Teach your smallest crafters how to do up zippers, buttons and shoelaces with this clothing fasteners book craft. It lets them manipulate and become familiar with the real fasteners they'll be using. 

Looking for more great craft ideas for kids? Check out also our complete listing of great Back-to-School crafts and other activities for fun ideas to do.

 

What you'll need:

How to make it:

First, prepare the fastenings.

1. Cut the material for the cover and pages approximately 10" X 16". My book has eight pages, so it requires two 10" X 16" rectangles for pages plus one 10" X 16" rectangle for the cover.
2. Next take your zipper and sew it on 2 pieces of ribbon cut the same length. Now you can zip and unzip the zipper that has material on each side. (Set aside.)
3. Take your buttons and sew them on a piece of ribbon and sew button holes on another piece of ribbon. Make sure to match up the ribbon to be the same length. (Set aside.)
4. Take your Velcro and sew both sides onto a piece of ribbon in order to flap one over the other. (Set aside.)
5. Attach 2 bottom sides of snaps onto a piece of ribbon and poke hole through them. Draw shoelace through and sew the center through the ribbon so that you have 2 even strands of shoelace. (Set aside.)
6. Sew a piece of ribbon through the overall hook, and sew the button on another piece of ribbon. (Set aside.)
7. Sew ribbon through 2 different kinds of buckles to make 2 different short belts with buckles. (It ends up being 4 pieces of ribbon -- one for each side of the buckle). (Set aside.)
8. Next attach 2 snaps, top and bottom, on 2 different pieces of ribbon so that you can snap them and unsnap them.(Set aside.)

Now that all your fastenings are together, it's time to put in into a book.

1. Fold your pages in half lengthwise - each side of the folded cloth will be two pages of the book. (Later you will sew and stuff the resulting 10" by 8" rectangle.)
2. Measure about where you'd like to put the zipper and pin it.
3. On the next side pin the button ribbon together.
4. Flip it over and pin the Velcro ribbon in place on one page and the shoelace on the other page. (Make sure opening is on the bottom.) (Set aside.)
5. Take the next piece of material and fold it in half lengthwise and pin overall hook and button in place on one page and the snaps on the other page. (Make sure the opening is on the bottom.)
6. Next, flip the page over and pin the buckles on the facing pages. (Make sure opening is on the bottom.)
7. Now take each page and sew the individual fasteners to the pages where you pinned them. (Be sure to sew to only one fabric thickness.)
8. Once the fasteners are sewn to the pages, turn the pages inside out and sew 2 sides together leaving the bottom open for the filler.
9. Insert either magazine or waxed cover cardboard in between the pages as stiffener.
10. Take your alphabet sponges and fabric paint and label each item on their pages. When paint dries outline it with contrasting paint color.
11. Use Wonder Under or any iron on "stick it stuff" to cutout pieces of decorations to decorate around blank spaces of the pages.
12. Take the cover material and fold it inside out and sew 2 sides together leaving the bottom open.
13. Sponge paint on a title (I used MY SEE and DO BOOK).
14. Fill the pages and cover, when all is dry, and hand sew the bottoms.
15. Place all pages on cover and take a piece of ribbon and sew in the center on the outside to make book binder and it holds the pages together to make it a book.
16. Iron on inside of last page your Made by Mommy label.

Enjoy watching your child learn and play.
Good Luck !!!

Notes: