Quiet Book - Pepperoni Pizza Counting Page

Something else Kellan loves is pepperoni!  I saw this on Pinterest and loved the idea that he would count the number of pepperonis on each slice and then match that with the corresponding number.  I also tried a new technique for this page and it turned out great!  Iron-on numbers.

I used this picture of a pizza as my template, which was super helpful because trying to freehand, I really had trouble dividing a pizza into six slices!

I used brown felt for crust, red felt for sauce, antique ivory felt for cheese and red again for pepperonis.  I also made a "pan" out of gray felt.  I attached Velcro to the pan and to the back of each crust piece.That's where the pieces of pizza will be stored.  Then when Kellan is playing with the book, he can move the pieces to their corresponding number (but the pieces won't stick to it).

If you're thinking about making a Quiet Book, an assortment of felt is a great way to get started!

Quiet Book - Tractor Puzzle Page

For this Project You'll Need:

2 light blue sheets of felt, cut to 8.5 x 8.5

1 sheet of white felt, cut to 9 x 9

Gray felt, scraps

Yellow Felt, scraps

2 buttons

velcro

needle and embroidery thread, for sewing the buttons

sewing machine

Kellan loves John Deere tractors, so I decided to make this tractor into a simple puzzle page.  I started with making the tractor on a felt page cut down to 8.5 x 8.5.  Then, using my rotary cutter, I cut this page into four pieces.

Then I took my second light blue sheet of felt and cut it into four pieces and sewed a piece of rough velcro on the back of each one.

Then I put a tracor square and a Velcro backed square together and sewed around the edges.

Then I sewed soft Velcro onto the white background page, corresponding with where it is dewed on the 4 squares.

If you're making a Quiet Book, a felt assortment is great to have on hand:

Quiet Book - Tic Tac Toe Page

I liked this as a page because Kellan has an older sister who could play this with him.  To make this page, I started at my computer and used Word to create a template for myself of a hashtag symbol (or pound sign or number sign if you're not a millennial) as well as the Xs and Os.  I think it helps to see how easy it is to design your own template.  This is what my screen looked like - I just used shapes to give me a starting point.  

Once I had the basics, I added a few things, for fun, practicality and aesthetic. 1. A place to keep score.  One team is yellow (the Os) and one is green (the Xs).  I inserted a transparent film page, cut to size into the score board.  I also added a dry erase marker and a felt eraser.  

One more cute, but practical thing I needed was a place to store the Xs and Os when not in use, so I make this little envelope and embellished it with a foam heart.

If you're thinking about making a Quiet Book, an assortment of felt is a great way to get started!

Quiet Book - Five Little Monkeys Finger Puppet Page

I saw this page on Pinterest and knew I had to make it!  When Kellan, the recipient of the book, was younger, he loved that song.  

I always just figure out my own patterns.  I found a picture of a bed and printed it and used that as a pattern.  My floor is a piece of corrugated felt.  The rug is a scrap of fabric from my stash.  

To make the monkeys, I think I found a monkey finger puppet pattern online.  I cut out two monkey shapes, for each monkey, then a face and tummy shape for each monkey.  Once everything was cut out, I hand sewed around the edges of the two monkey shapes (making sure to leave the bottom open).  Then I hand sewed smiles onto the face shape.  Then I hot glued the face shape and tummy shape onto the monkey shape.  Then I added tiny, sticky googly eyes to each monkey.

The windows are made out of stiffened felt. I cut large squares and then I used a utility knife to cut four small squares into them.  The stars are one of my most brilliant finds for this quiet book - scrap booking brads.  I found them at Michaels and they add so much charm and dimension!  Here is a similar product from Amazon:  

Quiet Book - Counting Page

This is my third Quiet Book to make and this is the only page that I have put in all three.  It's a fun page, it's customizable to each kid (by which buttons you choose) and it's great for learning numbers and counting. 

 

For this Project you'll need:

two colors of felt sheets cut to 9x9 inches*

9 different types of buttons**

sticky felt numbers - I searched everywhere for these and only found them here at Joann Fabric

Needle and embroidery thread for hand sewing the buttons

sewing machine for sewing the flaps

*I've settled on 9x9 as a good size for all my quiet book pages, but if you're doing a different size, adjust the size of the felt 

**This seems obvious, but for lower numbers, you can have larger buttons and for higher numbers you need small buttons. I bought a lot of my buttons at Joann Fabric and a few from Etsy.

One dump truck

Two trains

Three cupcakes

Four paws

Five donuts (I think the flap closed right before I took my picture!)

Six pizza slices

Seven ducks

Eight reindeer

Nine cars

Step One - cut the felt sheet you're using for the flaps into nine equal squares

Step Two - Machine sew the flaps onto the page.  I like to use zigzag stitch for extra security

Step Three - put the felt number stickers on the flaps

Step Four - Hand sew the buttons under the corresponding flaps

This is actually a good page to start with because it comes together pretty quickly and it's very rewarding!  Maybe the most fun part about this page is to pick buttons!  

If you're making a quiet book, buying an assortment of felt is a good place to start!