Hi friends, how have you been? I've been slightly M.I.A. the last few weeks; my apologies! I've been working behind the scenes on some new stuff, that I'm excited to share with you over the coming weeks and months! I've been busying myself most days with my energetic toddlers - my gosh they keep me on my toes! I've also been simultaneously weaning my older children off of the electronics/screens. Friends, can I be completely unfiltered and real here for a minute? Honestly, I'm not in love with what all of the connectivity is doing to people these days; specifically children. Even more specifically, my kids. When I started this website many moons ago, some of you may remember my involvement and endorsement of a traveling event called "The Ultimate Block Party." This movement of sorts was all about creating and environment for children that fosters creativity, critical thinking, and the incredible power of hands-on PLAY. We seem to be missing that these days. Just look at what's happening in the toy industry for a minute; I never thought I'd see a day when Toys R' Us was no more. I don't like where all of this seems to be going, friends. Not one bit! So, I'm changing it in our home. Because I can (we all can!) We've placed some pretty severe limitations on screens in our home, and we're getting back to hands-on creativity.
Embroidery and sewing is a great creative activity for kids of all ages, especially tweens and teens. It keeps idle hands and minds busy, and helps create mindfulness / an awareness of being in the moment. This DIY Unicorn tote is a great beginner project for tweens and teens, and only requires a simple back stitch for outlining (ears and unicorn horn and eyes.) This project is fairly frugal too! It rings in just under $10 (possibly less if you already have some of the supplies on-hand.)
This is the first project in our new Kids Sewing Series, here on One Savvy Mom. This series will include 30 simple sewing projects for kids of all ages. Each original embroidery / sewing project will only require a handful of simple supplies, and all of the projects in this series will be under $10. Whether you're looking to unplug your kids like we did, or you're looking for some fun ideas to keep the kids occupied this Summer, this series will offer up something fun for everyone!
Read on for the simple supply list and tutorial to make your own DIY Unicorn Tote.
What you'll need:
- A pencil
- Scissors
- A needle
- Black embroidery floss
- Fabric paint in your choice of colors for the "flower crown" and black and gold.
- A paint brush (and water for cleaning your brush)
- Felt in your choice of colors (we used scraps that we had laying around because you don't need much to make these little felt flowers.)
- A canvas tote bag (we found ours at A.C.Moore and we used a high value coupon from their website, so it rang it at about $2).
How To:
- Using your pencil, lightly draw out your unicorn horn, ears and eyes (refer to images below).
- Fill inner portions of the ears using gold fabric paint and a paint brush. Allow adequate time for drying.
- Using paint in your choice of colors and a paint brush, paint the "flower crown." Refer to images above and below. Allow adequate time for drying.
- Using felt in your choice of colors, make three felt flowers (see HERE for a simple tutorial on how to make felt flowers ). Once your felt flowers are assembled, set to the side.
- Using black embroidery floss and your needle, use a simple back-stitch and follow your pencil lines on the ears and unicorn horn and eyes/eyelashes. (see below for a step by step imagery on how-to do a simple back stitch)
- To finish your DIY Unicorn tote, affix your three felt flowers with embroidery floss and a needle. Start by bringing your needle and embroidery floss up from the inside of your tote bag, and through the center of one of your felt flowers. Stitch down through the center of the felt flower back to the inside of the canvas tote bag. Repeat with 4-5 stitches through the center of the flower, until the felt flower is firmly in place. Stitch / tie-off on the inside of the canvas tote bag. Repeat this step until all three felt flowers are affixed to your tote bag.
Pack your completed DIY Unicorn tote with your essentials, head out and about, and ENJOY!
First time sewing? Here's a simple back stitch how-to with step by step imagery:
Happy sewing, friends!
