You might be looking for a way to incorporate yarn into your craft projects, and the great news is that yarn can be used for many things besides crochet and knitting. You can employ yarn in all sorts of different ways to bring texture and color to many kinds of crafts.Both of these easy yarn crafts can be done with the help of children, so they make perfect wet-day activities for any family.
Yarn-Wrapped Letter
Source: https://www.catchmyparty.com/blog/diy-how-to-make-a-yarn-wrapped-ombre-monogrammed-letterKids love spelling their names and anything that represents their name can provide excitement, so yarn-wrapped letters are a great way to get them engaged. They are also nice and simple and don’t require a lot in the way of materials!You can make lots of letters and spell out different names, or just one letter. These make lovely gifts, too!
Materials
A yarn letter will need:
- Stiff cardboard
- Yarn in multiple colors
- Decorative items (e.g. diamantes, gems)
- Scissors
- Glue
- Pegs
- A pencil
- A ruler
- A craft knife
- A cutting board
Step 1: Draw Your Letter Onto Card
First, lay your card out flat and draw the letter. Make it nice and big and clear. You could print a template out from the internet if you’re struggling to get it as neat as you would like it to be.If you are going to do multiple letters, it’s best to write them all out at once; this will make it easier to match the size and style. Draw yourself some guidelines to represent the top, bottom, and midpoints of your letters so that you can get the sizes right.
Step 2: Cut Out The Letters
Put your cardboard letter on top of your cutting board and use a craft knife to go around the edges. Using a craft knife will give you a much better finish for the letters than using a pair of scissors, which are more likely to bend the edges.Take your time and go slowly. It’s best to do this part without your child around so that you can focus and you don’t need to worry about small fingers near sharp knives.
Step 3: Wrap The Letters
Decide what colors you’re going to use and how you want the letter to look. If you want to try out different effects, peg the end of the yarn to the letter and wind it approximately into position before you start sticking anything. You can arrange most of the letter before you have to commit to any part.Let your child help you with this part and ask what they think. If you’re using multiple colors, which color should go at the top? Where should the gem sit?When you’re happy with the design, put a dot of glue on the back of your letter, at either the top or the bottom. Peg the end of the yarn in place, and begin to carefully wind the yarn around and around the letter.Don’t pull so tight that you bend the card, but wrap in neat lines. Put dots of glue on the card as you wrap and use your pegs to make sure that the yarn doesn’t suddenly slip or fall off the letter.
Step 4: Decorate
You can decorate the letter however you like. Get your child to help you pick some little stick-on pieces, such as net flowers, pearls, beads, stars, or anything else. You can also leave parts of the card uncovered and either stick pretty paper on or even draw on top of it.It often looks great to use a thinner yarn for some bits of the letter, too, so think about the textures and effect you’re making. You can create something really beautiful for your child’s room with minimal expense or difficulty.
Step 5: Hang The Letter (Optional)
You will probably want to hang the letter up when it’s finished. To do this, simply punch a hole in the top and use a similar color yarn or a clear thread to suspend it. If you have made your child’s full name, you will probably want to hang the letters in an arc. To do this, cut a long piece of thread and hang it between two tacks. Next, hang the letters from it, adjusting the lengths of the threads they hang from if necessary to get a nice effect.You’ll soon have a magazine-worthy look with only a few hours and scrap materials!You can also make these letters from wood if you would like them to be more substantial; if you do, they will probably look better standing on a bookshelf, rather than hanging.
Dream Catcher
Source: https://www.handmadecharlotte.com/diy-leaf-catcher/Dream catchers are a magical thing to add to any childhood, and they are very easy to make with your child.
Materials
For this project, you’re going to need:
- Colorful yarn
- An embroidery hoop
- Decorations such as feathers, old earrings, glow-in-the-dark stars, etc.
- Scissors
- Glue
- Peg
Step 1: Wrap The Dream Catcher
Get your child to choose which color they would like first, and then use a dot of glue and a peg to secure this on one edge of the embroidery hoop. Help your child carefully wind the yarn around the dreamcatcher, crisscrossing it back and forth over itself.You can change color at any point by just tying off the first color and then repeating the process. When your child is happy with the look, add a few more spots of glue to make sure the yarn is secure, and move on to the next step.
Step 2: Decorate The Dream Catcher
Help your child think about what decorations they would like to add. Do they want shiny buttons? Would they like skeleton leaves? What sort of dreams would they like the dream catcher to catch?They can add tiny mascots (erasers are good) of their favorite animals or a bit of glittery thread for a dash of magic. Dangly earrings that have lost their pair will also look lovely on a dream catcher, and they are very easy to add. Feathers are another popular choice, which can be collected from the garden or purchased in all sorts of pretty colors. Some people also like to write wishes or good memories on scraps of paper and add these to the dream catcher.
Step 3: Hang It Up
Once the dream catcher is complete, you need to knot a loop of yarn over the top, and then tie a long loop so that it can hang down freely. Add a tack above your child’s window or over their bed and suspend the dream catcher.Make sure it won’t drop down on them in the night, and then your child can look forward to some wonderful dreams under their very own handmade dream catcher.
Conclusion
Yarn is very versatile and you can mix and match any color combinations you like, adding in other decorations to make it prettier, or keeping it very simple. It is a wonderful way to decorate your room or a child’s room, and it’s also an inexpensive material to play around with.Both of these crafts can be done as a way to use up yarn scraps, so if you knit or crochet and end up with lots of little ends, this is a perfect solution. Choose some nice colors and get busy turning them into something beautiful!
Comments
0 comments
