How to make felt fish for counting

Help your kids to count and to recognize the colors with some colorful fish. You can make a quiet book page with them or a felt board and you can put as many as you want. This will be a fun way to learn something. The kids learn easily if they can touch the object and move them, if they can feel the textures and play with something real. 

You need: colorful felt for fish (the colors you want), ribbon, Velcro, a light blue felt - size A5, green felt for the weeds and dark blue felt for the wave, black thread for eyes, assorted thread for the other items, stuffing.

How to make: Download and print the pattern Fish pattern JPG format or Fish pattern PDF format. I put here the jpg and the PDF format too because you can not modify the PDF format, but you can enlarge the jpg format.

Cut the fish - 2 pieces for every fish. I make 5 fish with blue, yellow, orange, purple and pink, but if you want what color you want. Sew a little piece of Velcro on the back. 

Using a black thread, sew an eye - make a french knot for the eye.

Prepare the ribbon - make 2 knots at the ends, burn it a little to prevent unweaving. The ribbon could be 15 cm.

Sew the both parts of the fish using blanket stitch.

Stuff lightly.

Place one end of the ribbon inside the fish and sew the fish and the ribbon together. 

Do the same for the others.

The weeds - Cut some green felt for them - free form.

Sew them on the blue felt board.

Sew the ends of the ribbon on the felt board, together as a bouquet.

Place the wave (could be a stone if you want ) to hide the ends and sew it going around.

Your felt board is done. With five fish or more.

For a neat aspect, sew the felt board all around, using blanket stitches.

This felt board is a page from my 10 pages quiet book and you can see and buy it in My Etsy Shop

Ema

How to make a ladybug pocket from felt

Here it is my tutorial for making a felt ladybug pocket. You can use it for a quiet book, for a felt board or just as a toy. The kids can practice using the zipper, can count the dots and can hide something in the pocket. Make a silly story about a ladybug, read the Grouchy ladybug by Eric Carle, invent a song, talk about the life cycle of a ladybug, about their food and their habits. 

What you need: green, black and red felt, a zipper, black and red thread, a pair of scissors. The green felt is for sewing the ladybug on it.

How to make it:
The body of the ladybug - Cut a circle as big as you want and according to your zipper. My circle is 15 cm in diameter.

Fold the circle to see the half.

Cut on the middle but not the entire circle. Leave 0.5 - 1 cm on the top and on the bottom too.

Pin the zipper.

This is the back.

If the zipper is too long, cut the bottom and secure it by sewing.

Sew the zipper and the edges.

Sew some small black circles on the body.

The head - cut a circle - 6 cm. Sew some white eyes with 2 black dots.

Place the head under the body. Sew the head.

After you sew the head, sew 2 antennas - make a long line and a french knot on the top.

If you want, you can sew a smiley mouth.

Sew the body using red thread.

The ladybug is done. What do you want to keep inside?

Best,
Ema 

Made by Kids Custom Doll

Here it is the story of another custom doll. 

     

The kid's picture was one made with chalkboard on the ground. For this reason it was challenge to choose the right colors. I have to change the picture to obtain a clear one. 

Do you pay attention at details when you make a personalized item? I do. Yes, it is important. Every detail in the kid's picture must be in the right place.

This time it was difficult to make the face. I chosen to make the eyes with felt and to sew with black thread the eyes lashes. I wanted to sew the mouth too, but it looked strange. So I make the mouth from felt too.  

When I make a toy after a picture, I try to keep the proportion. It is very important too. This doll has 24 cm. The hands looks a little big weird because they are so big, but these are the proportion. 

The mother who order this cute doll asked me to sew on the back a name and a date. Maybe it is the kid's name, I didn't ask. Maybe she wants to keep this doll as a memory, because the kids use to draw so beautiful at some ages, and their pictures look so cute, that you want to keep them forever. 

If you want a personalized doll for your kid or just for you, as a birthday gift for a child or for a grandmother too, order one in My Etsy Shop  Send me the picture and I will try to make an unique toy. 

Ema

Activity felt board - a huge board for kindergarten

This was a challenge. A kindergarten asked me to make a huge board to hang on the wall. I made a huge one 2 x 1,9 meters.

It was a pleasure for me to make it and a challenge too. It is not so difficult to sew a huge board. it is difficult to find the perfect activities to put on it. 

I sewed by hand every tiny piece. 

And some stuffed animals and birds.

A sheep with pom pom for touching and feeling the texture.

A clock with movable arms.

The tree has birds and snaps. Count from 1 to ten, snap the birds, make pairs by color.

Play tic tac toe with circles.

Weave the horse tail and hair.

Make a pizza and talk about fractions. Place the pizza parts inside the basket.

Count from 1 to 10 and arrange the numbers.

Farm animals. Sing Old McDonald. Hide the duck, the pig and the cow in the bushes.

Apple tree with 10 red apples. Use hook and eyes to hang on them.

Long, long caterpillar with ABC's. Each circle has a letter and Velcro on the back.

Talk about the weather and the seasons. Pull the sun rays, move the rain drops.

How is the weather? Is it warm or cold? Hot or chilly?

Match the colors with the flowers and the buttons, practice how to close the buttons. 

This is my huge activity felt board. Sew by hand, carefully and with attention for details. if you want one, please visit My Etshy Shop - Giant Montessori Wall Board

Best,

Ema

Cute personalized toy

Kids can imagine strange and beautiful things. A toy could be something else everyday. I received a new challenge with a picture for a toy that is ... a panda bear with a butterfly head and a cat tail. I have to admit that drawing is so nice and original! It has perfect proportions and the right colors.

I try to make the toy to look exactly like the drawing. I know it is important for kids.

In time, I found out that this kind of toy could have multiple purposes:

- a toy for kids, of course

-but a gift for mom or grandmother too because they always want to keep in their secret drawer something from their kids

-a present for a birthday or a present for no occasion

-a gift for dads

-a memory toy...

If you want a toy made after your kid's drawing, make one. Available in My Etsy Shop .

Best,
Ema