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Walnut Shell Boats Basket
Nature Basket

Walnut Shell Boats Basket

Half a walnut shell, a blob of clay, a toothpick and a paper sail. Ten minutes of making and then a whole afternoon of racing them across a washing-up bowl.

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Ages 3-815 min prepSave to Pinterest

We cracked walnuts for a cake, my daughter refused to let me throw the shells away, and by the afternoon we had a fleet.

The making is genuinely quick, which matters — the point is the water, not the craft. Ours raced in a washing-up bowl on the patio until the sails went soggy.

Blowing them across the water with a straw turned out to be the whole game. We have done it every summer since.

Shells, clay, toothpicks and paper — the entire supply list.
Shells, clay, toothpicks and paper — the entire supply list.
Pressing the clay in firmly is the step that decides whether it floats.
Pressing the clay in firmly is the step that decides whether it floats.
Racing across a washing-up bowl with straws.
Racing across a washing-up bowl with straws.

What you'll need

  • Walnut shell halves, as intact as you can crack them
  • A small ball of air-dry clay or plasticine for each boat
  • Toothpicks or cocktail sticks for masts
  • Scraps of paper, washi tape or fabric for the sails
  • A washing-up bowl, a baking tray of water, or a stream if you have one nearby
  • Drinking straws for blowing the boats along
  • Optional: a birthday candle instead of a mast, for floating candle boats at dusk

Links to products are affiliate links: if you buy through them I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Printables are always free 🙏

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How to make it

  1. 1

    Crack the walnuts along the seam with a nutcracker to get clean halves — a grown-up job, and it takes a couple of attempts.

  2. 2

    Press a small ball of clay firmly into the bottom of each shell. This is the ballast and it is what stops the boat capsizing.

  3. 3

    Cut a small triangle or rectangle of paper and pierce it twice with the toothpick so it sits like a real sail.

  4. 4

    Push the mast into the clay, straight up. Check it floats before decorating any further.

  5. 5

    Fill the bowl and launch. Add a second boat and you have a race.

  6. 6

    Blow them across with a straw, then try making waves with a hand and see which boat survives.

  7. 7

    At dusk, swap the mast for a short birthday candle, light it and float them in the dark. Stay right there while it burns.

Tip

Too much clay and the boat sits low and tips; a ball the size of a pea is plenty. Waxed paper or washi-tape sails last far longer in the water than plain paper, which goes soft within minutes.

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