I LOVE WOOL FELT.
There are so many good reasons why every craft blog has that statement on it somewhere.
It’s a great material for kids to work with. It’s easier to cut (at least for my kids, and with a good pair of scissors) than other fabrics. It comes in every color you can imagine. Since it doesn’t fray or rip, so you can cut pieces from even your tiniest scraps and make your own designs and embellishments on any scale. It holds a shape well – just cutting a shape out can make a finished product. It holds stitches well, even pretty close to the edges or done by new to stitching hands. No fray means edges don’t need to be finished off with hems. All this makes it fantastic for any skill level of sewer or crafter or bored kid.
I have made wool felt barrettes (with stitching) a bunch in the past. Last week I came across half of a bag of alligator clips hiding in my craft stash, so was thinking about making some clips with my girls. I showed them some inspiration ideas online, like The Purl Bee’s Rose Barrettes. I’ve done these before using contrasting colors on the petals and leaves giving a more fun and casual look, and they come out quick and professional. I put together a small Wool Felt Pinterest Board with some other ideas we looked at, as well as a few other wool felt ideas that have been sitting in my bookmarks.
Now that my girls are the elegant ages of 6 and 8, they advised me that they were too mature for those barrettes and too impatient for hand stitching. I’ve had them glue barrettes before when friends are over and they want to make accessories for their dolls. And another fantastic thing about wool felt is that is glues well. This a fine project for those of you who don’t want to sew, or your kids don’t want your needles and thread near them while they work on it, or to throw out on the table at a scout meeting or play date. The kids can make wearable things for themselves, their dolls/stuffed animals, friends and teams, gifts for grandparents, etc. You could choose a theme – a holiday, “best friends,” team pride, etc.
My kids used a hot glue gun for the barrettes this time. This takes practice, supervision and a couple burnt fingers. After we ran out of alligator clips and the kids were still in a creating mode, we used pin backings, Super Strength Glue Dots, and added in card stock with the felt. The Glue Dots worked fantastically.
Easy Glue Accessories
Supplies
- Hair clips/barrettes, alligator clips, pin backs, or magnets
- Decorative Items: Wool Felt, beads, buttons, sequins, ribbon, photographs, card stock, stickers.
- Adhesive – hot glue, glue dots, tacky glue, fabric glue.
Directions
1. Cover alligator clips or barrettes with ribbon or cut piece of felt and glue down.
2. Design and decorate.
