| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| JudyBlueEyes |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 1:45:45 PM
Okay, my Farmgirl Friends, I need your help!. I have a family with 3 girls and one boy. The boy is the youngest, 5-1/2 years old. Two years ago I made muslin dolls for the 3 girls and just because the doll body worked perfectly, I painted one as Spiderman for Josh, since he loves Spiderman. I would like to make the Cabin Fever Dolls for the 3 girls this year for Christmas, but am at a loss as to a "similar" gift to make for the boy. I just can't think of anything. I could just make quilts for each of them, but I really wanted to try the Cabin Fever Dolls and having a deadline (Dec. 25) will make sure that I get them made.
Sooooo....any ideas on what to make for a very active 5 year old? They live in San Diego, so knitting something wouldn't go over too big. I may just have to break down and make the quilts...Thanks for your help! Judy
The Rooster crows, but the Hen lays the egg. ~ Texas Proverb |
| 12 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| JudyBlueEyes |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 10:53:10 AM
THANK YOU, GIRLFRIENDS! I love these ideas...and I think I will go with Tina's idea of a farmer doll, since the girls will get "prim" style dolls from Frannie's pattern, and the farmer doll will be boy-ish and sort of match. I may be nutz but I like to keep things similar for each kid, inasmuch as possible. I realize this will be a challenge as his oldest sister is 11 this year and so I may just end up with girl things and a boy thing, but for the now, this will work for me. I also love the idea of the bean bags, and will file that away for future use. And I think the matchbox car "village" cloth is a goodie also. I can start collecting matchbox cars at thrift stores and garage sales. And the book idea can be useful for all of them also - I could take a book and somehow embellish it with crafts - stamps, buttons, etc. I will ponder on that one. Well, now I just have to get sewing! Thanks again, and happy holidays planning to all! Judy
The Rooster crows, but the Hen lays the egg. ~ Texas Proverb |
| abbasgurl |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 08:55:16 AM
Eren,
I didn't have a pattern, but what bramble described is pretty much the same way I did ours. We may have used something different for poles-seems like hubby whittled them down to size. I also used canvas, painted on the designs (we did each boy's handprint), and added a zipper front. Zig-zag would be easier though.
Our Tee Pee is still in the basement somewhere-17 years old! I'll see if I can find it and take a picture.
I used to buy neat things from the "Hearthsong" catalog for my boys. It was a great place to get ideas when my budget was limited too! If you can sew a bit, costumes go over really well! I have done knights, cowboys, spacemen, a monk (lol), and lots of others.
Julie mentioned felt. I did a fun "quiet" book for each of my boys too. Choose an overall theme or do one theme on each page. Then add pockets, zippers, buttons and hide little suprises throughout the book. You can do scenes and put characters in the different pockets to go with the scene on that page. These were great for car rides, church, and times we had to wait somewhere. I also gave my kids modeling beezwax in a variety of colors to mold little things while we waited. They loved this. Kept them busy, it's clean, and small enough to carry in mom's purse. A very inexpensive gift too.
So many things I hadn't thought of in years! 
Rhonda
I'm a one girl revolution. |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 08:39:22 AM
Bean bags always go over really big with little boys too. My boy's have drawn cousins names who are 5 and 4 and we are doing a box of bean bags for the 4 year old and rubber band guns for the 5 year old. All the kids we know have marshmellow guns from other years.heehee.
You can make a target to throw into (like a clown's mouth or something funnier) from a box and poster board ..my boys are excited to get on the project.
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
| willowtreecreek |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 08:07:10 AM
I've seen a lot of cute toys on ETSY.com made from felt. Little Monsters and animals and stuff. VERY CUTE THINGS! You can look at those and get some ideas.
Jewelry, art, baskets, etc.
www.willowtreecreek.com |
| bramble |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 07:19:32 AM
I have all boys to gift as well and have made over the years: astronaut suits, cowboy vests w/ chaps and straw hats, an igloo out of milk jugs, copper pipe bubble wands, marble bags with marbles and a very big teepee that the kids camped out in for years. All I did was make a triangle the size I would like one panel to be and sewed a rod pocket betweem each panel (I did 6 but you could do 4) cut from the bottom up in the center of one panel and zig zag the opening for the door. I used canvas and painted native American symbols all over it but for a lightweight version you could use ripstop which is fairly reasonable and comes in many widths. We used dowels for the poles and my husband drilled them at the top so they could be laced together. A few upholstery tacks along each rod pocket and you have a teepee. If you use the ripstop you can iron on designs using fusible web before you sew it all together. Good luck,
boys are fun once you start to get past what is in the stores! Oh! Don't forget Jenny's marshmallow guns! My 13 year old is making them as his gift to his cousins...and they are fun!
with a happy heart |
| vintagechica |
Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 07:00:03 AM
Rhonda...did you do the teepee from a pattern. That is something I think my boys would really dig! And surely it would be fairly easy??? Would you mind sharing?
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A sure way to avoid housework...live outdoors.
www.vintagechica.typepad.com |
| abbasgurl |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 8:28:46 PM
With three boys here I really like Tina's idea! I think it would go over BIG.
Something I sewed for my guys was a tent & sleeping bags for their GI Joe dolls. I also did an Indian Tee Pee big enough for two. Both were super easy projects.
I'm a one girl revolution. |
| vintagechica |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 8:07:02 PM
Boys are tough...I have 3. I have a pattern for an amish boy doll that I have tweeked here and there an have made a farmer version, a fireman version and an astronaut version. Are you wanting to stick to a doll? Or is it OK to do something else? For some more ideas, check this link out...I can spend hours there.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/crafts-for-boys/pool/
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A sure way to avoid housework...live outdoors.
www.vintagechica.typepad.com |
| daffodil dreamer |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 7:26:04 PM
Hi Judy,
Little boys are hard to craft for!! My little boy is getting a Thomas the Tank Engine cross stitch picture and a cushion made from a Case tractor panel, and then probably Matchbox cars (which he can't get enough of!)
How about a tool belt/pouch? If you are handy at sewing, then maybe you could copy one of the adult mens' ones (go and check them out at the hardware). My son loves 'helping' when Daddy is doing anything with tools.
Good luck,
Jayne |
| Tina Michelle |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 6:02:07 PM
oh and make the doll look like him. same eye color, same hair color and you could make a label on the bag that says "Josh's Farm"
~Seize the Day! Live, Love, Laugh~ |
| Tina Michelle |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 6:00:45 PM
how about making overalls on the doll and adding a farm boy hat? you could get those small straw hats at craft stores.
and then to accompany make a farm themed fabric tote bag(check walmart for that, they did have some farm themed prints) and some small felt animals,(easy to cut out shapes from cookie cutters and then add embroidered details). then he could have his own farm themed play set in a bag, easy to tote with him when you travel in the car.
~Seize the Day! Live, Love, Laugh~ |
| doglady |
Posted - Nov 28 2006 : 4:25:23 PM
Hi Judith,
How about sewing up one of those pre-printed panels that have towns on them so that he can play & drive all of his little matchbox cars on. My boys went nuts over those and it entertained them for many hours. I think Jo-Ann Fabrics and Wal Mart have the panels and K Mart & Wal Mart has the area rug for about $10.
Tina
The dogs own the house but the people pay the mortgage!
www.kennelcreations.com |
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