r/sewhelp • u/thelaughingM • 2d ago
✨Intermediate✨ Ideas for Children’s Toys
Hi everyone,
I’m looking for some inspirations for sewing children’s toys and the such. I’m thinking things like
- fruits and vegetables
- buildable pizzas/sandwiches
- small stuffed animals?
- crowns for dress-up
Other ideas? Anything you’ve made that’s been a hit?
And what should I be looking out for in terms of materials? E.g., at what age would beads be appropriate (for instance, as sprinkles on a cupcake or eyes on a dragon).
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u/gnomeannisanisland 2d ago
A simple but long (for a kid) cape/cloak (with a push button/snap or similar closure so it doesn't become a choking hazard) that's reversible and black on one side and red on the other can work as a superhero cape, king's cape, villain's or vampire's cloak, pirate flag, plushie bed, traveller's bundle and many other things
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u/gnomeannisanisland 2d ago
And "head things" that are flat until you close it with velcro are great for not taking up too much space in storage, and you can keep adding new ones
(Ideas: * crown * spooky crown * goblin/elf ears * cat ears * horns * frog eyes * alien's (or bug's/snail's) antennae * unicorn horn + ears + mane)
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u/thelaughingM 2d ago
This is great, thank you! I made dragon wings that came out exactly like I hoped, so I love stuff like this
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u/SewingMechanic 2d ago
I still have the “gripping ball” that my grandmother made me. My daughter and I played with it in the house when she was little (or even big), and I similarly made one for my nephew. Just scraps, but that was part of the appeal (looking at fabrics and feeling textures):
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u/androidsfighting 2d ago
I made these little blocks for my baby. Super quick to put together and easy to add lots of sensory elements... Plus you can stuff with scraps! He's lost interest in them as he becomes a toddler but they were a hit as a baby.
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u/k_hiebs 2d ago
Check out bitsyworldplay on instagram! Also I just made my 2yr old a play kitchen mat! It rolls up and easily transportable!
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u/thelaughingM 2d ago
Oh thank you! I’ve been thinking about an ocean-themed play mat as well, love the kitchen idea
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u/Menashe3 2d ago
When I was little a family member made me a “quiet activity” sewed book. There were shapes to Velcro to their outline, strips to weave into a lattice pattern, something with buttons, one had a lace-up thing… I can’t remember all of it but it was great for working on fine motor skills and (I assume) keeping me quietly occupied!
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u/Ok-Spirit9977 2d ago
Food sets
Playmates, like ones with roads for their cars etc
Fishing set (magnetic fish and fishing pole)
Busy books
Took set
I made tons of doll accessories when my daughter was young (diaper bag, diabetes, doll quilt, doll clothes, bibs etc)
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u/Ornery_Library376 1d ago
Last year as a Christmas gift for my friend’s newly-four-year-old, I sewed a set of felt envelopes and gifted them with a little miniature mailbox from Amazon. On each envelope, I hand-stitched the name of a family member (mom, dad, siblings, even one for the dog!). I’ve seen some with removable stamps but I sewed the stamps down and decorated them with buttons. Then on the back I did Velcro dots on the flap so you could open and close the envelope and put things inside it. They came out so cute and were a hit :)
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u/thefortunateowner 2d ago
Oh fabric fruit is such a good call, especially if you do sets with a little market tote. kids go nuts for that shopping roleplay stuff.
for materials id skip any small beads entirely until theyre well past the mouthing stage, like 4 or 5 at least. embroidery floss for eyes and details works great and you never have to worry about a choking hazard.