How to make a duct-tape tray

Level of difficulty: A little tricky, but you can do it (plus, we have an easier alternative) Age range: 6+ (Stretching the duct tape takes a little muscle and coordination) Safety first: Punching holes through the layers of duct tape is definitely a grown-up job The takeaway: Creating a workable material from duct tape is definitely thinking outside the box, try and come up with other ways to use your duct tape. It's a fun and creative thinking exercise.

You'll need: A piece of card stock Brass fasteners (skip this if you're doing the modified version below) Scissors An awl Duct tape (try different colours and patterns or go with a classic silver)

Step 1 Layer strips of duct tape over your card stock. Tip: Do this on a hard, non-painted surface like the kitchen counter (duct tape is very tacky and could take up the paint finish).

Step 2 Repeat until the whole sheet is covered. Feel free to play with colour and pattern.

Step 3 Flip over your card stock and repeat duct tape layers on the other side.

Step 4 Using the paper underneath as a guide, trim the excess tape to reveal a nice clean-edged rectangle shape.

Step 5 Here comes the trickier part (for a modified, kid-friendly version, go to step 5A below): Fold up one end of the rectangle about 1-inch (however high you want the sides walls to be), then fold over the corner as shown above. Poke a hole in that folded corner with your awl—slow and steady, it's a lot of tape to get through. Using a piece of foam core or a cutting mat will give your awl something to go through. Insert your brass fastener and repeat on all four corners,

Step 5A If your crafter is young, or you don't have brass fasteners, you can simply tape your corners together with strips of duct tape. You won't get the hardware touch but it still looks really cool and will be functional.

Ta-Da! OK, Dad, no more losing your keys...

Now that you've made one duct-tape tray, you can experiment with different shapes and sizes and make lots more duct-tape gifts for family and friends.

Read more: How to make a 'Rad Dad' mouse pad craft for Father's Day 7 ingenious craft hacks How to make a mini city out of paper rolls