DIY Baby Mobile

These baby mobiles are super easy to make and are the perfect entertainment for the baby on the changing table.

I’ve changed my fair share of diapers with two kids and one on the way. The last thing you want is a fussy baby with a blow out that is seeping out every which way.

My best advice for those inevitable situations is first and foremost, don’t try and conserve the wet wipes by folding and reusing. There are plenty of other times when you can be a little more green and not use as many disposable wipes but this is not the time!

Second, it really helps to have some distraction around. I used have some toy around for the baby to play with but too many times they’ve just tossed the toy into the poop and then I have yet another item to clean and manage.

The baby mobile is perfect because it’s within sight but out of reach.

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Materials for DIY Baby Mobile Kit

Cardstock – I personally find cardstock to be versatile and lightweight materials for these baby mobiles. I advise using medium weight cardstock with colored cores so the edges don’t look frayed. Here are some of my favorite brands:

Assorted Starter Pack – Basic assorted colors, great starter pack, perfect weight for most papercraft projects
Cricut Joy Insert Card Packs – You don’t have to use these with the Cricut Joy, they are nice material kids for cardmaking.
Cardstock Warehouse Brand on Amazon – I love the quality of all the matte-colored cardstock with Cardstock Warehouse. It is my go-to brand for individual matte colors that I might need
Poptone Assorted Variety Pack – This is the perfect peppy assortment of colors of heavy cardstock. It’s a heavy cardstock assortment with colors I actually use frequently for cardmaking.
Seasonal Assorted Variety Pack – This is a slight variation on the Poptone assortment and has a quite few neutrals that complement almost any accent color.
Stardream Metallics Line – For paper crafts, the Stardream line is the go-to for a metallic shimmer finish. It is the perfect sheen to make any project pop. The core is also colored is which hard to find for metallic paper.

Felt – Felt also works, there are lots to choose from. I love these assorted sets from Amazon. You want a set that is slightly stiffer so it holds its shape.

String – You could use thread, ribbon, burlap, string, basically anything can work to hang the cutouts.

Frame – There are also lots of frame options. Dream catcher hoops come in both metallic and bamboo. Metal wreath frames can also work. The only problem here is they are all a little heavy and can be difficult to hang. I will show you below an option for making your own frame using cardstock.

Templates – These safari animals and boho themed cutout templates for the baby mobile in my photos are all available in both SVG and PDF formats for free in my resource library.

How to hang the baby mobile

There are 2 parts to hanging this handmade baby mobile.

The first step is obviously to string together all the cutouts.

Here, I’ve just used a hot glue gun to secure each cutout piece to some burlap rope. You could also just tape it. If you are using thinner thread, you could also just tie it around some part of the cutout.

The same method can be done to attach the string of cutouts to the frame. Try to make the strings various lengths.

DIY Baby Mobile Frame

Getting the whole mobile floating in mid air is a completely different story. I ended up making this super light weight cardstock spiral for hanging because it is super flexible how high or low you want to hang it. It is also fairly versatile, you can use a cereal box or just cardboard if you don’t have cardstock around.

This baby mobile frame is light enough to even just tape to the ceiling if that is your only option. And if for some reason it falls on your baby, it’s not a big deal, it is just paper and string.

I basically just tied each string to a loop. If you want it to dangle less, just tape the loops together while it is flat.

Alternatively, you can buy one of these clamping baby mobile arms and clamp it to the changing table or even the crib.