The return of felt!
Sorry it has been a while since my last blog.
I have been busy getting my paid story basket group together, Storybasketeers. I am excited about this group as it will be a library of sort with all the story baskets I have made and will make (and where I bought the items, saving time and money for others). I will also be supporting the group members to create their own and be on hand to help in any way.
Let's get back to felt! When I did my studies in the late 90’s we made felt stories. I can’t recall if there were laminators around but know there where no home ones. I can remember covering cardboard in contact that you put on books to protect song cards and poems.
It seems felt is back in. Many have returned to it to stop waste and be plastic free. A word of warning is that if you are buying ‘cheap’ felt from $1 stores then it will be made of plastic. Wool felt is 2-3 times the price, soft and usually in craft stores.
At Christmas I re-found my love for felt. I have used it in my story baskets and especially when stuck on finding an item or feel it best suits the aesthetics and feel of the story. Peter Gossage books like How Maui slowed the sun and The fish of Māui are two of my favourites. Te ra and the waka have also been use in other invitations, small worlds and books.
I had also used them for 'spoon hoods' ( term I came up with), a finger puppet for a wooden spoon. This idea was formulated as I am not good at painting and like the idea of resources having more than one purpose. 'Spoon hoods' mean that the spoons can be used for other hoods and also in loose parts. I made the 'spoon hoods' initially for the song baby shark but they have been used for many other songs as there are a few for fish and sharks!
I also cut out circles from felt for a Kandinsky provocation. Since then they have been used as loose parts too.
Christmas this year saw me making gingerbread people, gingerbread houses, circles and shapes to decorate them with.
I recently got a cricut machine and can see this will take my felt use to the next level as it cuts with such precision and quickly. The felt piece are inexpensive but the machine was expensive. I have made a mouse for the books That’s not my teddy.... puppy .... etc. And Pete the cat and his groovy buttons.
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