Hungry Alligator

While a real alligator's meal of choice ranges from snails to snakes, this toothy reptile will be more than happy to munch on whatever pens and pencils your child has to offer.

What you'll need

• Two new green kitchen scrub pads
• Scissors
• Red felt
• White felt
• Tacky glue
• Googly eyes
• Green pom-poms
• Black pom-pom
• Green rickrack

How to make it

1. Start by trimming two new green kitchen scrub pads into elongated pocket shapes. Then cut two similar shapes from red felt. From white felt, cut triangular teeth and use tacky glue to stick several to the rounded edge of each scrub pad. Glue a red felt piece atop each scrub pad, covering the bases of the felt teeth.
2. Next, stack the scrub pads with the red felt pieces face-to-face. Glue all along the straight edges but leave the rounded, toothy edges unglued to create the alligator's open mouth.
3. To make the gator's face, glue googly eyes onto green pom-poms, then glue the pom-poms to the top of the head. Finally, affix green rickrack ridges and black pom-pom nostrils atop his snout, and your reptile is ready for the first course of writing utensils.

His and Hers Clip-On Car Charms

In Cars 2, Mater makes a quick U-turn after mistakenly driving into a ladies' restroom in Japan. Inspired by the Japanese door icons meant to help avoid such mishaps, these felt charms make fun decorations to clip on a backpack, laptop case, or keychain. Or, you can attach them to your kids' suitcases for easy-to-spot ID tags.

What you'll need

• His and Hers Clip-On Car Charms Template
• Scissors
• Stiff felt (black and tan)
• Straight pins
• Hot glue gun
• Small faux gems (about 1/4 inch) for passengers
• Medium-size faux gems (about 3/8 inch) for headlights
• Jewelry jump ring and snap-hook clasp for each charm

How to make it

1. Print the template and use it to cut out the pieces from the specified colors of felt. To cut out each of the car windshields, fold the felt with the template still attached. Then snip through the fold to make a hole in the center of the windshield, as shown, so you can insert the scissors and cut along the line. Use the same method to cut the center hole in both the boys' and girls' car roof ornament.
2. Glue each car onto a black felt circle.
3. For headlights, glue a pair of the larger-size faux gems onto each car. Then cut out a black felt grin (about 3/4-inch wide) for each car and glue into place.
4. Next, glue two smaller faux gems onto each car for the passengers' heads.
5. Attach a jewelry jump ring to the top of each tag, as shown (it's easier if you first use a pushpin to make a hole in the felt). Use pliers to close the ring and then attach a snap-hook clasp

Lightning Bolt Keychain

Inspired by Lightning McQueen's distinctive logo, this bright felt keychain can be assembled in a flash. It also makes a fun decoration for kids to snap onto a backpack or spiral notebook.

What you'll need

• Template for Lightning Bolt Keychain
• Scissors
• Pins (for pinning the template pieces to the felt)
• Stiff black felt
• Sticky-back yellow and red felt
• Colored pencils or fine tipped markers
• Key ring

How to make it

1. Print the template and use the pieces as patterns to cut shapes from the specified colors of felt. To cut out the hole in the number 9, simply make a small snip in the felt to access the center; it will be barely noticeable once you stick the number in place.
2. Peel the backing from the yellow lightning bolt. Center the yellow bolt atop the black one and press down firmly to stick it in place.
3. Peel the backing from the numbers and stick them atop the yellow bolt.
4. Peel the backing from the yellow loop strap. Press the black loop strap onto the center of the yellow one, as shown.
5. Slide the key ring onto the loop strap.
6. Firmly press the sticky ends of the loop strap to the front and back of the lightning bolt, as shown, and the keychain is ready to use.

Cozy Bedcover and Pillow

Your child can pick the fleece colors, plus the shapes and buttons for the pockets on this surprisingly easy project. As one self-professed "fabricphobic" test mom reported, "The iron-on adhesive was amazing, especially for someone like me who doesn't sew."

Prep steps: Wash the fleece and dry it on the fluff setting. Cut each piece as shown on our bed (you'll have leftovers for the pockets and pillow), then lay them in order on a protected work surface. Read the web packaging for ironing tips; we used the silk setting without steam, plus the pressing cloth, to form bonds without overheating the fleece.

What you'll need

• 9 yards of fleece (3 yards each of 3 colors)
• Scissors or pinking shears
• 10-yard roll of 7/8-inch-wide iron-on fusible web with paper backing (we used Therm O Web HeatnBond UltraHold)
• Pressing cloth (available at fabric stores) or a piece of cotton fabric
• Iron
• Fabric glue
• Measuring tape
• 3 medium-size buttons
• Bolster pillow form

How to make it

1. 
   For the blanket Cut the web into 2- to 3-foot-long strips. Where the colored fleece segments meet, fuse the web strips to the top edge of the first color and the underside of the next.
2. 
   Let the web strips cool, then peel off the paper backing.
3. 
   Iron together the two web-covered edges. Move your iron slowly along each seam until the three segments are fused.
4. 
   For the pockets Cut 3 shapes from the remaining fleece. Run a line of fabric glue around the edges of each, leaving the tops unglued. Affix a pocket on each panel. Sew a button to the blanket inside the top center of each pocket, and cut a small slit in the pocket for a buttonhole.
5. 
   For the pillow Measure and cut a length of fleece in each color, as shown. Fuse them together as you did with the bedcover. Wrap the fused fleece around the bolster so it fits snugly, trim the fleece overlap as needed, then set the bolster aside. Fuse the two long edges to form a tube. Stuff the bolster in and use 2 thin fleece scraps to tie the ends.
   
   

Terri and Terry Cupcakes

What you'll need

• Batch of frosted cupcakes
• Template for Terri and Terry Cupcakes
• Scissors
• White rolled fondant
• Food coloring, orange and black
• Disposable kitchen gloves (for kneading color into the fondant)
• Plastic wrap
• Rolling pin
• Confectioners sugar
• Wax paper
• Round 2½-inch cookie cutter
• Pastry bag tip with a 1-inch base
• Kitchen knife
• Blue M&M’s candies
• White Tic Tac mints
• White sugar pearls
• Cow Tales candies or Tootsie Rolls

How to make it

1. Print the template and cut out the template pieces.
2. Knead a little orange food coloring into about two-thirds of the fondant until it’s the right shade for the faces. Tint half of the remaining fondant black and leave the rest white. Wrap the black and the white fondants tightly in plastic wrap and set them aside for now.
    
3. Roll out the orange fondant on a sheet of confectioners sugar-dusted waxed paper so that it’s about 3/8 to ¼ inch thick. Use the cookie cutter to cut out a face for each cupcake.
    
4. 
   Use the wide end of the pastry bag tip to cut an eyehole in the top of each fondant face, as shown. Then use the Teri mouth template piece as a pattern for cutting a mouth opening in half of the faces. Use the tip of the kitchen knife to cut a thin Terry grin in the remaining faces.
    
5. Use the template to cut an eyelid from the remaining orange fondant for each of the Terry faces. Cover the orange fondant cutouts with a piece of plastic wrap while you complete steps 6 and 7.
    
6. Now create an eye for each cupcake. First, roll out the white fondant, and use the pastry tip base to cut out a circle for each cupcake.
    
7. 
   Gently press a blue M&M’s candy iris onto the center of each fondant circle and then add a small dot of black fondant for a pupil. Press a sugar pearl “glint” into the upper edge of each pupil.
    
8. 
   Roll out the black fondant, and use the template to cut out a mouth for each Terri. Press two Tic Tac candy teeth into the fondant at the upper edge of each mouth, as shown. Then place an orange fondant Terri face over each mouth so that the upper lip covers the tops of the teeth. Add a few smaller sugar pearl teeth to each mouth, and fit one of the assembled eyes into the eyehole.
    
9. 
   To assemble each of the Terry faces, tuck the tops of two Tic Tac teeth under the upper lip, and fit an assembled eye into the eyehole. Cover the upper eye with a fondant eyelid, as shown.
    
10. Transfer each of the completed faces to a cupcake top, gently and evenly pressing it into the frosting to stick it in place.
     
11. Finally, cut the Cow Tale or Toostie Roll candies into short horn shapes. Tuck a single upright horn under the top of each Terri face. Add a pair of horns (facing sideways) to each Terry cupcake.

Phineas and Ferb Bookmarks

These inventive bookmarks will come in handy for school year assignments. The flat sticks tuck neatly between textbook or notebook pages and the colorful Phineas and Ferb tops provide kids with a quick heads up of where they left off.

What you'll need

• Template for Phineas and Ferb Bookmarks
• 4 wooden craft sticks
• Craft paint (purple and orange) and paintbrush
• Scissors
• Heavyweight craft paper or cardstock (red, green, orange, purple, and a skin tone color such as pale orange or light tan)
• Glue stick
• Fine-tipped black marker
• Low-temperature hot glue gun
• Glue sealer, such as Mod Podge

How to make it

1. 
   Paint the top halves of the craft sticks: two orange for Phineas and two purple for Ferb. Set the painted sticks aside to dry.
2. Meanwhile, print the template and use the pieces as patterns for cutting out shapes from the specified colors of paper.
3. 
   For Ferb, glue the two head pieces together one atop the other to make the paper double thick (this will stiffen the bookmark so it is more durable). Next, glue the two hair pieces together, sandwiching the top of the head between them, as shown.
4. 
   For Phineas, first glue the two hair pieces together. Then glue the two heads together, this time with the hair sandwiched between the very tops of them.
5. 
   Glue a set of eyes on each character, positioning them as shown.
6. 
   Flip the heads over and glue the respective matching sets of eyes in place, as shown.
7. Draw a grin on both sides of each face.
8. 
   Hot glue the orange-painted craft sticks together, sandwiching the very bottom of Phineas's head between them, as shown. Attach Ferb's head to the purple sticks in the same manner.
9. 
   For each character, cut a pair of long skinny arms with rounded hands at the ends from the same paper you used for the heads. Use the glue stick to stick the arms to the painted portion of the craft sticks, as shown.
10. Brush a light coat of glue sealer on each bookmark to seal the paper. Let the glue dry (it shouldn't take long) and the bookmarks are ready to use.

Woody's Faux Cowhide Vest

Not until he meets Jessie and Stinky Pete the Prospector does Woody realize he's a valuable collectible. Dressed in boots and jeans and his distinctive white-and-black cowhide vest, the amiable pull-string cowboy was the star of a popular children's TV show called "Woody's Roundup." Using a simple pattern and felt, you can whip up a spotted vest just like Woody's -- no sewing machine required.

What you'll need

• Faux Cowhide Cowboy Vest Template
• Scissors
• Straight pins (for pinning the pattern pieces to the felt)
• White felt (about 1 yard)
• Felt Scraps (black, tan, and yellow)
• Hot glue gun or fabric glue
• Thin black yarn or embroidery floss (optional)
• Large-eye sewing needle or embroidery needle (optional)
• Safety pin

Notes: The vest shown here measures about 16 inches wide and 14 inches from the shoulder to the lower hem. For a different size, cut the pattern pieces larger or smaller as needed.

How to make it

1. Print the template and cut out the pieces. Create patterns by taping the vest front pieces together and the vest back pieces together, as shown.
2. Next, cut two vest fronts from white felt. To create the vest back, fold a large piece of white felt in half and pin the pattern to it with the straight edge along the fold, as shown. Cut around the other edges of the paper but not along the fold. Next, cut a larger sheriff's star from tan felt, and a smaller sheriff's star from yellow felt.
3. Glue the front and back vest pieces together at the shoulders, overlapping the edges by 1/2 inch. Then hot glue the side seams, overlapping them by an inch.
4. Cut out a bunch of large irregular-shaped cowhide spots from the black felt and glue them to the vest.
5. Now you can embellish the edges of the vest with stitching, if you like. Simply thread the needle with black yarn or embroidery floss and use a quick whipstitch, as shown.
6. For the finishing touch, glue the smaller star atop the larger one to create a sheriff's badge, and safety pin it to the vest.