30 Best Crafts for Teens and Tweens

Encourage your tweens and teens to step away from screens and busy their hands with creative pursuits. From puff-painted school supplies and Perler bead friendship bracelets to confetti-clad bookmarks, sun prints and custom graduation caps — we’re sharing 30 inspiring craft ideas for all skill levels your not-so-little kid will love. First up? Hand-painted pinch pot planters.

Hand-painted pinch clay planters are the perfect project for adding some zest to your tween’s bedroom or teen’s dorm window. These striped cuties are easy to craft using polymer oven-bake clay, rubbing alcohol, wooden skewers, cotton twine, small wooden rings, acrylic paints and a paintbrush. Gather supplies and hit the link below to watch our video tutorial and read through our step-by-step guide to help your tween make a set of their own this weekend.

Presenting the perfect craft project for your tween or teen to tackle before heading back to school this summer: puff-painted notebooks. Snag a set of cheap notebooks from your go-to value store and stock up on puff paint in four or five of their favorite colors. Set them up with a movie, a snack spread and leave them to dot away with the help of our step-by-step video tutorial linked below.

Carve out a Saturday afternoon with your high-schooler and catch up while crafting personalized block prints for making custom-printed tees, totes and more. To make them, you’ll need linoleum rubber blocks, a carving tool, and block-printing ink. Follow the link below for our step-by-step instructions, materials list and video tutorial.

Whether your tween is gearing up for sleep-away camp or heading to high school, this Perler bead friendship bracelet will provide a stylish reminder of your love while they’re off doing big things. These eye-catching bracelets are easy to make, too. All you need are the old-school Perler beads you know and love, plus embroidery thread, a jump ring, jewelry clasp, scissors and two embroidery needles.

These bohemian wooden ring planters are ideal for the crafty teen blessed with a green thumb or an affinity for free-spirited style. Invite your plant-loving kid to follow our lead and craft their own using natural wooden rings.

Transform a roll of corrugated cardboard (or the ever-expanding box collection in your garage) into wall-worthy art for your teen’s bedroom or dorm with our simple DIY cardboard typography art. While this project may not be the quickest on our list, it makes a major impact on any wall and allows you ample time to connect with your kiddo while getting your craft on. Get started with our step-by-step video instructions in the link below.

All tweens and teens are different, but one thing they have in common? They love a photo-worthy banner. Our felt letter tutorial is a craft project equivalent to the gift that keeps on giving and adds flair to any event or bedroom. Set them up to craft their custom letter banner to create a festive backdrop for their year-end sleepover or to deck out their dorm room. Find our step-by-step guide and materials list to help them get started in the link below.

Show your teen our DIY scrunchie tutorial to uplevel their ponytail just in time for summer. Although this project calls for a sewing machine, it’s simple for beginners and offers fashionistas a creative outlet to express their style. Hit the link below for the materials list and easy-to-follow instructions to make a batch of scrunchies together next weekend.

Set your teen or tween with a coir mat and prismatic paints to recreate our vibrant rainbow entry mat. They’ll start with a classic rectangle mat and transform it into this symbol of hope, happiness and acceptance using our rainbow pattern, heavy-duty scissors, tape, permanent marker, straight pins, outdoor acrylic paints and a paintbrush. Find our easy-to-follow instructions and a video tutorial to recreate this magical mat in the link below.

Invite your teen to make beachy art for their bedroom with this easy-breezy paint project. The coastal canvas art looks store-bought and packs a punch of Palm Beach style into any space. Plus, it is simple to recreate using our step-by-step tutorial below.

Appeal to your tween’s bookworm tendencies and aptitude for crafting in one fell swoop with this lively DIY confetti bookmark. The color-clad design requires a page protector, a sewing machine (don’t worry, it’s nearly impossible to mess it up!), scissors, construction paper and sequins. Check out the video tutorial to learn how to make the confetti bookmark — and more confetti crafts — linked below.

Who says Easter egg fun must come to a screeching halt just because your kids are over 8 years old? Give your middle or high schooler something festive and fun to work on this spring with our disco ball mirrored easter eggs. The glamorous eggs feel sophisticated enough to appeal to the not-so-little kiddos and they’ll look forward to displaying them in their apartment or dorm once they fly the nest. To make a dozen of your own, cut however many of these tiny glass mirror tile stickers you need into strips and adhere to plastic eggs.

Invite your senior kid’s friends for a graduation cap craft night — pizza included. Set up a station with cardstock, a hot glue gun, stick-on letters, paint pens, craft scissors, faux flowers, pom poms and other crafty bits. And if they need some graduation cap inspiration, send them the link below for three DIY cap designs sure to stand out as a hit at any commencement ceremony.

Another book and craft crossover project your creative bookworm will adore? Resin agate bookends. These trendy bookends are highly satisfying to create and add an eye-catching pop of color to any bookcase, desk or countertop. To make, your teen will need a resin kit, a faux agate slice mold, alcohol ink, embossing glue, embossing powder and embossing heat gun. Make sure your teen wears gloves and a mask while working with resin. Click the link below to watch our step-by-step tutorial by HGTV Handmade’s Crafty Lumberjacks.

Cute, cozy and easy enough for your sixth grader to make? Yes, yes and yes. Add this plush chunky knit pillow to your tween craft night agenda and watch them beam with pride when they produce a pillow pretty enough to buy in stores. They’ll need one roll of chunky yarn in a color they’d like to display in their room, polyester filling and the step-by-step guide from HGTV Handmade’s Gabriela Hardan, linked below.

Give your tween the green light to create a statement piece for their bedroom wall. They need a cardboard box, a hot glue gun, scissors and leftover yarn or fabric in contrasting textures to recreate our cozy-cute monogram wall art. Customize with colors that complement their existing bedroom furnishings, or pick out hues inspired by their beloved sports team.

Treat your tween to an ultra-sweet accessory craft to personalize their backpack or handbag. Our conversation heart keychain is cheeky and fun for tweens and teens alike and offers a creative way to spend time with friends sans screens. They’ll need pastel clay, a rolling pin, cookie cutters, paint, parchment paper and some jewelry hardware. Hit the link below for an extended materials list and an easy-to-follow instruction guide.

The only thing more satisfying than taking a long soak in the tub is taking a long soak in the tub with a homemade bath bomb. Trust us, your tween and teen will be giddy over making their own colorful bath bombs for spa nights at home. Pro tip: Buy the materials in bulk and use this as a sleepover craft activity your guests can take home and enjoy the next day. Find our step-by-step guide in the link below.

What better way to encourage your teen to de-stress than an afternoon spent painting watercolor posies? Set them up with paints, brushes and a watercolor paper pad, then pull up our step-by-step guide to help them get started. Oh, and don’t forget a tasty snack for your artist before you leave them to it.

We know what you’re thinking: Your teenager doesn’t need another reason to stare at their phone all day. Beyond valid. But, if they’re going to be glued to their phone, we say give them something other than social media to captivate their attention. Our pressed flower phone case craft looks like a high-end design you’d splurge on at a store but is easy to make on the cheap at home. Help them collect blooms and bring them to the link below to get the scoop on how to make a pressed floral phone case this weekend.

Head outdoors and celebrate summer with our vibrant pressed flower monogram wall art. Forage your garden for a few different varieties of blooms, or take your tween to the grocery store to buy a bouquet or two. (Grocery store arrangements are phenomenal in a pinch because you can rest assured the floral colors will pair nicely together.) From there, hit the link below for an extended materials list and our step-by-step video for creating monogram wall art with pressed posies.

Spend a Saturday afternoon with your sporty tween or teen reviving an old tennis racket collecting dust in your garage. All they need is a racket (You can find one at thrift shops for cheap!) and yarn in three or five colors that coordinate with their bedroom palette to make a custom display for their wall.

Gather your crafty kid with their friends for this summer camp-inspired sun print craft they’ll treasure for years. Each crafter will arrange foraged flowers or leaves on sun print paper, then cover the blooms and paper with a sheet of acrylic that extends over the entire piece of paper. The key to success is making sure no sun slips through the acrylic. From there, place the print in the sun for up to five minutes or until the paper turns white, rinse in water, then hang it to dry. See more instructions and get an extended materials list to make this nostalgic art in the link below.

Give your interior design-loving teen a fun project to uplevel their bedroom with our tri-tiered tassel chandelier. They’ll love customizing each level with their favorite hues and feel pride over how elevated their space looks thanks to their handiwork. Get the easy-to-follow guide and the must-have materials in the link below.

Lava lamp lip gloss is the tween craft project of all craft projects. And, the best part? It’s crazy simple to make with three ingredients: vegetable glycerin, castor oil and colorful edible mica powder. Set your tween up with the ingredients and throw on their all-time favorite movie to enjoy while they make their groovy glaze.

Join forces with your teenager and give their digs a refresh with the help of our chic-yet-simple DIY project: cookie tin planters. Follow our step-by-step below to recreate these mod planters and fill them with live or silk greenery to enliven their wall. Follow our lead and go for a blue-and-gold combo, or pick up two paints in their favorite colors for a custom finish.

This craft project was made for the outdoorsy tween or teen in your family who loves the surprise element of tie-dye and never misses a picnic. Make our DIY indigo picnic blanket using a pre-washed cotton sheet, indigo dye, soda ash and reducing agent, plus a clothesline (or rope) to let it dry overnight. Check out our video tutorial for tips and tricks to help your crafty teen make the best tie-dyed picnic blanket yet.

Give your teen permission to sleep under the clouds every night if they recreate this DIY cloud lamp by HGTV Handmade’s A.V. Perkins. The otherworldly design looks far more expensive than it is and is easy enough for teens to craft solo. Set them up for success with paper lanterns, polyester fill, a low-temp glue gun and glue sticks, and then send them the guide in the link below.

Tweens, teens and adults of all ages can appreciate a mesmerizing glitter jar. Set your big kid up to create this calming and beautiful glitter jar in their favorite color using hot water, extra-fine glitter, skewer, glitter glue, super glue and a glass jar. Use our step-by-step tutorial in the link below to get started this weekend.