Create a Tiny Felt Owl Mobile

3 Parts:

Steps

Questions and Answers

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Christmas is coming and I've decided to make another mobile for my grand baby Ollie. As I make his mobile, I'd like to share with you the step by step process of making a Tiny Felt Owl Mobile so you can hang one over your own baby's crib.

1. 1
   What you will need:

   

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2. 2
   Scissors (I use a larger pair for cutting large pieces of fabric and small scissors with a sharp point for cutting smaller pieces of fabric, tight curves, or tiny details.)

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3. 3
   Needle nose pliers with wire cutters

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4. 4
   Low temperature glue gun and glue sticks

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5. 5
   Standard size needle

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6. 6
   Exacto knife

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7. 7
   One 1/4 inch diameter by 36 inch wooden dowel

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8. 8
   A small sheet of foam poster board

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9. 9
   Three Tiny Felt Owls (See How to Create a Tiny Felt Owl)

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10. 10
    One sheet of felt in a color that matches the color of the owls

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11. 11
    Two craft foam sheets of two different colors to match owls

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12. 12
    One skein of embroidery floss in a color that matches the owls

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13. 13
    Patterns

    :

    Circles and Stars. I sketch my patters by hand, but there are patterns available online, or you can trace the outline of a picture from a child's story book or coloring book. Another trick is to find an image online using your phone, scaling the image to size, laying a thin sheet of paper over your phone, and tracing the outline

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14. 14
    How to make your mobile:

    

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15. 15
    Using the patterns you've made, cut three circles and three stars

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16. 16
    Sew around the outside edges of the stars and circles using the base ball stitch.

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17. 17
    Cut out eight 1-inch squares of foam poster board using an Exacto knife

    .

    Glue two pieces one on top of the other to create four blocks.

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18. 18
    Cut the following pieces of felt

    :

    Two 1-inch by 8 1/2 inch strips; four 5/8 inch diameter circles; four 4 1/4 by 1 1/2 inch strips; Eight 1 inch squares

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19. 19
    Using wire cutters, cut two 8 1/2 inch sections from the dowel.

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20. 20
    Using the hot glue gun, glue two 5/8 inch diameter circles on the ends of both dowel sections

    .

    Wrap the ends up around the sides of the dowel.

    

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21. 21
    Hot glue the 1 1/2 inch by 4 1/4 inches strips around the edges of the foam board blocks

    .

    Glue down the edges of felt to the tops and bottoms of the block. Don't worry about excess glue on the tops or bottoms of the blocks.

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22. 22
    Glue two 1-inch squares of felt on the tops and bottoms of each block.

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23. 23
    Lay the 1-inch by 8 1/2 inch strip of felt out and run a thin line of hot glue along the edge

    .

    Place the dowel in the line of glue and press firmly. Run another line of glue on the felt along the the dowel and roll the dowel into the line of glue. Repeat this process until the dowel is covered. Dab some glue on the ends and pinch the gaps (caused by the felt on the ends) together. Follow the same process for the second dowel.

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24. 24
    Lay one felt covered dowel over the other to form a cross and place a block in each corner

    .

    Make sure everything is centered. Dab a spot of glue on the center of the bottom dowel to attach the top dowel. Glue each block to each inside corner of the dowels. Keep in mind that each block makes contact with the top dowel on one side and the bottom dowel on the other. This will be the support for the mobile.

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25. 25
    Separate the lengths to two strands of floss

    .

    Cut the floss to the following lengths: Two 4 inch lengths, two 5 inch lengths, two 6 inch lengths, three 8 inch lengths, and one 2 inch length.

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26. 26
    Attach an owl to one of the 8-inch strands

    .

    Attach each of the remaining strands of floss to a random owl or shape, and one star on the 2-inch length. (Keep in mind that the owls should either be near the center, or two owls can be opposite each other on the outsides, since they are heavier than the foam shapes.)

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27. 27
    Lay the support in the center and attach, with a sharp needle, an 8 inch strand of floss with an owl to the center of the support

    .

    Spread each strand out away from the center as you go the keep the strands from getting tangled. Attach the 8 and 6 inch strands with their critters to the bottom center of each block. Position four strands (4 and 5 inch) and shapes near the ends of each dowel. Attach the remaining shape to the bottom owl.

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28. 28
    Cut a length of 24 inch floss, double it by lining up the ends and tie a knot near the folded end to create a loop

    .

    Tie the two ends together to make a large knot. Hot glue the knot to the top of the mobile support.

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29. 29
    Your Tiny Felt Owl is finished and ready to hang

    .

    Hope you and your little one enjoy yours as much as Ollie and I enjoy ours.

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Patterns to make felt animals for baby crib mobiles?

When making baby crib mobiles, it is better if you first come up with a theme. If you want to stick with animal patterns, use a concept like safari, jungle or an aviary, for example. There are ready-to-use baby mobiles in the market, but reports of high lead content can be alarming. Homemade animal mobiles are far better and safer, and more personal and unique. There are a lot of resources you can use for patterns, many of which you can find online and print from your own home.

If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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