Name badges for kids.

September 7, 2016 8:38 AM

I am a Beaver Scout leader, and need some ideas for making name badges.

Last year I cut a stick into slices, let the kids decorate them, and used self sticking pin backs to turn them into name badges. They looked great, but it was kind of a a failure as the pin backs both wouldn't stay closed (so kept falling off) and the pin backs came off the wood after a few weeks. Any ideas on a more durable way to make name tags? This has to be something the kids can make themselves, and something that will be durable enough to survive a lot of activity, being outdoors, camping, etc.

posted by fimbulvetr to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (14 answers total)

Some variation on wooden clothes pins.
posted by Oyéah at 8:50 AM on September 7, 2016

Last year I cut a stick into slices, let the kids decorate them, and used self sticking pin backs to turn them into name badges. They looked great, but it was kind of a a failure as the pin backs both wouldn't stay closed (so kept falling off) and the pin backs came off the wood after a few weeks.

I was coming in to recommend this! Except instead of pin backs, drill a hole in each one and run a bit of cord through it to make a lanyard style necklace.
posted by phunniemee at 8:58 AM on September 7, 2016 [3 favorites]

You could make shrinky-dinks with #6 recycled plastic. If you have a toaster oven handy, you could probably do them all then and there.
posted by Capt. Renault at 9:01 AM on September 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

2nd'ing Phunniemee. This is what we always did in scouts. But... drill two holes about an inch apart and thread the cord through both. This will keep the name tag flat against the wearer.

We always called those "wood cookies"
posted by TomFoolery at 9:26 AM on September 7, 2016

Response by poster: I'm not sure if a necklace-style name badge would work well for 5 to 7 year olds. They tend to forget to wear or lose bits of their uniform all the time, so something that can attach to their uniform would be preferable to another item they have to wear and keep track of.
posted by fimbulvetr at 10:03 AM on September 7, 2016

Could you do something similar, except instead of using the self sticking pin backs, maybe either glue pin backs to them, or use magnets? You could glue the magnets to the back of the wood, let it cure, and then use another magnet on the other side of the shirt, etc, to keep it held on.
posted by needlegrrl at 10:11 AM on September 7, 2016

Best answer: maybe either glue pin backs to them

as a scout leader, let me let you in on a little secret: E6000
posted by phunniemee at 10:16 AM on September 7, 2016 [2 favorites]

Drill the hole, thread a short length of string through it, learn the overhand knot, pin string to uniform .
posted by Helga-woo at 11:12 AM on September 7, 2016

I mean, the friendship knot would look great, but depends how advanced your Beavers are...
posted by Helga-woo at 11:14 AM on September 7, 2016

Since you want it to attach to the clothing what if you used Phunniemee's idea, but then used the thread/yarn to wrap it/tie it/knot it through a button hole?
posted by Toddles at 8:39 PM on September 7, 2016

Are you using a hot glue gun? I've found pinbacks stick ridiculously well with hot glue.
posted by bendy at 8:55 PM on September 7, 2016

Best answer: Epoxy: "You ain't never gettin' that off."

That, and a higher-quality pin back.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 10:37 AM on September 8, 2016

Response by poster: E6000 is amazing stuff. That and a higher-quality pin back seems to have been the solution.
posted by fimbulvetr at 8:47 AM on September 14, 2016 [1 favorite]

Not super relevant to the asker, but just as a clarification in case it's relevant to someone who comes by this thread later on: E6000 is a styrene-butadiene rubber, rather than an epoxy. Fimbulvetr's marking of my answer above presumably refers only to the second part of it. E6000 is good stuff, but it and epoxy are rather different.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 10:01 AM on September 14, 2016