play in the kitchen!

Recently my love for all things hand made has spilled over into making things for my children! It’s so satisfying to see my kids lovingly play with a toy or blanket that I have crafted for them. I also love that not only does it allow for me to have a creative outlet, but in turn my boys’ creativity is sparked!

My almost 3 year old (eeeek can’t believe that) LOVES cooking. He has helped me in the kitchen since he was little and sometimes gets a little too “up in my kitchen.” So last week I broke down and bought a second hand mini play kitchen. I had been telling myself I was going to save for a wooden one, or design one myself and have my hubby craft it for me. (as he too is very handy) However, with our current pace of life, that is just not happening. So, with $15 I have purchased my son hours of pretend play time, and a bit of freedom for myself to not be my son’s constant playmate. I ask, “why did I not do this sooner?”

So last night my creative juices were flowing (as I had come home with a few thrifted items) BUT I was also tired, and wanted to enjoy some time with my hubby. So, I remembered some felt I had (green and red- perfect!) and decided to google a pattern for felt strawberries. Felted food has been popping up everywhere, but does come with a bit of a price tag due to the fact that much of it is lovingly hand made. When I mix my love for handmade, play things, and “I can make that” syndrome, it equals speedy felt food maker. Where I find the time to do this, I don’t know. One thing I do know, is that making felt food is a perfect substitute for knitting (if you happen to be the world’s worst knitter and prefer a bit more of an “instant gratification” type feeling, like me.) So last night, while enjoying “Secretariat” I made some strawberries. This morning, after presenting them to E, I went to the fabric store at 9:30 am to get more felt, and have since added 2 pancakes, 3 blueberries, a banana slice and an almost finished piece of bread to the collection! FUN! E has been toting his berries around since the am, and has been asking “what are you making next?” Love this guy.

When you look online you can find a plethera of “felt food” results. I found a base of some of the things I thought E would enjoy, and went from there. I decided on the following sets- strawberries, pancakes, blueberries, banana slices, bread, eggs, pizza (with sauce and toppings which I will make in 4 sections so that it can be served as pieces) and cookies. I bought all the felt I needed for these sets for under $7- so, definitely this is a very cost effective toy! That is my start! I will share with you the great strawberry tutorial I found here. Hopefully this can get you started, and you can keep going from there.

Materials needed are:

• felt in desired colors
• colored thread
• sharp scissors or exacto
• batting for stuffing
• floss type thread for details (ie. seeds on strawberries)

I chose to hand sew my items thus far, because I didn’t feel like pulling out my machine, and most of it is hand sewing anyways. A simple blanket stitch works nicely for most edges- and I think that the not perfect, handmade feel is what gives play felt food it’s appeal! I will continue to post my little creations, because lets face it, there may be many!!