Friday, January 28, 2011

Travel Felt Play mat


Before Christmas, when I actually thought I'd make my kids mostly homemade gifts, I came across this idea to make roll up play mats.  Coincidentally, Hazel was getting 7 plastic Hello Kitty dolls for Christmas and she already had two.  The two came in a plastic travel case/play house (which broke days before I got this idea).  I didn't have enough time to make it for Christmas, but I decided it would be worth it to make one before our big trip home to give her something to do on the plane.

First, I cut out six squares of fabric measuring 11" by 11" (3 pieces of felt, 3 pieces of cotton fabric). I sewed three pieces together to make the back (between two of them, I added a piece of bag strap to make a handle).  I sewed on a Hello Kitty button of course to keep it closed when she's not using it.

The remaining three pieces were for the front play area.  I decided to make a bedroom, a playground, and an eating area for her kitties to play in.  I alternated between fabric and felt on the front and then the opposite for the backside.  First, I cut out squares of fabric and sewed them on to make the beds (perfect use for cute scraps you just can't bear to part with).  Then, I used felt for the table and playground.  Once all the "accessories" were sewn onto the pieces, I sewed them together:
Then, since her original plastic box had a few pieces of kitty furniture that we couldn't part with, on the backing pieces, I made a pocket.  First, on the back of the felt, I sewed on a zipper, with its front facing the back of the felt backing:

Then, I cut out another piece of felt and sewed it on over the zipper, it was a rectangle shape and not even edges, who cares, felt doesn't fray and Hazel will never know.
I turned it over and just cut out a tiny rectangle of fabric between the stitches, to expose the zipper:

Look inside:

Then, I cut out a piece of scrap very thin quilt batting the size of the three squares sewn together and laid it down.  I put the front piece on top of it, facing up, then I put the backing on, with it facing the front of the top:

I pinned a hair tie in the center of one of the side edges (to use as a latch to close it).  I pinned all the edges down and sewed around the whole thing, leaving a four inch opening.

After sewing, I pulled the whole thing right side out through the opening, then pinned it closed, and sewed around the edges to give it a more finished look.

Nine little kitties all snug in their beds:

Waiting for their dinner:

Swinging on the swing:

Hanging out at the park, we have a slide, hopscotch, a bench to hang out, a pond, a trampoline, a tree for picnicking under, and a swing.

And, maybe the zipper pocket is her favorite part of "Kittyland".
It all folds up nicely, holds the toys, and is a great size for a small suitcase, or for bringing with you when you need to go somewhere where you need something to keep a little person busy.

All rolled up and ready to go:

5 comments:

  1. seriously? i think this is the most genius of your posts yet. but then, i grew up in the 80's with my own collection of Hello Kitties. When we come, maybe we can do something for Max and Owen's cars!!

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  2. wait til you see today's post Lillie, I'm way ahead of you ;)

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  3. impressive as always!

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  4. It's now 2014 and I'm seeing this for the first time? Wow! Such a creative idea...my Granddaughter will love it and her Birthday is just around the corner! Thank you so much for sharing your creative genius!

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