What I love about this book is that it is perfect to introduce children to sewing starting around age 6. Older children can work more independently depending on their skill level. Parents can work with the children to make each project. The book is all ages and teaches crafters to sew plush monsters called Beasties and includes photos of the characters in sets. What a fun activity to do together! I know my son would love to have these creatures on his bed!
Diana was nice enough to share one of the Beastie projects excerpts with us. This little Tomte is the perfect craft to try right before Christmas since he looks like a little elf!
In Sweden this creature watches over the farmhouse at night and tidies up any leftover messes. He protects and brings good luck to the family who dwells there. In order to keep a Tomte happy, make sure there is a toasty fire and a bowl of warm porridge and butter waiting for him. An unhappy Tomte will become red in the face, make a mess of the farm, and tie your horses’ tails together.
Finished size: 5 ½ inches wide by 6 ½ inches high (including hands)
fabric:
-5 ½ x 5 inch red-and-gray-striped cotton knit
-scrap of white faux fur, felt, or fleece
felt:
-1 sheet of gray
-1 sheet of blue
-scrap of yellow
trim:
-1 pom-pom
floss:
-navy blue
thread:
red, gray
stuffing
Preparation
Cut from patterns:
From cotton knit: 2 hat shapes
From gray felt: 2 body shapes, 2 hand shapes
From blue felt: 2 shoe shapes
From yellow felt: 2 shoe shapes (you will notice that the yellow shoes are slightly larger than the blue)
From faux fur: 1 beard
Cut freehand:
From blue felt: 1 rectangular piece 1 ½ x 8 ½ inches for vest
Instructions
1. Pin hat pieces to body pieces, right sides facing in. Machine sew together.
2. Choose one of the hat/body pieces for the front. From the top measure ⅝ inch down the center of the body and mark a tiny dot for the nose. Measure ½ inch to the left and right of the dot, and mark tiny dots for where the eyes will be. Place pom-pom nose. Sew from the back side of the felt and through the back of the pom-pom, making two or three stitches to attach. Next, take three strands of embroidery floss and sew a French knot for each eye.
3. Place front hat/body piece, right side facing up, on your work surface. Place hands 1 ¼ inches down from the hat/body seam, along the sides. Hands should be pointing in toward the body with the thumbs facing down. Place the other hat/body piece, right side facing down, on top and pin. Begin from right corner and machine sew around, leaving a 2-inch opening on the bottom to turn right sides out and to stuff.
4. Turn hat/body right sides out and fill with stuffing. Sew a small whipstitch to close the opening.
5. On the blue shoes sew laces with red thread by making four cross-stitches. Place yellow shoes behind the blue ones and sew a whipstitch around to attach shoes together, leaving a small gap. Put a pinch of stuffing into shoes, sew them shut, and place shoes along the bottom seam 1 ½ inches in from the corners. Sew a small running stitch to attach.
6. Cut armholes in the felt vest rectangle: Measure 2 inches in from one end and make a fold as shown in the diagram. Cut a tiny half oval at the center of the fold. Unfold felt and you should have a small oval hole cut out. Repeat on other side. Gently bring the Tomte’s hands through armholes so the vest opening is in the front.
7. Place beard on head so eyes and nose go through opening. Sew two stitches at each corner to secure the beard.
How adorable! You can find this and many other great projects in the Beasties Book. Today, one lucky reader has the chance to win one of these great books! To enter, tell us in the comments section who your all-time favorite monster is. You have until Tuesday, December 21st at 11:59pm PT when this giveaway will end.
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53 Responses to “beasties project and book giveaway”
Any monster?
I like the abominable snowman. I always picture him all fuzzy and cute.
My favorite monster is, well, any of the ones from the book Where the Wild Things Are. Not really sure why but they are. LOL!!
The one who lives under our house! We have a crawl space that we often have to access by crawling down a ladder under the staircase. I always tell me daughter he's down there and sometimes if he is angry he will bite at my toes. But usually, he's nice. He can't help being mean sometimes. He IS a monster after all.
What a cute book! My favorite monster when I was little was Grover from Sesame Street. I LOVED the book, "The Monster at the End of This Book."
Elmo is my favorite monster because he is the only thing that can snap my daughter out of a meltdown....the second she see's him....quiet! Thank you Elmo.
My favorite monster is Elmo! I mean, really, who doesnt love Elmo?
I love Mike Wyzowski (sp?) from Monster's Inc!
byubabe14 at yahoo dot com
Hmm, it's hard to think of my favorite monster, but the one that came to mind first is Sulley from "Monsters, Inc." I just love how blue, fluffy, and sweet he actually was!
Cookie Monster is my favorite!
Love it! And our favorite monsters are the ones from "Where the Wild Things Are!"
I think Sully is the greatest!
My favorite monster is Mike Wazowski from the movie Monsters Inc. I especially love the restaurant scene with his medusa look-alike girlfriend!
I love the nice monsters from Monsters, Inc.! This would be such a fun Holiday Break project to do with my nephews :)
I love Sully from Monsters Inc! annieleec(at)yahoo(dot)com
Awww, I want a lil Tomte! I could really use the extra help around here! He's my new fave monster :)
Otherewise we're huge Elmo fans!
TGIF!
hugs, margie
My son loves monsters!! Maybe this is one craft he would be interested in! :)
Amanda
amandaandandy@Yahoo.com
Oh my goodness...we love all monsters in this house! My personal favorite is Oscar the Grouch though. There is just something about him that I can relate to and just love. He make's me smile.
This book is great! My two older girls would love it, they are so wanting to learn to sew and this would be a good starter!
my favorite monsters are the underdog, home-made, no-name monsters. the kind that come from kids imaginations and sometime make it on to paper. i LOVE those guys.
I loved all the monsters from Monsters Inc! xoxbritt1 at gmail dot com
My favourite monster is our castle ghost Felix (http://pisana-rokodelnica.blogspot.com/2010/06/grajski-strahec-feliks.html) He lives in Velenje castle.
My grandma hand-wove me a monster doll as a kid. I called it Monster. It's still my favorite.
My favorite monster was/is My Pet Monster. And now I have my very own pet Monster! (my dog:)
I love this book so much! I am going to put this on my wish list! :)
My favorite monster is Grover (yes, he's a monster).
Trudy
onlyjustine at yahoo dot com
my one year old is my favorite monster of the moment :)
My favorite is Cookie Monster.
heidikittelson at gmail dot com
My children are my favorite monsters. But I do have a soft spot for the Sesame street monsters.
My favorite monster might be the clay one I made in 5th grade. 22 years later, it still sits on my counter. :)
Why the monster at the end of this book...grover!!
The little monster in my belly that keeps kicking and punching me;)
My one year old DD would be the perfect monster! No kidding, she is adorable, but she is a hand full! My favorite of all times would be Cookie Monster. He always brings a smile on my face!
I have always loved Grover from Sesame Street. When I was little I would watch the movie "Super Grover" over and over I even had a replica of his cape that I would wear. I wore through about 5 of those VHS.
Elmo is a monster, right? He's my favorite, but probably just because my sweet Anna loves him so!
Thanks,
Shana
We have this cute little pink monster rattle that my daughter just loved as a baby, and then a few years later, we found a full sized stuffed one, and she is our favorite pink monster princess! This would be so great for me to start teaching her how to sew!
I love Sully from Monsters Inc! I love little monster creations!
My favorite monster is named "break-it" He has been my daughter's imaginary friend for the last 2 years. :)
The two of them have managed some wonderful messes together!
My favorite is Cookie Monster!!
andreahardman (at) comcast (dot) net
I would have to say my favorite monster is the Bumble from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. hvanconant@yahoo.com
My favourite monster would be a huffalump but I am not sure thats even a monster :)
hypersky5 at hotmail dot com
Oooh, that's a tough one... I guess I'd have to pick Frankenstein, just for the romantic tragedy of his story.
Hi my fave monster is Cookie monster now there's a monster after my own heart. I love cookies!!!!!! The book is sooooo cute want to make one asap.
I would have to say that my favorite monsters are the ones from Monsters, Inc. Thanks for the giveaway!
Oh, I'm going to have to go with Grover from Sesame Street. I have always loved There is a Monster at the End of This Book.
I guess cookie monster :-)
I like the loch ness monster. saragayer at msn.com
I love the green monster from Monsters, Inc. - can't remember his name!
Hugs,
Kerry
kerrykatiecakeskeb43@gmail.com
I love the Cave Troll in Lord of the Rings The Fellowship of the Ring. First the Orcs have caught him, and made him a slave. Then the Fellowship are trying to kill him, and then when he dies....he grabs his lip and looks so picked on. He is my favorite! I even have a statue of him!! ;0)
My favorite monster is the Cookie Monster. He knows what's up;)
Cookie Monster pre-healthy-veggie-diet. Seriously.
:)
C is for cookie, that's good enough for me!
Michaele
This is SO perfect! I'm getting my 7 year old her first sewing machine for Christmas!
My favorite monster is Sully from Monsters Inc.
Thanks!!
benandlaura6@msn.com
I love Animal, from The Muppets. Does he count as a monster? Ooh, and Grover of course!
Darling little creatures. I have 4 favorite monsters tromping through my house. Although, Cookie has to be my most favorite of all times. I think he instilled in me a deep love of cookies.
My favorite monster has always been Gossamer, that big red furry thing from Loony Tunes! Thanks for the giveaway!
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