Pinterest Challenge Day 26: Buckle Toy

Oliver loves fastening buckles. He snaps all of the buckles on Jo's various seats--her infant chair, rocking bassinet, and car seat--whenever she's not in them. When I saw a pin for a buckle toy, I knew Oliver would love it. I pinned it to save the instructions, and I ordered buckles off of Ebay for very cheap.

Here's the pin:
http://pinterest.com/pin/216383957066039307/

All I did was buy a piece of thick fabric (muslin), and I cut it out in a large rectangle. I folded it in half, that way it would have a back, and I wouldn't have to worry about cutting two smaller rectangles the same size. I wove ribbon and belts through the various buckles and pinned them where I wanted them to go.

Then, I hand sewed some buttons (I found monkey buttons!) on the piece. My mom helped me design and sew some fabric pieces with button holes in them to attach to the piece, so the buttons had something to fasten into. This way, Oliver could practice fastening buttons, too (He can't do buttons yet).

We sewed along the edges to secure the buckles in place. Then, right sides together, we sewed up the two sides together. The bottom was closed because of the fold. We flipped the toy right-side out, and then we top-stitched the top to close it off. My mom sewed around the entire thing to finish it, and it was done!

It probably took about 4 hours of work all together. This is the end product:

It's going to go in Oliver's Easter basket in a few weeks. I think he'll love it!