Last week, just before school ended, I squeezed in one last project with Violet and Henry's preschool class. We made some scrappy fabric bowls for the kids to give to their Dads on Father's Day.
Here's what you need:
fabric strips cut to about 1"-2" wide
fabric squares about 4"x 4"
paint brushes, foam brushes work the best but regular brushes work too, it just takes longer
bowls covered in plastic wrap for your mold
Mod Podge
I covered the floor in craft paper to start. Then poured a small amount of Mod Podge into an old plastic container for a few children to share.
The class was instructed to place their bowls face down on the floor in front of them and then each painted the glue all over the outside of their bowl. Next, they placed one square, with the right side facing down, onto the bottom of the bowl and painted it down onto the bowl with the Mod Podge. After the square was completely covered with glue they cover the rest of the bowl with strips facing right sides down and painted those down and smoothed them out with glue.
Next, each child repeated the steps: square first, followed by strips, but this time with right sides facing out, giving the bowl an inside and an outside.
It was a messy process. Have some damp towels nearby to use to wipe the excess glue off of their hands. But, it worked out just fine. We had two adults and 8 kids.
After the bowls were covered completely in fabric we let them dry for approximately 24 hours.
Once dry, remove fabric bowls from the bowls you were using as your mold and then peel away the plastic wrap.
(*note*, if bowls sit to dry too long it makes removing the plastic wrap a little more difficult, but not impossible. It is best to remove when they are still slightly damp, but not wet.)
We wrapped each of the bowls up in tissue paper and each child took them home on their last day to give on Father's Day.
Violet and Henry were so excited to give Daddy all of his handmade gifts! The bowls are perfect as a catchall for keys, money, or anything else that just happened to be in Daddy's pockets...
And, as it turns out, the one that I made with the class as an example happens to be perfect as my new thread catching bowl!
These were a ton of fun to make for kids and adults alike. Plus they use up scraps, which is always a bonus! And, they are useful too!
All together that was three preschool projects this year, felted soaps, hand drawn bags and these bowls.
And, a few others from years past, clothespin people, comet balls, and snow globes and yarn wrapped stars.
I always have so much fun helping out and making with the class and I hope they do too.
