This originally posted at the IDEA ROOM. I was so excited when amy asked me to guest post because the idea room was one of the first blogs that i followed.
anyways…..I wanted something big….and hot glue and came up with this:
(oh..and there are about 100 pictures. i kept emailing amy making sure that it was okay cause heaven forbid I edit.)
so it was spring break! whoopie. I thought I would send the kids outside and get some freaking peace some cleaning done.
it snowed.
and it was cold
and windy.
Idaho really sucks sometimes.
so I thought I had better think fast and come up with some outside games that could be done inside.
hopscotch.
classic.
I went to joanns (shoutout!) and bought me some white canvas stuff. (it was 6.99 a yard…but I had my 50% off coupon)
I acutally went to home depot first to find a drop cloth but the smallest I could find was a 5 ft by 5 ft (for about the same price) so if anyone is a mad 4 square player you could buy that and do it up right.
I was on the fence about whether to hot glue stuff to it or paint…..
but I finally went with hot glue…I mean I’ve got to live up to the name right? but for the record…paint would be easy to do (as long as your canvas is thick enough) or you could even sew fabric…but those methods require a bit more work.
I bought two yards and cut it in half….but that makes two mats….so you could just buy one yard and sew the ends together to make one long mat (does that make any sense at all? basically..you want one long piece of fabric…by any means necessary)
Then I just hot glued the pieces right onto the canvas (make sure all the edges are glued down nice and tight seeing how there is going to be a lot of jumping on it)
and go to town
and wrapped a rubber band around it
Carissa says
So cute! My little one would LOVE this! What a fantastic idea!
twilkerbug says
That is awesome! I love it! While I was looking at the kids playing hopscotch I said to myself, 'one could put some of that rubbermaid shelf liner stuff, to keep the game mat from slipping' (if that's an issue)
Kristy says
Very fun! 🙂 I recently made a tic tac toe mat and my kids loved it and even mentioned a hopscotch version, so I might just have to do this! It turned out great btw!
Laura says
Doesn't the fabric move around when the kids jump?
Mrs. Ohtobe says
Ingenious! If you have issues with it slipping around put some puffy paint squiggles on the back side – that should do the trick!
Lyss says
I didn't know you could hem and 'sew' with hot glue! This opens a whole new world of possibilities. Hmmm…
Shay says
Best. Idea. Ever.
Jamie Lynn says
Love this! I'm a kindergarten teacher and this would be GREAT for indoor recess! Thanks for the great ideas.
Aimee Steckowski says
i am in LOVE! saw this on nat's napsack…. will be following along now!!!
Cami @ You Seriously Made That says
This is adorable! I'm glad you did both the front and the back! It looks amazing. I especially love the bag to hold all of your pieces.
Alison@Oopsey Daisy says
Kimbo, you are my hero!! I love this!! Featured it on my blog today:
http://www.oopseydaisyblog.com/2011/07/wednesdays-wowzers-join-me-on-pinterest.html
Thanks for inspiring!
~Alison
Artistic31Mama says
Thank you so much for sharing this!! What a WONDERFUL gift idea as well as some great games for rainy days!! I think I may just make this for my nephews birthday at the end of this month!! This is going on my crafting "To-Do List" Wonderful idea!
Kathie says
Wow, wow, wow—this is pretty much amazing. I need to go to JoAnn's pronto! Thanks for sharing!!
Courtney Adkins says
I just posted about the mat I made for my daughter!
http://theadkinsfamily1.blogspot.com/2011/08/hop-scotch-mat-tutorial.html
So adorable! And pretty easy to make! Thanks SO much for a great idea!
Courtney
Anna Disorganizzata says
Very very very nice!
I'll start to prepare it for the next automn play (during the raining days!!) Thank you very much
Jennifer Dawn says
Cute! I am going to have to make one of these mats. I pinned this idea on Pinterest.
Laks Pravin says
i loved it so much i made a valentine version of it ..Thanks kimbo for the idea.. My kids love the mat.You can see my mat at
http://laks365.blogspot.com/2012/01/valentine-hopscotch.html
Sailing with bare feet says
I love your makings !! Super fun idea's !!!!
Kimbo West says
i actually sold it….but the lady that bought it said that she loves it and would buy more for gifts if i wanted to make some more! so i'm going to assume it held up awesome!
Karalyn Marzo says
Hey I just found your cute hopscotch mat and was wondering how it's held up? Just deciding if I want to use felt or not? Thanks.
Kimbo West says
not at all!!!!
Michelle Asworth says
Such a great idea! I love it! I was wondering if the games on the back interfered with the hopscotch game (making it lumpy???)
EMMA says
Brilliant!!! and no sewing. I will be 'finding' all the necessary supplies the next time I'm able to drive down to the 'big' town (can't buy anything here in Chamonix apart from skis and ice axes).
Janette says
This is so perfect! I can't tell you how much I love your ideas! You're saving me a ton of money this Christmas! You're a saint! 🙂
o says
hi
thanks for the idea. what is the sheet’s length?
Kimbo says
the hopscotch is about 30 inches wide by 72 inches long…..
o says
thanks
Peggy says
Nana will make one for the Grandchildren. Thank you for sharing,
Kristin says
I am working on making this mat right now!! Did you wash and dry your fabric before starting? I was thinking it would be a good idea but I suck at crafts so this would for sure be something I would screw up haha!!! Thanks!
Kimbo says
i didn’t…but if its a fabric that can shrink you might want to prewash!
Uzma Nabeel says
Wow what a fab idea! I will make one of these for my lil one too, thank u for the inspiration x
Allison says
On the hopscotch mat. Awesome idea!! I’m definitely doing this and on the vacuum cord, never ‘should’ on yourself!!! You are doing lovely things for your children AND sharing your ideas with the world!! Who cares about a little dirt 😉
Thank you!!
kathy says
I love this idea especially after you pot the games on the back. I was a little worried about the kids throwing rocks inside so we’ll use the birdies you designed for the bullseye Thank you
kathy says
Kathysteele2006@gmail.comly after you pot the games on the back. I was a little worried about the kids throwing rocks inside so we’ll use the birdies you designed for the bullseye game
Thank you
bubbaboy9 says
THIS IS A FANTASTIC IDEA. I made it and made a large bag to hold all the extras. It did take some time but well worth it. My niece loved it. Thanks for the idea.
Amanda says
Hey girlfriend! 🙂 Just wanted to let you know I shared this on Facebook, it’s so FUN! https://www.facebook.com/CraftsbyAmanda/photos/a.353593675216.349539.323548680216/10154334164050217/?type=1
Maureen says
I am a teacher and a crafter, Love your idea especially that it is two sided. I have some suggestions.
1) use the things you use for the toss game for the hopscotch. You can put the beans in a snack size ziplock in case the felt springs a leak.
2) use 1 or more “mats” that go under rugs to keep from slipping.
3) you can “slip” in all kinds of math add you own points, subtract one or more “other” player points, could do teams
4) you could have a small bag for parts and use ties to attach the rolled up board.
I plan on trying your two sided games and I thought of doing this on those floor tiles that connect like puzzle pieces (they don’t slide). Wonder if you could make different games by assembling the puzzle differently??? Guess ‘ll see. 🙂
Thank you for the ideas.
Kimbo says
so many great ideas!!!! thanks! let me know how yours turns out!!!
Jessica says
I love this!! What a great idea! I was already sold and then I saw that it was two sided! Amazing!
I’m putting together a round up of DIY crafts on my blog and wondered if you’d be willing to let me use a picture with your link. Thanks!!
Kimbo says
of course!!! and thanks!
Jessica says
Thank you!
Jessica says
Hi! I just found this via pinterest. Such an awesome idea!! I’ve got a twister mat that I’m going to do this on the back side of. Thanks for the inspiration!!
Kimbo says
awesome! love the upcycle idea!
Susan Chaya says
I realize that this post is from a few years ago but I am wondering if you can answer some questions. I am looking for approximate sizes of the squares for hopscotch, and the bulls eye pieces
. I hope you can help.
Kimbo says
the hopscotch squares are about 8 x 11 and the bulls eyes is 18 inches!