Something I’ve wanted to start doing with Gracen for a long time now is fun hands-on activities based on our very favourite books. We looove reading and because we have a limited book collection and limited access to outside libraries here in Kuwait, our favourites get read over and over and over again. What I’m saying is – getting a little more out of them with a corresponding activity is a very good thing {and would be even if we had a huge home library}.
For the last few days, Miss G has really been enjoying the new set-up she has happening at her creative table (for a little bit of background info on the whole idea behind her creative table, click here). While it would probably be more appropriate to call this a beading and lacing station, Gracen saw it and immediately cheered, “A sewing station!” To her, needles equal sewing, so a sewing station it is.
The sewing station consists of things we mainly already had on hand… Two types of beads (pony beads and meltable beads like these), a couple of plastic yarn needles strung with wool, a few steel yarn needles strung with embroidery floss, some Wikki Sticks…
And some homemade lacing cards (simply made by cutting shapes out of card stock and cardboard, and punching holes around the edges).
When Grae originally discovered her new sewing materials, she was by far most excited about the needles and thread, and got to beading right away…
After a couple of days, she had completed not only a bracelet for herself (I helped with the tying of course), but one for her Mama too!
After that, she begun working on the lacing cards. Right now she’s working on a lacing circle that has beads woven throughout. She works on it a little each day, moving onto something else when she feels like it and returning when the urge returns.
Something that often happens when it comes to her creative table {and sensory play} is that Grae adds to the materials as she goes. These mini cupcake liners were all her idea. 
This is her most recently completed project… A bracelet for Papa! He couldn’t be left out, now could he?
While searching for a basic hat pattern for our Waldo and Wenda costumes, I came across these ridiculously cute hat patterns on FleeceFun.com. They are super simple to put together (trust me – I took the one mandatory sewing class in grade eight and turned on a sewing machine again for the first time just a couple of months ago) and they’re free! Naturally, Miss G had to be in on the fleece hat action, and she requested I make her a bear hat. I’d say she makes a pretty sweet little polar bear, wouldn’t you?
I just may have to make a few more to add to her tickle trunk…
♥