New Grandfather gift dilemma

How about upcycling a box of some kind to make into a toy chest? Make one if you are good at woodwork, or just paint and decorate a readymade one.

Difficult to say not knowing if you knit, paint, do woodwork, do photography, or the many, many other crafts there are.

Why not ask the parents of the child?

Parents get so many newborn presents that they are barely used

Congrats!

Start a bank account , get a premium bond , put down some fine wine

I think the toy box is a lovely idea.

MissAdventure

I think the toy box is a lovely idea.

So do I. I think it's a great idea, easy enough to do and can be personalised in whatever way you choose. It would make an ideal gift.

I loved the homemade toy box that my fil made many years ago. Its still in my garage storing something or other, because I couldnt stand to throw it out, its a lovely gift.

If not used for toys at some point it can be adapted for storing other things, too.

Agree with toybox idea - something that will always come in useful. If you're not up to making it from scratch, you could buy a plain box and paint and decorate it.

My husband enjoyed making wooden toys for our 3.
He worked from this book - I see on The auction site more by him.
I was wondering about a push along trolly, wheelbarrow?
Good luck!

When we had DS2, my dad made, for his GS, a wooden train that he could sit on. It has now been well used by his own son, and is still going strong.

Something handmade definitely.

Thanks all for the suggestions. It has given me some things to think about.

You are right that I could ask but, to a certain degree, it is about surprising the parents rather than the child

Their house is pretty small so I also don't want to give them something "awkward" to store/use!

I will do some further research too on the craft. I am not hugely talented at woodwork but am assuming that care has to be taken to avoid using nails etc so proper joints etc are better. Will have to search my memory of school woodwork lessons!

Thanks all

I’m new to this so k may not do it right but , a keepsake box for your grandchild is something they can always , take with them wherever they go , it’s a nice start for the parents to put ribbons , and cards and things from the hospital and from their baby shower and their special day , thr keepsake box items can grow and change as they get older

Some children’s lives are recorded in My Baby books - when they were born, how much they weighed, who were the first visitors, when the first tooth appeared.
How well do you get on with and know the other grandparents? You could produce a book going back in time, giving details and photographs of parents’ and grandparents’ lives - when they were born, the decades they lived through, how they dressed together with key events, etc.

What a lovely idea. The toy box sounds a good one.

Are there local U3A courses or college courses in woodwork where you could make something? A door plate with his name that he could keep? A simple wooden castle appropriate for Playmobil or Lego people? A personalised wooden photo frame? Something he could say in decades to come "My grandad made this for me".

My husband made a wooden bed for our eldest - still treasured 43 years on!

My dad made me a fantastic farm when I was little it was a wooden tray size painted green a mirror for a duck pond and some barns which I now recognise as simple of course the animals were bought
But yes a personised Toybos is another great idea

My grandson was gifted a toy box with his name on the front. My father made my brother a wooden garage - been played with by his son and my grandchildren and is strong enough to stand on!!! My son was given a wooden lorry with his name on the front. The book looks great Ixion.

Thanks all for your continued suggestions! I think a toybox is a great idea and within my "skills" but their house is v small so may not, on reflection, be sensible at this point sadly. So I am veering towards a door plate/coat hook with name/initials and/or a castle that can flat pack. Of course the challenge is that I don't know the name yet (they have a favourite)!

Grandpops my late husband made our daughter a push along. All it was wooden rectangle for the base 4 pieces of wooden round the sides about 4" deep . Long handle with a bar between it and 4 wheels. After sanding down used child friendly varnish. She is 38 and her brother used it after her . My grandson's use it . He was a klutz when it came to carpentry but he enjoyed making . Plenty of plasters where used. It has outlived him.

My dad made both of my kids a wooden picture frame when they were born with their names on, we’ve regularly updated the pictures as they’ve grown and it’s a lovely wee keepsake that doesn’t take up much space at all! He used a bit of clear plastic stuff instead of glass in them - that might be an easier project?

Favourite toy of our son (now in his 30's) was a set of wooden bricks his Grandad made, I think he just cut a length of 2x2 into bricks and blocks of various sizes and smoothed the edges.

They were used to make farms, houses, castles, garages etc etc over the years, and now ready for his D to use when she's big enough.