Make A DIY Bug Observation Box from Recycled Supplies

Gather up all the basic materials. To make a bug observation box just like ours, you’ll need a cardboard box, a large plastic berry container, and the mesh from a produce bag.

HOWEVER, there are TONS of ways to make a bug box with substituted supplies or even completely different items! You can use our box for inspiration, then work with what you have.

To make a box just like ours, you’ll want the two narrower sides of your box to be triangular, and the wider sides to have holes for windows. I planned out the shapes, then drew cut lines on each side of the box with a permanent marker.

You don’t have to be exact with this, eyeballing it is fine! I wanted the cardboard sides surrounding our cutout windows to be fairly equal in width, and just used the width of the ruler as a way to measure and create fairly equal spacing.

Note: Remember to size the window openings to fit your supplies – so make sure the window opening isn’t too big for your berry lid/mesh bag.

Cut down each side of your box at the four corners, so it’s laying flat, then use a utility knife to cut out the triangle shapes, side door, and window openings.

Important: When cutting, remember to leave ONE box flap attached on a long side of your box (note the flap on the left-hand side below). We’re going to turn this into the flap that covers the top of our bug box.

Once you have your basic bug box pattern cut out, use a scrap of the leftover to make a triangular cover for the side door. Make it roughly half an inch larger than your cutout, and make small holes where the white dots are below that a metal brad can fit through.

This is an optional step, and admittedly takes a bit longer, but I just love the way it looks! Use tempera or acrylic paint to paint the outside of your bug box (you don’t need to paint the bottom – just the sides you’ll see). Hit it with a hairdryer to speed up dry time.

You could add an opportunity for more artful processes by splattering or sponge-painting with different colors of paint.

Use a glue gun to attach the mesh from a produce bag to the INSIDE of one of your bug box windows. I recommend an adult helping with this step, as it can be tricky to push the mesh down while avoiding the hot glue. You can use a popsicle stick or similar tool to push the mesh into the hot glue around the edge.

We also glued a piece of green paper to the floor of our bug box to simulate grass.

Flip your box around to the other side and hot glue the clear plastic berry container cover on.

We’re going to bend the cardboard over the top of our bug box to create a velcroed flap, so gently bend it over the top and make a nice folded crease in the box.

Use a hot glue gun to glue the side of your bug box with the flap to the triangular sides of your bug box.

Flip your box to the opposite side, and use a glue gun to glue halfway up both sides. We’ll be leaving the rest unglued so that we can easily pull that long open when we want to access the inside.

This is an optional step, but you can add some pizazz to your box with decorations! You can use the garden as inspiration to make your own painted flowers as we did, decorate with natural materials, or use any decorative craft supply you’d prefer! Put your name on it, make a “Welcome, bugs!” sign, or just leave it as is.

Fill your box with a couple of rocks, twigs, or other backyard finds, then set your bug box outside in a shady spot – leaving the side door open for visitors. You’ll be amazed at the number of bugs that will come to investigate!