We made felted balls for the first time with the kids and turned them into these colorful beaded garlands! They add such a colorful touch to the room once hung up. Learn how fun it is to make felted balls and turn them into pretty garlands!
DIY Felted Ball Garlands – Materials:
– wool roving in various colors
– dishwashing soap, warm water, teapot, strainer and bowl
– beads (we used various beads, stars, and wooden beads)
– yarn
– needle
Instructions:
How to Felt Balls:
Step 1. Set up a colander with a teapot of warm water. In bowl, place a few squirts of dishwashing soap and dilute with warm water to get a soapy mixture. Fill another bowl with warm water. Take a piece of wool roving and separate it with your fingers. Add some of the soapy mixture to it and roll it around, placing your finger in the center and making circular motions.
Step 2. Continue to roll the felt into a ball. Place in a colander and pour some warm water over it. Continue to roll and rinse in the bowl with water only to get the soap out.
You should have a nice, springy wool felt ball once you’re done (as shown below). It’s not easy to get perfectly round balls and my daughter had to practice many times over, but the process was fun for her. She loved rolling the felt over and again. You can also use the sink to rinse off and roll, if you want instead of using the bowl of water.
We made a series of rainbow felt balls. They look so colorful!
Once you have your balls it’s time to thread! Gather your supplies, beads, balls, yarn, needle.
Thread the needle on the yarn and help your child thread the beads and felt balls. Only allow your child to handle the needle if you feel comfortable. I helped my daughter with the felt balls since they were harder to push through, but she was able to thread the beads with my supervision.
Once you have your garlands made, you can hang them up! We placed them around the room with some washi tape.
We love our funky and colorful felted bead garlands! They add a fun pop to the kids’ room.
Have you ever tried making felted balls before?
Take a look at more creative ideas for kids here!
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Agnes Hsu is a mom of three and has been inspiring parents and kids to get creative with easy activities and family friendly recipes for over 10 years. She shares her love for creative play and kids food to her 2MM+ followers online. Agnes' commitment to playful learning and kindness has not only raised funds for charity but also earned features in prestigious nationwide publications.