Sometimes the things I do are purely for selfish reasons. You see, I have this nephew, and I love it when he smiles. And right now, Dinosaur Train REALLY makes him smile….. so I accepted some fabric from Quilting Treasures so that I could make him something cool with it… so I could get some free SMILES!!! See how selfish I am?

So anyway, I got this lovely fabric from the nice folks at Quilting Treasures. Apparently there’s a new club at PBS.org for kiddos called Nature Trackers and they are promoting it by sending out some free fabric. They also offered free project sheets for a bulletin board, fabric covered lampshade, book covers, and a fabric picture frame. (You can download them for free yourself, if you click that link.)

My fabric arrived and I got excited! The colors are really vibrant and the paw print pattern coordinates so well with the dinosaur novelty print.

Here you can see the scale of the print.

So while those projects looked like fun, I was wanting to make something a little different for that smiley nephew of mine. Time to make BEAN BAGS!

But not just any bean bags. THE BEST bean bags! Why are they the best? Because they are the perfect mix of durable (double-stitching), soft, structured (added batting) and bean-y (not to full, not too floppy, just right!)

Here’s how you make them. First, you’ll want to cut your fabric in 6.5- inch squares. Because this print is so large, you’ll want to cut strips that are 6.5 inches first, and then use a clear ruler to fussy cut the area with the best images.

Fussy cutting the Dinosaur Train fabric.

Cut enough squares for the “fronts” of the bean bags. Then cut the “backs” from the coordinating print. I made 3 with blue backs and 3 with orange backs so that we can have some 2-player games with them. Also cut enough batting at the 6.5 inch size to go with each of the front and backs. Each bean bag needs 2 squares of batting and 2 squares of fabric (one print and one solid) in other words.

Because I liked the pattern in the novelty fabric, I quilted the batting on by highlighting the frame around them. For the print, I just quilted it together making in “X”. Then I created the bean bag by sewing around 3 sides, batting side IN. Just like making a pocket. The first row of sewing should be 1/4 inch from the edge, the second 3/8ths of an inch from that. Like this:

Stich the front and back together using 2 rows of stitching for durability.

Now add about 1/4 cup of mixed dried beans into the beanbag. Add a little more if you like- but don’t overstuff or else it will make it a) difficult to sew and b) not drape-y enough.

Fill with mixed beans or un-popped popcorn.

Now stitch up that last side with 2 rows of stitching and pink the edges. All done!

Time to play! We played “Point Toss”- 5 points for the colander and 1 point for the laundry basket. By the way, it’s a good introduction to turn-taking and simple addition.

Or you could practice your balance by stacking them on your head and walking around. I could you squat and touch the ground and keep them balanced?

 I can balance THREE!

Or you could just be silly with them.

Anyway you play with them, bean bags are FUN…and Dinosaur Train bean bags get the best smiles of all!

Disclosure-fabric provided for samples.

• About the Author
• Latest Posts

About Jenny

Chief Craft Test Dummy, Craft Evangelist, Founder, Editor, bottle-washer, trouble-maker, and creative whirlwind.

• Spooky Spider Halloween Bookmark Craft - October 24, 2018
• Review and Demo of LDRS Hybrid Ink Pads - October 15, 2018
• Review and Demo of Nuvo Hybrid Inks - October 1, 2018
• Craft Studio Tour and Organization Ideas - September 20, 2018
• Wax Paper Resist Background Technique - March 20, 2018
• Comparison of Liquid Watercolor Markers/Pens - March 16, 2018
• SAI Japanese Traditional Watercolor Brush Markers- Review & Demo - February 23, 2018
• Rinea Metallic Foil Paper & Ghost Ink Review - February 21, 2018
• Jane Davenport debuts at Creativation 2018 & Watercolor Card - February 13, 2018
• Creativation 2018: New Product Showcase - January 20, 2018