and trees to the green “grass”. Finish making and decorating the castle, though, before creating the look of the landscaping.

Take a second, much smaller box, remove the flaps, and turn it upside-down in the center of the first box. Glue it to the top then proceed with decorating the castle. You have many choices for decorating, from cheap and easy, to detailed and more costly. Many different things can be used to embellish the castle so anyone, with any budget, can create the perfect castle.

Cover the box with satin and use narrow gold roping around the perimeters on each side of the box. Or, tear up white tissue paper, wad it up, and glue it all over the boxes. Other things you can use include spray paint, buttons, fake fur, colored paper pieces, wadded up circles cut from white plastic bags, pom-poms or even cotton balls. Things you can use for the edges include rick-rack, roping, ribbon, tiny fake flowers or even foil balls.

Paint or glue on items to cover the sides of the box. Make the door more prominent by making it a different color, covering it with fake jewels, or even gluing on wood-look paper. Use the same embellishments to cover the second box of the castle. Since the second box is smaller there is room around it for further decorating. You can use many different things to create a regal look for the top of the large box, surrounding the smaller box.

Glue short cone shapes onto each corner to make flag stands. Small Styrofoam shapes work best but you can also use cardboard cones or ones you make yourself from craft foam. Decorate the cones with glitter, tiny jewels, dots of gold paint, or other embellishments. When you’ve finished the cones, and they’re glued to the corners, create flags that will fly from each stand. You can purchase flag stickers from a craft store or make homemade flags by coloring small pieces of construction paper. Tape or glue them to toothpicks then insert one in each cone.

Between the flags, along the edges of the large box, you can glue tiny flowers, jewels, fencing, miniature bushes or even tiny chess pieces. The size of the embellishments you choose should largely depend upon the sizes of boxes you’re using to make the castle. Any embellishments should be in proportion to the castle itself.

On the top box, use a slightly larger cone, and a slightly larger flag. This will become the topper to the castle. If you want, use a sticker on a piece of construction paper to make the flag. The sticker can represent the crest – the castle emblem. Small jewels or other embellishments can be glued to the perimeter of the small box, around the top, to finish.

Little girls will love playing with their new castles but the play set doesn’t have to be strictly for girls. Use blue and gold, or other manly colors, to make a boy’s castle. Any young child would love to help make – and play with – the finished castle.