One of my favorite gifts I made was this hopscotch rug for my nephews.
They live in Utah, and in the winter time there's so much snow that it's impossible to play these kinds of fun outdoor games. Now they can play it on rainy days, snow days, or swelteringly hot days, all within the comfort and safety of their home and the weather outside won't matter.
They live in Utah, and in the winter time there's so much snow that it's impossible to play these kinds of fun outdoor games. Now they can play it on rainy days, snow days, or swelteringly hot days, all within the comfort and safety of their home and the weather outside won't matter.
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| The boys opening it up on Christmas Day. |
But let me tell you, it was a beast to make! There is just so much fabric to it.
I found this nice and heavy orangey-brown upholstery fabric for the base of it, and then I decided to use grey broadcloth for the lines and to bind the edges. I went with bright green fleece for the numbers.
I made each square 16 inches by 12 inches, measuring from the outside edges of the squares. The grey lines themselves are about 1 inch wide.
I wish I had gotten 3 full yards of the upholstery fabric, but I only got 2.5, so the numbered squares only go up to 9 instead of 10. Oh well!
I made 6 little round bean bags to use with it, each a different color.
I even included a little pocket in one corner of the rug to keep the instructions and bean bags.
On one side of the instructions I wrote the rules to the game (there are so many different ways to play--I just picked the most basic, common way). On the other side I wrote a brief history of hopscotch and the care instructions for the rug.
I love how it turned out! But it was a lot of tedious work. If I ever make one to sell, it will be a little on the expensive side.
My nephews played it a couple of days after Christmas. At one point, one of them said, "This is actually really fun!" I guess they thought it was going to be boring. It's great for teaching them coordination and to use up some of that pent-up energy that kids tend to have.
What other games would you like to see made into a rug like this?
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this is such a great gift!
ReplyDeleteyep, it is awesome! thanks so much for it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic gift idea! It looks as though the boys really enjoyed it too!
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking up :)
Sarah @ A Cat-Like Curiosity
Popping over from Super Handmade Sundays - this is a brilliant idea!
ReplyDeleteHelen x
Super cute!
ReplyDeleteI would say if you wanted to go one up, then have a game(s) on the flip side of the rug. Games like tic-tac-toe or checkers. That way they can flip over the rug after they are done with hopscotch and play another game on the back. Or even just a few squares of different colors in a line around the rug (like a board game design) so they can invent their own board game and play as the pieces. You could make basic rules such as green = do an exercise (5 jumping jacks, 2 push ups, etc..) blue = sing a silly song, red = say something you like about your sibling. Then they can chance up the rules as they see fit and create their own game.