Eggcelent Felt Fun

Our felt eggs thus far...

Easter is right around the corner! There are so many great activities to do at Easter time as we prep for this very special religious holiday. Ironically, Lachlan has been picking up his toddler Bible from the shelf a lot more this week so we have been reading quite a few stories about Jesus. I have to laugh when my husband reads him these incredible shorten versions of the stories and says, "these stories just don't make any sense!" To an adult they are so simplistic with no beginning or end really just a little clip from the middle. You don't know how someone got somewhere or where they went after! Lachlan particularly likes looking at the Garden of Eden because there are a lot of animals and of course the snake which his his favourite. He just doesn't get that the snake isn't the 'good guy' in the story!

As you might know, we've been getting pretty crafty in our household latley; especially in the area of felting. Certainly not a felt master by any means but we enjoy experimenting and getting ideas from the real pros--you know, the ones that have these amazing blogs showcasing all their felting creations. I am truly inspired by them!

Fun splashing in the soapy water

Adding a bit more soap

It always seems that whenever there are holiday festivities for children there is candy involved. We don't do candy in our house as my hubby is in the teeth business.(Well, the candy we do 'do' I have to sneak and eat in secret, shoving the wrappers to the bottom of the bin hoping they go unnoticed!) For a lot of families, holiday treats are easy: they just pick up a bag of chocolate eggs and a few chocolate bunnies and the are good to go. We certainly aren't hard core sweet nazis so we don't mind a little piece of chocolate on a special occasion but we certainly don't want to hand over a whole basket full of sugar and caffeine to our toddler. Really, doesn't that just sound crazy on so many levels? You are really asking for it! Plus, I've seen so many children go into melt down when presented with their very own basket of sweets only to be told they can only have one piece now and the rest will have to be saved for later. I mean, REALLY?? How many children whose eyes are aglow over their basket of goodies are going to agree so easily and say, "Of course, mom. It is better to pace myself..."...Uh...not many! It is like dangling a smelly, juicy sausage in front of a dog and setting it on the table and telling him he can't have it until tomorrow. Way too much temptation! I would suggest just keeping the sweets to a minimum. If you have extras, store them so your child doesn't know you have them and take them out as a nice surprise when they are allowed to have a special treat. You just might avoid a lot of begging and sneaking around.

Rolling egg on bamboo mat

So on to my point...I really wanted to make something fun for Lachlan this year for his basket. We aren't into too many sweets and I'm not big on plastic eggs so I wanted to avoid filling his basket with those items. My cousin sent me the most wonderful link: www.weefolkart.com , which has so many amazing Steiner inspired craft projects you'll fill up a whole 'to do' craft list with them. There was an idea for felt eggs and I thought that it would be just perfect for Lachlan. I had made him some felt balls which have been his favourite around the house and I thought he'd like these as well. We also went to our local Show/Fair last weekend where he saw baby chicks, roosters and ducks; some which laid eggs so he's been quite fascinated with the whole idea. You can go on to the above website for directions on how to felt. It is very easy. I decided to make these eggs using some Styrofoam eggs I picked up from the $2 shop. I used those eggs as my core and then felted around them. Yesterday morning Lachlan and I drove out to our local wool works farm to buy some more roving and dyed wool. I asked Lachlan what colours he wanted and he was very set on pink and black. He was delighted to see how many shades there were to choose from. We left with an overflowing bag of various wool colours and another bag of carded wool. We of course could not leave until we said hello and good-bye to the sheep.

I really like felting because it is something very creative to do with your children that exercise a whole host of developmental skills. Mostly, it works on sensory development; the texture of wool, splashing of water, slippery soap. Children can feel how the texture of the wool changes, starting very soft and fluffy, turning into a slippery ball while the soap suds form and then eventually as the friction does its work, the wool tightens up and soon you have a beautifully formed creation. It also helps with motor skill as you roll the ball in your hands and on the bamboo mat. Another important lesson that is taught is sequencing as we follow a series of steps in a particular order to achieve the desired result. All of these wonderful things are learned by the child while at the same time having heaps of fun. Better yet, at the end of this learning session the child has a wonderful work of art which he has created!

Showing off one of his marble eggs

Lachlan and I are still in the process of making our eggs for Easter but I thought I'd share a few that we have finished thus far in hopes to inspire you to get creative with your little ones. Whether it is felting, cutting or drawing eggs I hope you'll find a way to share in the Easter fun!

Getting Crafty

In February, Lachlan and I joined a Steiner playgroup. Although I don't plan on sending Lachlan to our local Steiner school, the playgroup has been invaluable for both Lachlan and me. The wonderful thing about Steiner playgroups, is that the focus is completely on the child and on the parent to be fully present with the child during the hours of playgroup. The environment is relaxing (though the lavender oil helps this!) and all of the toys and materials are made from natural fibers. The children are encouraged to do a lot of work with their hands; they knead their own bio-dynamic-organic brown bread rolls which are baked for morning tea time. There is also an organic vegetable garden where the children can pick fresh veggies and herbs to go with their bread. My favourite time has been craft where the parents begin the project of making a toy for their children. Older children can help in the process and if the children are too young, the adult makes the toy on their own. All of the chidlren whether they assist or not enjoy watching their parents at work and are very excited when they can hold the finished project and explore all of its endless capabilities.

The playgroup has been such a blessing for me. I have been able to interact with other like-minded parents; those who the use of natural materials, organics, sustainability and who also actively work at having a very connected relationship with their children. I have always loved to use my creative thinking abilities when I've had the time but I haven't done a lot of toy-making when it comes to craft; most of my craft involves household decoration or entertaining table pieces. The thought of making something for Lachlan that he might treasure always sounded appealing but I suppose I never really new where to start or found my inspiration. Well....now I am inspired! Ever since our new playgroup, I have been crafting away all of my free time! I've been taking all the techniques I've learned at our weekly playgroups and expanding upon them at home. So far I have felted, sewed and even done some woodwork. I am addicted!

Felt Balls

Thanks to my dear cousin, whose daughter attends a Steiner school in the U.S. I have been exposed to numerous blogs involving Steiner-inspired arts and crafts. It has been a lot of fun reading through them and gaining more motivation to make something special for Lachlan. I first started out making felt balls. I made a small one and then also a larger one with a bell inside that jingles. I have been amazed at how much Lachlan loves these simple felt balls. He has made up his own games with them and we have both had a blast chasing them around the house. Since the are felt, I don't have to worry about anyone getting hurt or anything breaking.

My next project was to make a felt shape from a cookie cutter. This was something very easy and that Lachlan could help me with as well. It was time consuming but we were both pleased with the end result--a steam train! Of course this made my inspiring train engineer very happy as trains are all the talk in our house! I added some detail to the train with a blanket-stitch around the edge.

Sporting his crown

Our little Prince

Earlier this week, I decided to make a crown for Lachlan using some left over felt I had from a Thanksgiving project where I made turkey finger puppets--okay, so I guess I do craft a few kids things now and again...I made this crown not thinking Lachlan would actually wear it as he doesn't typically like to put things on his head; however I was motivated to practice my blanket-stitching and a crown is easy to do. I pulled out some brown felt and stitched it into a crown and dug up some old buttons to act as jewels. To my surprise, Lachlan has just loved this crown! He loves to wear it while playing at home and for the last two nights he has insisted on sleeping with it. A true sleeping beauty, I tell you!

Wooden Sail Boat

At play group my current projects have been a felted fish, heart ornament and most recently completed, a wooden sail boat. Lachlan was particularly excited about the sail boat. He's enjoyed playing with it in the bathtub and also in our pretend ocean that he and I made out of a blue towel spread out on the living room floor. We through in some sea shells, sea animals and our felt fish (of course!). Lachlan also came up with the idea of building a ferry so that his matchbox cars could go across the sea.

Noelle's Doll

Lastly, I have just finished this evening my first doll! I'm very excited because I wanted to buy a similar doll for Lachlan when he was a bub but never did. Now I have hand-made one for baby Noelle who is due in just 3 weeks time. It is a very simple, teething blanket doll; inspired by some blogs I've read and by the Kathe Kruse collection of organic teething dolls which I have been interested in.I was a bit nervous to tackle it, even though it is a simple doll. Sewing is something that I've just been recently doing and I'm not that great but I'm slowly getting the hang of it and with each project I learn something new from my mistakes which makes the next goal I tackle a little bit more successful than the previous.

I hope you enjoy the pics of my latest crafting adventures but most importantly I post them because I hope they will inspire you to make something special for your child. There is no greater gift than watching your little one play with something you made from love. They don't care about the imperfections, they just treasure what was made especially for them from someone they love so dearly.