DIY Network

Felt Four or five fabulous functions for felt From "Creative Juice" episode DCRJ-412

(Continued from page 1)

Keep children occupied on long road trips with a travel book that combines a little felt, some buttons, ribbons, and snaps, and lots of imagination.

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Kids’ Felt Travel Book

Materials:

3-ring binder
zipper binder pouch
felt rectangles, 2 per page
5/8" grommets, 3 per page and as embellishments
small scissors
grommet setting tool
self-healing mat
decorative scissors
Fabri-Tac Glue
scissors
1 piece of 3-hole punched paper
marker
buttons
lacing
ribbon
felt scraps
rhinestones
beads
charms
permanent markers
snaps
snap setter

1. Glue two rectangles of felt together (to create one page) and let dry (figure A).

2. Lay a sheet of 3-hole paper over each felt page and mark the position of the holes with a marker. Use a small pair of scissors to make a very small snip where each grommet will be attached (figure B).

Figure A

Figure B

3. Push the male piece of the grommet through the hole, flip the page over and insert the female piece of the grommet over the male (figure C. Attach the grommet with a grommet setter and hammer. Repeat for each grommet hole.

4. Next, cut around the edges of the page with decorative scissors (figure D).

Figure C

Figure D

5. Repeat steps 1-4 for each page.

6. To make a buttons-and-snaps page, cut two small identical panels of felt and attach two grommets to each panel to make a "lacing section." Place in the desired location on the page (figure E).

7. Cut another felt shape for the "snap" section. Using a purchased snap kit, attach the male piece of the snap to the top of the shape, using a snap setter (figure F). Attach the female piece of the snap at the appropriate position on the page by cutting a small hole, pushing the piece through to the front and securing in place with the snap setter. Snap the felt shape to the page.

Figure E

Figure F

8. Cut yet another felt shape for the "button" section. Slice a small hole in the shape for a buttonhole (figure G). Use a pen to mark where the button should be stitched; stitch the button using a needle and thread (figure H). Button the felt piece to the page.

Figure G

Figure H

9. Use Fabri-Tac glue to attach the outside edges of the grommet-laced panel to the bottom of the snap panel and one side of the button panel to the page (figure I). Allow the glue to dry.

10. When the page is dry, add decorative stitching such as whipstitching, where the panels attach to the page and lace the grommets with narrow ribbon (figure J).

Figure I

Figure J

Additional Ideas for Decorating Pages

• Seek-and-find page: This is a great activity for road trips. Make cut-outs of road signs, buildings, cars, animals, trucks, etc. Use craft glue to attach them to the page. Let the kids look for them during long car trips.

• Alphabet game: Cut out each letter of the alphabet and attach to a page. Let the family look for the letters on buildings and signs while travelling down the road.

• Tick-tack-toe: Cut strips of felt and glue in a crisscross pattern to another piece of felt. Cut X and O shapes for the game pieces. Store game pieces in a zippered pouch.

• Lacing: Cut out a felt shoe and attach mini-grommets to the top of the shoe. Add a shoelace and let little ones practice tying their shoes.

• Getting dressed: Cut out a small felt person and attach to a page. Next, cut out all sorts of clothing, shoes, hats and accessories (store clothing in a zippered pouch). Children will be entertained for hours dressing their felt friend.

• Counting: Cut out age-appropriate numbers and/or mathematical symbols for counting and adding.

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