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| Washcloth Girl Tortoise |
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| Books are sold online at Barnes and Noble and Amazon! |
See the links below!
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| Washcloth Boy Tortoise |
TerryGami books are available in
the UK, Canada, Australia, and Europe, too!
the UK, Canada, Australia, and Europe, too!
Links:
EtsyWelcome to washcloth crafts!
When starting out with washcloth crafts, why not share the cost with a friends interested in the craft, too?
The initial purchases for the craft can be split two ways and still give each person the ability to make many critters. Here is a list of things that can be easily cut in half or split up:
Washcloths -- packs of 18 cloths -- cost $4
Different colors of sticky-back foam board, plain or glittered -- (a half of a board will go a very, very long way) -- cost $.99 or $1.50 a piece
Ribbon or Craft Trim -- (or use a skein of yarn you have on hand) -- cost $.99 or $2
Non-toxic and non-flammable fabric glue -- (you will need this even when using sticky- back variety of foam board in order for it to stick to the material)-- put half of it in a small, air tight jar -- $8 -$9
Look for the small packages of thread, which come in multiple colors at dollar stores -- (or check to see if you have the colors you need on hand) -- $1- $2
There are all kinds of rubber bands to choose from and you can even use the bracelet crazy bands to add a little more fun to a TerryGami party. Lately I have been using the tiny rubber bands used for hair, which come in packages of 500 for about $2. Also, the elastics for hair, which come in multiple colors, can be used, too. I like to match the rubber bands to the cloth when possible.
Of course, it is always best to pick the critters you want to make before you go to the store.
The glue and foam board will last forever because not much is required for each critter. As you work, keep the glue covered so it won't dry up (very important especially with fabric glue). As far as needles go, I really like daring or yarn needles the best, but plastic needles do work well, too.
I also recommend the tubs of hole punches that have a variety of shapes, for example, small, medium and large round, and star and heart shapes are used the most. The small round hole punches can be used for buttons on a doll's clothing and for wing decorations on the angels or tooth fairies. It is nice to have a variety on hand.
The different hole punches make it easy to turn a girl critter into a boy and vice versa. See the tortoise above. Just use hearts for the girl critters, and circles and triangles for the boy critters. Note that the back of the tortoise can be decorated, and, also, that the tortoise can be a turtle, with a little modification of the legs, as shown in the instructions.
Craft hole punches used to be sold separately for $2 a piece, so sometimes you can just buy the one you need. Also, not all of the paper hole punches will work on foam board because not a lot of space is provided to slide the foam board into position, look before you buy, if you plan to use foam board. Of course, there are many options for the facial features and decorations to use instead of foam board, like acrylic gems, felt, buttons, etc.
Children's Fiskars scissors work really well for cutting multiple layers of washcloths and usually cost about $3 in discount department stores or online. While most TerryGami designs do not require any cutting of the terrycloth, the kids will need scissors to cut the thread. Blunt-end scissors are best when working with children.
What is nice about the initial cost of washcloth crafts is that most of the supplies seem to last almost forever. The only thing you will need to keep in constant supply are washcloths, and this is relatively inexpensive to do. One package of washcloths can make 18 one-cloth projects, nine two-cloth, and six three-cloth projects. If there is a color in the pack you do not use, you can use it for cleaning, dusting, bathing, or washing the car.
Quite often, too, the things you need are already in your craft cupboard!
Happy Crafting!
~Terry
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