Fun with Fabric: Craft Ideas for Kids

See what others are doing to give their old jeans new life!

1. Sharon B. really knows how to recycle jeans!

2. Blue Jean Book Bag

4. Denim Planter

5. Garden Broom Babies

6. Washable Denim Lunch Bag

If your jeans are still wearable, but you're tired of them, that's another story. Don't toss 'em or rip them to shreds...decorate them! For example:

Stencil Your Jeans!

Melinda Barta is the enthusiastic author of Hip to Stitch, a beautiful, fully illustrated guide to gorgeous projects, including how to dress up a pair of jeans. Other projects--20 in all--include step-by-step instructions on making hair ties, a beaded handbag, a baby bib, a picture frame and kitchen towels. Interested in a free pattern? Read an interview this enthusiastic 24-year-old @teenmag.com.

ClubMom.com shares good ideas for "updating" boring jeans, too, including tie-die, iron-on, and shoe laces!

Here's a handy one-stop widget that makes it easy to bookmark this lens at your favorite social networking sites. Just click, and a complete listing drops down. Help spread the fun. Thanks!!

When I was a little girl, I attended Vacation Bible School at my church. My favorite time of the day was when we'd head down the hall to the crafts room. There our teachers had crafts supplies laid on a table end to end. Fabric, glue, buttons, pipe cleaners, fasteners, rocks, macaroni, and decorative papers.

One year I made a bright floral bookmark out of fabric, glue, and satin ribbons. I kept that bookmark until it fell apart from overuse.

Later, I tried my hand at sewing a basic drawstring bag (have you watched the YouTube video yet?) out of navy blue flowered fabric. I took that bag to camp as a laundry bag and used it until its seams started to fray in the wash. (Note to self: finish seams with the fancy machine stitch.)

Involve your child in your next quilt project. (I say "quilt," but have to confess that I've always called my quilts "cheater quilts". I don't do the fine stitching on a quilt frame, although my grandmothers did. I have made several cheater quilts, though--colorful comforters stitched on my sewing machine block by block. It's a good way to create a lasting gift, plus recycle blankets (for the middle layer) that are getting worn.

Children can help cut fabric squares. Make a template out of poster board and let the draw around it. They'll see the progress as squares add up. Give them a time at the machine, too. (You'll be pleasantly surprised by how they probably won't run over their finger, either). Show them how, let them practice, and turn them loose. My daughter enjoys sewing today because I "turned her loose" with fabric when she was very young.

If you don't have fabric you can recycle at home, visit thrift stores or sales events at fabric stores. I once found two pairs of jeans for $4 each, which I cut into enough squares to make my son a warm quilt one Christmas. The denim had faded differently on each pair, which added a nice pattern and coloring for a project like that. I staggered plaid fabrics between the denim squares and it turned out great!

More on quilting with kids:

Connie's Squidoo lens is beautiful! She's teaching Heather how to quilt. Lovely photos and examples.

This dedicated operating room nurse at a children's hospital created a lens about Quilts for Kids. Join others who are making a difference in the life of needy children everywhere.

If you're on the hunt for fabric, here's a couple with twins, who live and breathe beautiful fabric! Visit this Squidoo lens and drool.

Have you ever wondered where those beautiful fabric designs originate? The trip from design and manufacturing to store shelf is an long journey, with plenty of twists and turns. No two fabrics begin quite the same way.

Fabric designers have enviable jobs from an artist's standpoint. Visit a website of a designer and you'll feel their passion for their art. Heather is a mom/designer whose work is colorful and bright. She believes art is necessary and fulfilling.

Janet is a former children's magazine artist who now freelances in graphic design. Hers is a unique craft, creating accessories from vintage materials.

Take a peek at this designer's work, which she created digitally using Photoshop Elements.

The next time you shop for fabric, consider the people behind the design. Remember, every pretty pattern started with a great idea! (If only those fabric swatches could talk...!)