How to Make a Custom Magic Tonie

Want to learn how to make a custom Magic Tonie that’s one-of-a-kind? Whether you’re trying to create the perfect bedtime storyteller, a personalized gift, or just a fun DIY project for your kids, making a custom Magic Tonie is easier than you think. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to make a custom Magic Tonie using a few different methods—from quick plug-and-play options to more advanced DIY hacks. Let’s dive in and turn your Toniebox into something truly magical.

TL;DR: 4 Ways to Make a Custom Magic Tonie

• Buy a premade custom creative one on Etsy
• Use a Magic Tonie puck and attach a toy
• Paint a blank Creative Tonie
• Extract the chip and DIY your own figure

(More details on all of these below)

What is a Magic Tonie?

A Magic Tonie is a special kind of figure used with the Toniebox. What makes it special? This isn’t a tonie character available to the masses. This is a DIY tonie, that can be any character you want. A Magic Tonie uses a creative tonie chip, which makes it unique because it can hold custom recordings. Instead of just playing pre-recorded content like other Tonies, a Magic Tonie lets you or your family record or program your own messages, favorite stories, or songs you have the MP3 for.

How Do You Make a Custom Magic Tonie?

4 options- I have these ranked from easiest to hardest.

1. Buy a premade custom tonie
2. Buy a magic tonie puck and glue a toy to it
3. Buy a creative tonie and paint it
4. Remove the chip from a creative tonie and put it in a toy or other character you make

Option 1: Buy a Premade Custom Tonie (Fastest & Easiest!)

There are several sellers that make Tonie characters that aren’t available from the tonie company. Characters like Jesus, Bluey, and Miss Rachel. You can find a lot of different unique options on etsy. These are almost all made with blank creative tonie chips that you can program yourself. Shameless plug- we sell our own designs on etsy as well, and are constantly working to make new designs, so feel free to check out our custom Magic Tonies on Etsy

Option 2: Make a Custom Tonie with a Magic Tonie Base (Puck)

We sell these, and others on Etsy sell them as well. It’s just what it sounds like. It’s essentially a round cylindrical base that already has the chip and magnets inside of it. Then you can glue whatever toy or figurine you want to that platform to make it your own personalized Tonie figure. These also have the creative Tonie chips inside of them. Extracting these chips can be hard, and has risk, as I get into below in more detail. Buying this “puck” or base takes the risk out of it for you. These are cheaper than fully made custom Tonie characters.

Option 3: Buy and Paint a Creative Tonie

If you go this route, I recommend buying one of the all white creative tonies. This gives you a lot more options, and you don’t have to worry about inconsistencies in your paint job. These can be fun for kids to paint as well. What’s nice with these- they look on brand with the tonie brand, because they’re made and sold by the tonie company. I’ve seen artists put out some really cool painted designs. My favorites were a Mario and a Ms. Rachel version I saw someone else make. That said, you’re really limited by the shape of these, in terms of what you can get one of these to look like. It’ll be in the shape of that little character. We bought several of these white ones on Amazon when they went on sale about a month ago from when I’m writing this.

Option 4: Removing a Chip From a Creative Tonie and Making Your Own

This option has a fair amount of risk. I actually broke the first chip I tried to extract from a creative tonie. That was super discouraging. The risk of breaking them is always there. I’ve gotten a lot better over time at getting them out. I put together a walkthrough of how I do it, and some tips and tricks that will increase your chances of getting the chip out in one functional piece. That said, I still occasionally break one. As someone who has DIY’d a lot of these, I can attest, its not foolproof.

Step-by-Step: How to Make a Custom Magic Tonie by Removing the Chip (Advanced)

Boil your entire creative Tonie for 8 minutes. You just take it out of the package and put it in the water. The chips are RFID, so it’s not a problem if they get wet. I usually bring water to a boil, then dump in the Tonies to make my Tonie soup.

After they’ve boiled for at least 8 minutes, you can pry off the face with a screw driver. There are 2 little rubber nubs that are kind of like a lego, securing the face to the tonie.

Don’t try to pry out the chip with a screwdriver. You’ll want to. You’ll see it right there and you’ll think you can dig it out. Don’t. That’s how you break chips. So how do you get them out? After you get the face off, I like to squish the face in between my fingers in a way that opens up the cavity that holds the chip. If the glue is soft enough, it’ll almost fall right out, or you’ll be able to gently pull it out with your fingers.

If it isn’t just popping out at this point, put the face back in the boiling water. This will soften up the glue. The other thing you’ll want to know, some creative Tonies are easier to get the chip out than others. The secret? Darker skinned creative Tonies.

This isn’t about race–it’s a heat transfer thing. Probably. My working theory is that the darker skin absorbs heat easier. Either way, from what I’ve seen, the glue softens a lot easier on the darker skinned Creatives. I’ve pulled chips out of a lot of Tonies. It’s been noticeably easier with the darker ones.

Next, when you’re putting the chips into your custom magic Tonie, the chips need to be vertical. They don’t work if they’re even a little bit at an angle. Make sure they’re aligned straight up and down.

Creative Tonie Chips Quick Facts:

• Dimensions: 11mmx3.7-4mm
• Technology: RFID
• Material: A steel core wrapped in copper wire, sawdered on one end of the cylinder.
• How its secured to the creative Tonie: A circle of a dark glue

How To Program a Creative Tonie Video Tutorial

This is a great video tutorial from the tonies company on how to program a creative tonie. Your magic custom tonie will program the exact same way. For the Tonies that we make, we put together some Tonie content ideas to help people get started. .

Check Out Our Other Creative Tonies in Our Etsy Shop!

While we’re a big fan of Tonies and the Tonie Player, we are not affiliated or connected with them in any way. Other links on our site may be affiliate links, and we may earn a commission at no extra charge to you from any qualifying purchases to help us further spread wholesome content.

Frequently Asked Questions About Magic Tonies