InFAnT ToYS

{DaY 13}

Okay, I admit it... I'm sort of avoiding plastic and painted toys for the kids. Some would say I've seriousely "drunk the kool-aid" when it comes to all-natural stuff... I say "WhO CArES!"

Anyway, putting that aside, I was more than happy to find some alternatives to the usual "made in China" toys and the fact that I could scratch a day off my project list made them ever better!

I love the links but man, were they a pain to make! I found the tutorial at Make It and Love It. I tried making them the way she recommended but it was not as easy as it looked. She recommends 8.5" strips, I found them too small so I moved to a 10.5" ring so it looped easier. I also found that the way she connected the ends of the rings to be a bit difficule too but that may be because I overstuffed the tubes. {In the future I may try not putting any stuffing in the ends of the tube and just sewing them one-on-top-of the other.} Either way, if you're interested in this one... put on some soothing music, grab yourself a cup of coffee or tea, put the kids down for a nap and remember to take several deep breathes... you may be in for some patience testing!

The ball was super simple. I've seen patterns all over the place... The Purl Bee makes beach-ball inspired ones. I printed off the pattern from Grand Revival Designs. After making the Grand Revival one, I think I would be sure to put the ends on because if you don't sew them just right, the ends can look unfinished.

The square was also really easy, I just cut a bunch of squares 4.5"x4.5" {which I found to be too big} and stuffed it with the pillow stuffing I got from Savers. It came out really lumpy which is fine because it still stays in place for Miss Mak to push at and it doesn't roll away but it's pretty ugly. I'd go for some upholstry foam in the future, maybe put a bell or shaker inside. The ball and square are very versitile.