Coffee Creamer Snowmen

Start saving your empty coffee creamer bottles now!

Let it SNOW!
      

                     Today is Snowman Day!!!
   Are you looking for a fun recycled materials project for your class?  Well here it is!

      The fifth graders have been saving plastic coffee creamers since September. Our goal today was to transform the ordinary plastic bottles into something very special, individual, and  unique. 

     Using a varied collection of ribbon, buttons, google eyes, pom poms, and who knows what else, the children go to work.

     Each and every snowman is  as individual and unique as its maker.

         When the designing is complete the students fill their snowman with candy, pencils, erasers, money, and some get a toothbrush attached to the outside.

This guy looks like he lives on Sesame Street!

         These darling snowmen will be delivered to a local food pantry.  We hope they will bring joy to the children who receive them.

          I love to do this project with my students. The children begin to understand that they can do something for someone else and have a great time. 

Enjoy the Christmas season.

Merry Christmas 
to all and to all
 a good night! 

 
Beti

Flannel Stuffies

Flannel Stuffies Pocket Pals

          I love to wander through the flannel aisles at JoAnns!   The colors and patterns are so much fun.    Cars, animals, dolls, monsters, spacemen, holiday designs,  I could go on and on.

              I found a flannel fabric with polar bears holding fish and wearing hats and cozy scarfs.    How Cute!     The tallest bears are about 4 1/2 inches tall and about 2 inches wide. Some are smaller about 2 1/2 inches tall and just as cute. 

      First,   the bears were cut apart so they could be sewn.   Each bear piece was placed on felt and sewn around the figure.   Stuffing was adding and then the open edge was sewn together.   Finally, the edges were cut with pinking shears.

 
        This was an easy little project.  Hopefully the grandkids will enjoy playing with these new soft friends.

Beti 

Super Hero Peg Dolls

Super Heros

 

Super Heroes are always a favorite for both boys and girls.   They could easily be used for a creative writing assignment to encourage creative ideas.   Creating a scenario with any one or all the Super Heroes would be so much fun!  You child could also be encouraged to create a background and some buildings for the characters to live, work, and save the universe. 

      These guys would be a fun project for the dog days of summer before the kids head back to school.

      I really enjoy making manipulative toys for my grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.  As  I was browsing Pinterest pins, I came across Super Hero peg dolls.  So I thought I would give them a try.  The bright colors on Superman's and Robin's outfits really stand out.  But Batman really flies with his black felt bat wing cape.   Their colorful felt capes are a must and definitely add to the complete character.

     This time the tall flat clothes pins were used for these brave fellows. Felt was added after all the painting was complete and the final shellac coating was dry.

       I will definitely add these to my collection of peg dolls which includes 

girl scouts, bunnies, and  a families of  Michigan State and Arizona State fans.  They can be whipped up in a short amount of time if you need a quick gift.

   

      
       These bunnies were so much fun to make. Each has its own friendly personality with different colored ears, flowers in their hair, and handsome bow ties.

              
         This little Michigan State fan family has an Altoid tin carrying case house. Each person is a different height and have varied eye colors.

     I hope you enjoy looking at these cute little faces as much as I enjoyed making them.

Beti

Ice Cream Cones

  I scream,
you scream, we all scream  for  
ice cream!

   What child doesn't like ice cream? Of course I wanted to make an ice cream play set for my granddaughters imaginary play. While shopping at JoAnn Fabrics, I ran across this darling piece of flannel material with sparkling ice cream cones. Perfect!  Of course I bought a yard!

   
       I hope you can see the little sparkles on the delicious ice cream. I think the sparkles make the ice cream so inviting!  The smallest cones are about 2 1/4 inches tall , while the tall four dip cones are about 3 1/2 inches.  The perfect size for little hands to feed to a favorite doll or friendly stuffed animal. There are 18 different varieties, some with sugar cones and some with cake cones. Some cones are soft serve and some are scooped. Of course don't forget the sprinkles or the cherry on top!  

     First, I cut four of each cone. I wanted to make two sets.
The material was matched wrong sides together, zig zagged  stitched, and trimmed. As  each cone came to life,  I smiled and knew they would be enjoyed and played with. Each was cuter than the next.  No sharp edges for my little ones to get hurt. 
                   Just soft ice cream fun.

     Using Altoid tins, a piece of felt was glued to the lids with tacky glue.  Then some left over felt ice cream was glued to the felt.   Now we have a little storage case for all of our ice cream. 

COMPARE AND CONTRAST
     Even though all the cones are different, you can still have your child find       similarities. 
  * Find all the cones with a cherry on top.
  * Find all the cones that have one scoop if ice cream.
  * Find all the cones with blue ice cream. 

      These little ice cream cones and their tin carrying cases were so much fun to make. You don't have to be a great seamstress to make something like this.  Just the energy to cut, match , and sew.  I'm sure your little one would be happy to help in the matching process before you do the sewing. Get your kids involved in any project,  and they will feel more connected when it is done. Hopefully, they will have ownership and pride in their new toy and want to keep it all together and not lose any of the pieces.

     I do hope that I have inspired you to make a simple toy for a child in your life to play with.  Nothing fancy, just hours of imaginative play. 

   Please leave a comment.  I'd love to read your thoughts.

Enjoy this beautiful ICE CREAM day!

Beti   

Little Blue Bunny

Hello Blue Bunny! 

                Bunnies are so sweet and cuddly.  I needed a quick Easter gift last week.  So,  I looked in my stash of material scraps and found this blue check cotton material.  I cut a square about 8 x 8 inches.  Then a quick hem was sewn around the edges.

        A basting stitch was made along the green lines. White thread was used, so that is why I placed the yarn on the fabric where the basting was done.

        When the basting thread was pulled to gather the material the  bunny's head and ears take shape. 

      Stuffing is added to form in the head first.  Finally the body is stuffed and sewn shut.  

         I added a pom pom for a tail and a soft ribbon around his neck.  Fabric paint was used for the eyes.  This little bunny was given to a 16 month old. 
Just the right size for little hands to hold and cuddle.


       This was a quick and easy gift for any child.  I'm sure you could make one larger if you so desired.  

     Here is a link to another post.  In this post I made a similar bunny only knitted as seen below.
http://betikempa1.blogspot.com/2017/04/knitted-bunny.html 

   

Happy Sewing!  

Beti

Bunny Finger Puppets

Make way for Bunnies!

         Bunnies are 
        so much fun! 
       Since Spring and Easter are on the way, I thought I would make some finger puppet bunnies for my nieces and nephews to place in their Easter baskets. 

            These little guys are made from scrap felt and embroidery floss.  They are 2 1/2 to 3 inches tall, depending on the length of their ears. Each one is different from the others because I don't used a pattern. Their facial expressions give each a different personality.

            Each little bunny has his or her own little tin box house or bed to snuggle in at night.  Of course they need some carrots to munch on when hungry.

       If you have any extra felt around your house, give these little furry friends a try. This might be a good project for some beginner sewers before Easter. 

       Have fun waiting for Spring to come. 

Beti  

Girl Scout Peg Dolls

Hello Girl Scouts!

        During the winter into early spring the Girl Scouts come out of their meetings and are ready to sell their famous Girl Scout cookies. How can any reasonable person not want to buy those delicious little cookies. The cookie sales fund troop activities for the girls. I remember selling Girl Scout cookies many years ago.

        Recently, my  two nieces sent me sent me an email asking if we would like to buy cookies. The problem is that they live in New York and we live in Michigan. I knew we would be traveling to New York, so we would get the cookies sooner or later. 

        When looking on Pinterest, I noticed Girl Scout Peg Dolls.  They were so cute with smiles on their little faces. I have recently started working on peg dolls made from clothes pins.  So, these Girl Scouts would be my next project.
My idea was that when we pick up the cookies, I can give the girls each a peg doll set resembling themselves. One brunette and one blonde peg doll. They each have a white blouse, green shirt or shorts, and a sash with badges.  Their white blouse is kind of hard to see because the skin tone is very light. I guess I should have done a little something around the collar to make it stand out. Oh well, I don't think the girls will mind.

     Each little Girl Scout will have their own little tin box for a bed. A small, fluffy green felt blanket will keep each one nice and cozy.  The little sets would not be complete without some tiny felt rectangles.  The rectangles look like small soft pillows on a miniature bed. 

         Now, if you use your imagination, like all girls do, these  colorful rectangles will be the perfect size to represent the boxes of Girl Scout cookies for this little Girl Scout to sell! 

    This could be a recycling activity for your Girl Scout to try. Altoid tins and scrap felt can always be recycled into something fun and useful.
       
    If you have a Girl Scout in your family or neighborhood, be sure to buy a box or two of cookies this year.  It really is a good cause.  Scouting gives girls the confidence needed to become strong independent women.

 

Beti

 

Girls' Bathroom Beautification

           
      Butterflies 
     and Flowers
 
     Would this made you  smile and feel good when you walked into the girls' bathroom?  That was our intent with our Bathroom Beautification.

   Today I am linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It.

Here is the Link....   www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com

        Before  the beginning of the school year, I though it would be fun to "beautify" the bathrooms at our school.  So we had a "little contest" to see which bathroom in the school could be the cutest.  I know it is quite hard to make a school bathroom look cute, but we tried. My good friend Dawn, who teaches 2nd grade just next to my 5th grade room, took on the challenge with me.  Since the 5th, 2nd, and 1st graders share a bathroom we worked together. 

  
    This is the view when you enter the girls bathroom.  Dawn had made and laminated these butterflies many years ago.  We thought they would be  nice, bright, and happy.  

      Dawn also had these stars in her classroom decorating stash. The words were added to made the girls believe in themselves. Some helpful students were around school and they made some little butterflies hanging above the window. You can see a pink butterfly on the right side of the picture. They seem to fly a bit when the window is open and a breeze comes in.
     Some cute stickers were added to the stall doors.  

      Unfortunately, there was no prize in our contest, but we did have fun improving the bathrooms of our school a little bit.

    I encourage all teachers and schools to do this type of project. It could make a difference to someone you least expect!

     Have a WONDERFUL DAY! 

Beti