About a month ago I googled "gifts for 1 year olds", just to see if I could get any new ideas for Grant for Christmas. He really doesn't need any toys and, as I've witnessed with his birthday, many of the toys he receives he merely throws them around rather than playing with them. Of course him being 1 I guess he really doesn't know how to play with them. Either way I refused to go all out, spend a fortune, and watch as he tossed aside the nice new toy to play with the wrapping paper or box it came in.
One thing I did find while doing my google search were bean bags. I'll be honest when I saw this gift idea I thought "what in the world would little kids do with a set of bean bags?" However as I have watched my son he throws everything, EVERYTHING. Drives me crazy some days, and other days I sit back and laugh. So bean bags will be perfect for him. Something small enough he can carry around and light enough he can chuck it across the room without breaking anything.
First I cut 10 squares (I did have a picture of this and it somehow got erased so you will just have to imagine it), 5 out of an old pair of my husband's jeans and 5 from white and black checkered fabric I had in my stash. The size you cut them to will depend on how large you want your bean bags to be. I cut mine 4inches x 4inches.
I decided to applique the letters of Grant's name onto his bags. First I printed bold block letters onto computer paper at the size I needed them to fit nicely on the bags. The red fabric I used for the letters is actually broadcloth so you can see through it, which made tracing the letters onto the fabric easy. I used After tracing each of the letters onto the fabric I cut them out and put Heat and Bond on the backs.
I ironed them onto each of the jean pieces.
Then used my sewing machine to applique around each of the letters.
Pin the squares right sides together making sure to mark where your opening will be.
Stitch around leaving an opening approximately 1.5inches wide for turning. Clip your corners making sure not to cut into the seems.
Turn the bean bags right side out.
Grab a bag of beans or rice. I used pinto beans, oh how I hate pinto beans, and fill your bags.
stitch the opening closed. I double stitched mine just to make extra sure the seems wouldn't pop open and the beans become a choking hazard.
Now your finished. 5 little bean bags for my little man.
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