Frozen Flower Cubes Sensory Play

We are ✨obsessed✨ with flower water tables, and we love using the left over flowers for frozen flower cubes! Trust me; you’ll be obsessed, too.

Four large frozen ice spheres with frozen flower parts inside (leaves, petals, and stems) sit in a clear bucket.

Frozen flower cubes are the most beautiful ice cubes you’ve ever seen

I have made these a bazillion times, and they always take my breath away.

Whenever I make these, my camera roll has way more photos and videos than I could ever use, but I just can’t stop.

They’re stunning. I have absolutely zero ability to take a normal amount of photos. These. Are. Gorgeous.

Related: Our GIANT 10-foot flower coloring banner is perfect for flower lovers!

A hand holds a large frozen ice block with flowers frozen inside, including an orange flower, a pink flower, and yellow flower petals.

Frozen flower cubes are the “get one free” in this sensory BOGO

First, we make a flower sensory table, play with it for hours and hours, and then save the petals.

With the petals that would have usually been tossed, we make frozen flower cubes and add even more hours of fun.

It’s like Buy One Flower Sensory Table, Get Frozen Flower Cubes for free.

And we use free flowers for the sensory table to begin with. This is the ultimate reusing and repurposing activity.

Looking for more ice activities for kids? We thought you might ask!

Insect Ice Excavation – Friends Art Lab
Frozen Water Bead Ice Pods – Days with Grey
Ice Sensory Bin Activity – Busy Toddler

A black and wire colander filled with flower petals and leaves sits on the ground next to 5 empty, colorful balloons.

Materials

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Flower petalsWater
Balloons – you could also make smaller cubes by using ice cube trays!
Freezer

Photo 1: a red balloon is stretched open and flowers are inside and spilling out the top.

Photo 2: a blue balloon is filled with flowers and yellow flower petals peek out the top.

Photo 3: four balloons are filled with flower petals and you see them bulging inside. A colander of flower petals sits in the background.

How to MAKE frozen flower cubes

Learn from my mistakes and do these the easiest way possible!

✅ Begin by stretching open the opening of a balloon and shoving in as many flower petals as possible.

❌ Don’t add the water before you add the flowers. I learned this the hard way. 😂

❌ Don’t push too aggressively, or you risk poking a hole in your balloon. I also learned this the hard way.

Once your balloon has plenty of petals inside, fill it with water. I filled my balloons with the hose because my kitchen doesn’t have a faucet that I can wrap my balloon around, but yours might!

After your balloons are full, freeze them overnight.

A purple balloon is stretched over the opening of a hose and filled with water. A colander with flower parts sits in the background.

How to USE frozen flower cubes

To continue with the sensory table theme, here are our two favorite ways to use these:

Floating flower cubes in a water table – fill a plastic bin with water and let these float around. Because they’re giant, they take quite a while to melt.

Excavate the flowers with tools – provide your child with tools like popsicle sticks or kid tweezers and invite them to try and get the flowers out. Tip: we also love providing kids with salt and warm water for excavations.

Flower smash – kids LOVE smashing ice, and they’ll be through the roof to break these gorgeous cubes. Give your little learners kid hammers and invite them to crush the ice to remove the flowers.

A frozen purple balloon is peeled from the ice inside revealing frozen flowers in the ice. Three other ice blocks sit in the background.

How long do frozen flower ice cubes last?

Longer than you might think!

I let these giant cubes float in the water, and about 30 minutes later, the part that was under water started to melt, and then they looked mushroom-shaped.

It’s adorable.

When we make these with the kids, they last for hours of play and exploration between opening the balloons, playing with the cubes, and playing with the petals.

They will definitely last long enough for a meaningful play session.