Milk Carton Sailboat

I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.

-Louisa May Alcott

Materials:

milk or juice cardboard carton
white freezer paper
masking tape - medium
drafting tape - skinny
thin rope cord
acrylic paint
foam brush
skinny paint brush
scissors
utility knife
pencil
permanent marker
skinny wooden dowel
hot glue gun

1. Use a ruler to draw a dividing line down the center of your carton.

A black marker, a metal ruler and a milk carton with a black line through the middle, showing where the cut will be made. Photo captured on white background.

2. Carefully cut along the dividing line with a utility knife and scissors. Leave the entire bottom section attached to half of your carton.

The hand of an artist is shown holding a cut milk carton above a grey box cutter and a pair of grey handled scissors. Photo captured on white background.

3. Paint your boat with acrylic craft paint.

The hand of an artist shown holding a milk carton which has been painted with pale aqua blue acrylic. Below it. is a cup of acrylic paint with a foam brush. Photo captured on white background.

4. Decide where you want to put your "mast" (your wooden dowel). Mark a small pencil dot above and below that center point and create a small entry point. We added a little hot glue around the dowel inside the boat and on the underside.

The painted milk carton, showing the inside (deck) of the Milk Carton Sailboat. The wooden dowel is the boat's mast, which is shown sticking up through the middle of the deck. Photo captured on white background.

5. Once your acrylic paint has dried you can take your masking tape and add racing stripes to your sailboat! We started with a piece of medium white masking tape.

A side view of the Milk Carton Sailboat. A white washi tape racing stripe is being applied to the side of the hull. Photo captured on white background.

6. Then we added a thin red pin stripe on top of our thicker white stripe.

A side view of the Milk Carton Sailboat's hull. A thin line of red washi tape is being added through the middle of the white baseline. Photo captured on white background.

7. The girls wanted to add some flags to our rope, so we created them with washi tape. We simply folded the washi tape around our thin rope and cut the ends in a V shape.

A close up photo of white embroidery string with flags made from red, pink and aqua colored washi tape. The rolls of washi tape are also shown placed closely together. Photo captured on white background.

8. Then we drew our mainsail (the big one) and our jib (the little one) on a piece of white freezer paper. We have big plans to race our boat so we wanted a paper that was somewhat coated and water proof.

A sheet of white freezer paper with pencil sketches of two different sized triangles which will become the sails for our boat. The lines have been made clean and sharp by using the metal ruler which is also shown. Photo captured on white background.

9. Time to add some pizzazz to the sails! We used washi and thin masking tape. Notice that we applied them to our drawings before we cut them out.

2 triangles (sails) sketched in pencil on white freezer paper. A yellow and red roll of very thin washi tape, and one roll of slightly thicker sea green washi tape. Photo captured on white background.

10. Carefully cut out your sails with a sharp pair of scissors.

A photo showing the progress of building our boat. Racing lines have been added to the hull and sails. The boats rope has flags of various colors. Photo captured on white background

11. Create two small entry points on your mainsail... one near the bottom and one near the top. You will push your dowel over the bottom of the sail and through and then come back out when you reach the opening at the top. We then secured the dowel to the sail with a dab of hot glue on the back side.

Two white triangles (masts) with red, yellow and pale aqua colored racing stripes. The wooden dowel (mast) has been attached to the larger sail. The boat's rope shown with small, triangle flags in various colors. Photo captured on white background

12. Create a small hole at the front center of your boat (on the pour spout of the carton). Tie your rope w/flags to the top of the mast and then come down through the pour spout hole. You will tie a knit below the spout to firmly attach your rope. You can add a dab of glue here if necessary. Add a thin line of hot glue along your rope and attach the jib (small sail). Apply pressure with your hand for a few seconds while the glue sets.