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I’m not usually a very crafty person. I would like to be, but I just haven’t gone there yet and figure I have enough things to occupy my time without adding crafts to the mix too. ;)
However, in the spirit of the No Plastic Holiday Challenge (which means no gifts with plastic, not refraining from buying using plastic i.e. your credit cards, although that’s a good idea too), I’m forcing myself to get crafty. I’ve come across more cute homemade kid present ideas on blogs lately than I can recall, but I’ve settled on a few that I want to give a try.
The first is this homemade play pizza set made out of felt. No sewing involved, which is a definite plus in my book. Even though I have my mom’s old sewing machine, I have no idea how to thread it. I want to make two of these - one for each kid.
Photo courtesy of: Pink and Green Mama
The next thing that I want to try making is this Jolly Little Postal Worker set. This one requires some sewing, but I think I could do it by hand pretty easily. Ava loves to play “mail,” so I think she’d get a kick out of this and I’m sure Julian would be happy to join in on the fun. It’s not made out of felt in the instructions, but I’m enjoying working with felt and think that’s probably what I will use. Photo courtesy of: Craft Pad
That’s all I have planned so far for the kids, but I’m extending my craftiness to include some family member gifts too. I got the idea to make sachets from my friend Julie (who has yet to blog about it or I’d link to her post *nudge, nudge*). Basically, I’m sewing (by hand) the 
person’s first initial on one of two small pieces of felt, then taking two small squares of felt and sewing them together with yarn and putting a loop of ribbon at the top (in case the recipient wants to hang it instead of put it in a drawer). Then the sachets will be stuffed with wool (if I can find a local place to buy some) that is scented with essential oils. I chose to use lavender and sweet orange.
Ava is really big on sewing these days (thank you, Waldorf preschool) and will be able to do a little of the stitching (we use thicker needles so she’s less apt to poke herself), and I think Julian will get in on the stuffing part. I like that they can get involved in the gift making this way. I made a test sachet tonight for Ava - pictured at left - and stuffed it with cotton balls, because I was desperate and do not yet have any wool. It’s not perfect, but I thought it turned out pretty cute. The nice thing is it was quick and easy to make and if I can get the kids involved in the process, it will make the little gifts that much more meaningful to the recipient. And now as I sit here looking at this sachet, I’m thinking we might make some felt ornaments too. Same process, but we won’t have to scent the wool. Cool! :)
So those are my upcoming craft projects. Between the crafts and the leadership role I’ve taken on (with a few others) for the urban hen movement (we’re working on a petition and will be hosting a public educational urban hen meeting in a couple weeks), I’m going to have a very busy December.
How about you? Do you have any craft projects you are currently working on? Care to share links? I’m always amazed at the things other people come up with and I could seriously read craft blogs all day. Ya know, in my spare time. ;)
Stumble it!
Crafting pizza, mail, and sachets out of felt! | Crunchy Domestic … | availabl.com says:
[...] Crafting pizza, mail, and sachets out of felt! | Crunchy Domestic … [...]
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:27 am
Half Pint Pixie says:
I am busy sewing a basket full of felt food for littlepixie. It wouldn’t fall under your no-plastic challenge though, as the felt is made from recycled plastic as I don’t use wool felt. But it is great fun to do and I think she will absolutely love the results (well I hope she does!). I’m finding that even though I started with patterns I am getting much better at freehand designs, I made an avocado last night! I’m posting weekly updates of my progess so that helps keep me motivated! Here are some pics of my progress so far :)
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:52 am
Half Pint Pixie says:
oops.. hit submit too soon. Also meant to say I love that postal set, it is so cute!
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:56 am
Angi Herbison says:
Love the pizza idea! I’m doing hooded towels, robes, sweatpants, and aprons with a pot holder and a reuseable grocery tote to match.
December 2nd, 2008 at 11:10 am
Candes says:
LOVE the pizza idea. I was going to buy a wooden puzzle pizza but this one looks better.
Cute ideas.
As a kid I LOVED huge boxes. My brother and I decorated ours like a rocket and glued sheets w/ drawn on buttons and screens and scenes. We had a blast!
December 2nd, 2008 at 11:19 am
Kelsie says:
I’m doing cloth dinner napkins, reusable grocery bags, rice-filled foot warmers, and reusable makeup remover pads (for my mom). I’m so excited to be hand-making my gifts this year!! That pizza is too cute. :)
December 2nd, 2008 at 12:01 pm
pink ribbon items | Digg hot tags says:
[...] Vote Crafting pizza, mail, and sachets out of felt! [...]
December 2nd, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Summer says:
Felt is so cheap to get, I’ve got a ton of it in my craft cabinet. A lot of stores also sell eco-felt, it’s made from recycled plastic bottles. Love it!
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Cheleste says:
Hi! Three cheers for your site! I had six kids–the last two home births; and as far as going green, I lived off the grid for ten years in a cob house I built myself. Now I’ve written a book. Here’s a no-plastic gift idea: my ebook doesn’t even use paper. Check it out: “It’s Not Easy To Be A Love Goddess” available on http://www.eloquentbooks.com/ItsNotEasyToBeALoveGoddess.html
Make sure you only send it to friends who don’t mind some graphic sexual content.
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:18 pm
Penny says:
The Sew Mama Sew blog has some lovely homemade gift tutorials… though some do involve some sewing as you might have guessed ;) http://sewmamasew.com/blog2
And the make it from scratch carnival has some good stuff too
http://gottalittlespacetofill.blogspot.com/2008/12/make-it-from-scratch-carnival.html
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:51 pm
katie says:
Hi there!
I love the felt pizza and the mail bags - I am definitely going to give those a try (although I REALLY am not a seamstress).
I’ve been busy lately crafting a flannel board and play pieces for my two year old:
http://dundeewriter.blogspot.com/2008/11/flannel-board-fun.html
and
http://dundeewriter.blogspot.com/2008/11/finished-flannel-board.html
I’ve done the majority of my holiday shopping either through Etsy for unique handmade items, or Amazon for books, games, and puzzles.
Thanks for the great post!
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:17 pm
Condo Blues says:
So far, I know that I’m making dog treats and braided fleece chew toys for friends & family with dogs. I’m not sure what I’m doing for the humans yet. Either homemade bodyscrubs or bath salts in decorated and repurposed small salsa jars as stocking stuffers.
December 2nd, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Sommer-Green and Clean Mom says:
How much fun. How great Ava is sewing and how fun. It sounds like her preschool is teaching her some great life long skills. I wish I could sew.
December 3rd, 2008 at 6:35 am
Use Recycled Felt For Crafts : Wired For Noise says:
[...] to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!The other day Amy posted at Crunchy Domestic Goddess about creating toys out of felt. It’s a great idea, you can make nearly anything out of felt. From pretend food to bags, felt [...]
December 4th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Cool and (mostly) eco-friendly holiday crafts | Crunchy Domestic Goddess says:
[...] holiday crafts, I thought, “Oh, this could be fun!” I’ve been getting a little more crafty myself lately and have been really digging the craft blogs. However, in light of my No Plastic Holiday [...]
December 5th, 2008 at 12:01 am
Billie says:
What I am trying to do at the last minute…
I bought a bed/bath play station for dolls at a thrift store for my step-daughter. I bought some foam and material and made a mattress w/cover, fitted sheet, flat sheet, fleece blanket, pillow w/case and a quilt made from left over pieces of her quilt. I also made her a play quilt from scraps of another quilt. Total cost: 18$
For my son, I hope that I have enough left over material from the matching dinosaur shirts I made him and Papa to make him (and maybe my honey) matching hats. Total cost: 6$ for interfacing
My mom and my honey are getting Tshirts with homemade transfers courtesy of the budding artist in our family. I am scanning in his drawings then printing them onto to special paper that then sticks onto the shirts. Cost: not cheap
I am trying to borrow a bear pattern from a co-worker and might make bears from minkie with their names embroidered on it. This is if I discover that I have time and not going into the hospital. Cost: 15$ if I can borrow the pattern
December 5th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Green SAHM » Blog Archive » Sunday Links 12-7-08 says:
[...] Crafting pizza, mail, and sachets out of felt! - This got me to thinking that I could have my daughter make her presents for her cousins this year. She was asking just a couple weeks ago about learning to sew. [...]
December 7th, 2008 at 10:16 am
No Plastic Holiday Challenge check-in | Crunchy Domestic Goddess says:
[...] wooden toys for the kids at a local craft show that I’m very pleased with. I also made them felt pizzas and they are getting lots of books, in addition to a wooden play kitchen from Costco, and a few [...]
December 21st, 2008 at 3:05 pm