Wool is a wonderfully versatile craft material that can be used in so many creative ways. It’s also very child-friendly, making it ideal for simple craft projects that kids of all ages can enjoy. Here are some fun and easy wool craft ideas to try with your little ones on a rainy day or even a day when it’s too hot to play outside.
Purchasing Craft Supplies
You can pick up cheap balls of wool from a discount haberdashery store or big name craft chain like Hobbycraft. Look on sites like eBay too, as people often sell off bundles of wool cheaply. It’s OK to use some of your foster care payments to purchase craft supplies, as the payments are designed to cover everyday living costs as well as things like household bills and clothing.
Pompom Animals
Pompoms are a simple wool craft that even very young children can make. You’ll need a pompom maker, wool roving in different colours, scissors and some googly eyes. Show your child how to wrap the wool around the pompom maker, then carefully cut the wool loops to create a fluffy pompom. Let them select colours to make pompom animals like sheep, rabbits, cats or even unicorns and monsters! Glue on googly eyes to finish off each character.
Finger Knitting
Finger knitting with wool is a great way to teach basic knitting skills without needles. Have your child wrap the wool around their fingers in a simple pattern to create a tube. When it gets long enough, bind off the ends and thread some ribbon through the tube to make a colourful neck scarf or headband. Encourage them to experiment with combining different colours and textures.
Wool Mosaics
Gather some coloured wool roving, a cardboard canvas and wood glue. Show your child how to lightly tease out the roving and glue small pieces onto the cardboard to create a picture or pattern. They can make simple mosaic scenes like trees, houses and animals. As their skills improve, let them try forming the wool roving into shapes before gluing.
Needle Felting
Needle felting is a fun way for older kids to sculpt wool. Provide them with a felting needle, cushion and wool roving or unspun yarn. Show them how to gently poke the needle repeatedly into the wool to mesh the fibres together. They can sculpt simple 3D objects like flowers, animals or decorated shapes. Supervise closely as the needles are very sharp.
Wet Felting
Wet felting involves using soapy water to bond wool fibres together. Have your child lay out wool roving or unspun yarn on a bamboo mat in their desired design. Gently brush soapy water over the wool using a pastry brush. They should keep brushing until the fibres start sticking together, then carefully roll up the mat and rub to fuse. Rinse out the excess soap and leave to dry before unrolling to reveal their felted creation.
With just some wool roving or yarn, basic tools and a little guidance, you can enjoy hours of creative crafting with your kids. Wool crafts inspire imagination, develop fine motor skills and look beautiful too. Let your children unleash their creativity by making pompom critters, knitted scarves, felted flowers and more with wool.
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