Makedo Balloon Boat

This weekend we're crossing the seven seas in this very fun balloon pirate ship! Join us on our over seas adventures. Invite a few family members and friends, throw a boat making party, then hit the water and race them into the sunset. 

We used reclaimed materials and Makedo's reusable parts from mymakedo.com to design a pirate ship but you can make a boat of any kind. All you need is a waterproof base (packaging from food items you find in the fridge are great for this), a balloon to propel the boat (optional) and some material for a sail.

Makedo challenge: Who can design the fastest boat? Share your creation by uploading it to our website. 

A PDF instruction sheet for this creation is available for download from our blog.

Source materials from around your home. We used a reclaimed juice box as the base, some straws and a paper tube for the sails. But it can be made with anything so get creative! 

For a pirate ship begin by cutting out the inner centre of your carton to give your boat that piratey shape. Follow the cut lines as shown in the image.

To make the point of the pirate ship, start by using the Makedo Safe-Saw to punch a hole in the top of the carton. Then fold the flaps into the shape of point and secure it in place using a Makedo Re-clip. To create seats for your pirates, fold the two top flaps inwards, as shown on the dotted line in the image. 

To create the 'rowing holes', use a Makedo Safe-Saw and punch a hole in the top of four bottle caps. Punch two holes on either side of the ship and connect the bottle caps to the carton using Makedo Re-clips.

For the sails, saw a paper tube in half, and then lengthways and open flat. Our pirate ship has three sails. Use the point end of the Safe-Saw to punch two holes in each sail- one in the top and one in the bottom of each piece. Now you can thread a straw through the holes.

Use the Makedo Safe-Saw and punch a hole on the bottom of the small tub and lid and connect them with a Re-Clip. Now connect your viewing tower to the top of one of your straws using a Makedo Lock-Hinge on a 90 degree angle and Re-Clips. 

The exciting part! Connect your front sails to the ship using a Makedo Re-Clip. For the back sail use one side of a Makedo Lock-Hinge and Re-Clip to secure it in place. You will be using the other side of the Lock-Hinge to secure a balloon in place by threading it through the hole - the balloon will help to propel the ship.

Ta da! Now your pirate ship is ready to hit the water. Hold your blown up balloon tight, thread it through the hole and adjust the angle of the hinge accordingly to give you the best propeller action. When you're ready, let go and watch your pirate ship sail!