help me make groovy play kitchen items

[OakdaleMama]

I'm obsessing about cool play kitchen stuff for my kiddos, but am out of spending money for the holidays. So what wonderful stuff can I make easily--simple or fancy, food, pots, pans, etc, etc. I would love your links or directions. Thanks so much! --Nancy

[rbriansgirl]

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[eepster]

Needle felting is really easy for the fake food.

You might just clean out you kitchen cabinets for small pots and pans, wooden spoons, what ever you don't use anymore. Garage sales are also a good place to get cheap kitchen stuff but there aren't many in winter.

Boxes for packaged food, like pasta or cereal, can be glued closed again.

When we were kids my sister wanted a set of "baby food" for her doll that was at the toy store. When our mom looked at the price she took us to the supermarket and bought my sis real baby food for her doll that cost about 1/3 the price. I think the cat got to eat the baby food , but maybe mom did it was a long time ago.

[andisunshine]

My son loves to play "kitchen." I like using boxes from Costco turned upside down for the stove. Usually the boxes have a cut-out on one or two sides so that can be the oven. Then I take a long flat produce box and stand it on one side on the back of the stove to make a little spice shelf. What I am planning on doing after the holidays is to draw a topview of a stovetop with knobs, burners, etc. on a big sheet of paper and then cover it with contact paper. This will lay on the box and be removable in case a different box needs to function as a stove. We also have the smallest pots and pans from the kitchen for him to play with. I found a six-muffin pan at the thriftstore. I can knit so I knit him some foods, cupcakes for the muffin pan, some fruits and veggies. He really likes kitchen items anyway. When given the chance his favorite thing is the blender!

[EmsMom]

I used to buy things at yard sales for the play kitchen. I got these really cute little wooden goblets once. Anyway, I used also to look around for things in the grocery store that came is small containers. Like the little cartons of milk or juice. I would buy them, use up the product and then move them to the play kitchen. I also used my rather large fabric collection from the days before kids when I was a quilter. I discovered that you can use soft sculpture techniques on woven fabrics to make play food. For example, I made broccoli by using a circle of green fabric with a bit of stuffing in the middle. I gathered it up into a very tight ball, stiched a tube of the same fabric around the "stem" and took a few stiches to dimple the ball and give it a broccoli shape. It came out great. I made a head of garlic, potatoes, a bunch of grapes. I found some cloth pumpkins at a yard sales which were a big hit. Maybe you could find a patten on line? I also bought a really small loaf pan and crafted a fabric loaf of bread for it -- I think I made a pattern that would make a rectangular shape for the base, sewed it, then I filled it with stuffing and used a larger rectangle for the top that was gathered before stiching on. I really just made all my own patterns from my own head! It was so much fun and all the pretty prints are very appealing. I also discovered that if you want a container, you can make little "pillow" shapes and overhand stich them together much like you might felt or plastic canvas. I made a great pretend flour sack that way, and a banana with a skin you could peel off. I also made a pizze (that was very easy, just a circle cut into four parts. Add seam allowance and sew each part separately into a little "quilt" with batting in the middle. Same technique stacked up with some frosting in the middle made a birthday cake (a rolled up piece of felt makes a great candle.) I really, really loved making those things and they have held up amazing well over the last seven years or so!

[mama2toomany]

Target has 1$ food and toasters and stuff for play kitchens right in the dollar bin up front

[sunanthem]

I made this cookie out of felt, stuffing and buttons. I hand felted the strawberries.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a50...pring06234.jpg

[OakdaleMama]

Great ideas! Thanks everybody. Keep 'em coming . . . .

And Saamy, I love the cookie and strawberries. Those are just my speed and I already have a bunch of roving.

[LLobsterTV]

I love the button "cookie." I'm also interested in making some of my own food, but am clueless as I'm a novice sewer.

http://www.woolfood.com/ (Click shop)
This site gives me great ideas as well as inspiration. I feel that if I study it long enough, I'll get how she does it. :