Paining a Pikler Triangle

I was looking for a first birthday gift idea for my son and decided to reach out to the people of Facebook for some inspiration. Very quickly the responses came in and I was shocked at how much parents raved about the Pikler Triangle, I had personally never heard of it. So I decided to do some research and it soon became clear this was the perfect first birthday gift- A must have in fact.

What is a Pikler Triangle 

A Pikler Triangle is a climbing structure for children that they navigate at their own pace. It helps with:

• Allowing children to explore their body
• Learn about their boundaries
• Climb and move through play
• Great for motor skills

After doing my research – I was hooked!!  The Pikler Triangle was what I wanted to get my little one. Now the hard part was finding the ‘right’ one. This was more of a challenge than I anticipated, I scrolled the internet for what felt like hours and nothing really stood out to me, until I came across one on Etsy- I loved it. I was ready to press that ‘buy now’ button until I realised it was made in Europe, therefore I would be responsible for paying the import tax- not ideal.

Back to the drawing board and after more research I discovered that most Pikler Triangles are produced in Europe. So I realised I only had the options:

• Pay the import tax
• Get one personally made
• Attempt making one myself

As this was a gift for my sons first birthday the latter option seemed the most appealing,  an opportunity to personalise and make unique to us. Unfortunately, this particular project was far from my comfort zone.  So I took to Facebook and found someone who could make me a Pikler Triangle, but where I could ‘DIY’ and put my own stamp on it.

How I ‘DIY’ my Pikler Triangle 

When the Pikler Triangle arrived it looked just the same as the others I had seen- I needed to change this and I couldn’t wait. As soon as I saw the triangle I knew instantly it was the rungs I was going to paint.

The Pikler Triangle has 7 Rungs in total and I chose six fabulous bright colours to make the appearance more attractive. As this was for a one year old I thought different colours seemed like the perfect choice – fun.

All the paints I used were Johnstone’s Matt finish. The six colours I decided to use were:

• Signal Red
• Fiery Sunset
• Crushed Pineapple
• Empire Jewel
• Waterfall
• Blackcurrent Magic

I decided on these colours and the order based on the rainbow, I used the purple (Blackcurrent Magic) twice for the extra rung and to balance out the colours.

I did three coats for each colour in total, to ensure maximum covered and vibrance. I finally finished the Pikler triangle by applying a clear varnish to protect the paint.

Something simple like painting the rungs made a massive difference and the Pikler Triangle felt more special because I had helped personalise it. I was so happy with the end result!

If you like what you see, why not check out our YouTube channel Upcycle TV for different ‘Upcycles’ and ideas. It amazing what a little ‘DIY’ can do and what you can make from those old things lying around the house.

If you fancy having a go at ‘Upcycling’ and would like to have a chat, Contact Stuart, he would love to hear from you.