DIY Wooden Baby Rattle

I try to surround my kids with high-quality, all-natural toys. Wood always wins out over plastic, and hand-made is best. When they were babies, this was my all-time favorite toy for them.

I first saw a wooden, Montessori-inspired rattle like this at a high end baby boutique in Georgetown, but nearly laughed when I looked at the price tag. After a quick trip to the craft store, and a bit of tinkering, I had my own version of this sweet wooden baby rattle. But mine was even better than the one I saw in the store, at a fraction of the cost.

Both of my babies loved them, so we had one in the diaper bag, one on the changing table, and one with the rest of their toys.

Now I make them as gifts. The are the perfect finishing touch to any baby shower gift!

These baby rattles are easy to make, using simple wooden pieces that you can buy in the craft store.

For each rattle, you will need:

• a 3 inch piece of 1/2″ wooden dowel
• 2 dowel caps, 1-1/4″ with 1/2″ hole
• 3 wooden rings, 1-1/2″
• super fine sandpaper
• non-toxic wood glue
• all-natural, organic wood salve (optional)

Directions:

1. If you started with a longer length of wooden dowel, start by cutting it down to a 3″ piece. (I used this set) Sand the dowel until very smooth.
2. Apply glue into the hole in one of the dowel caps. Place it on one end of the dowel, and hold it securely for a few minutes to the glue to set.
3. Thread 3 toss rings on the dowel. Then repeat step 2 with the second dowel cap on the other end of the dowel.
4. Sand the entire rattle until very smooth, wipe with a soft cloth, then finish with an all-natural, organic wood salve.

The wood salve is optional, but protects the wood, and brings out the natural beauty of each piece. The rattle on the left, above, is left natural. And the rattle on the right is finished with wood salve. Both are beautiful, but I like the feel of the finished piece so much more. Check back tomorrow for all the details on my handmade wood salve!

A sweet handmade wooden baby rattle is just about the cutest thing ever.

Disclaimer: Please don’t ever let your baby play with this or any other toy unattended.