These toys and bags can be made for a wide variety of people. From toddlers to people living with dementia. Naturally I was up for the challenge to make something to help an adult with profound special needs. The cherry on top is I can make her something pretty.The first step was to draw out my idea. I wanted to make the bag as easy as possible to use on the go.
As most of my scrap fabric is summery and fun I thought a summer theme would be perfect. I tried to make each page different with a variety of ways to interact with the book.
One of the things I realised pretty quickly was that using up all of my bits and pieces of fabric is a messy business! But I think the final product will be a lot of fun for it's new owner.
The first page has some cute beads and buttons to interact with.
I like to call this page flower picking in the garden. In the pocket are some fabric flowers attached with a strand of wool. The flower can be taken in and out of the pocket without being lost.
With every summer theme you must have a bit of sunshine to brighten up your day. I sewed paper under the gold fabric so it makes a lovely sound when touched.
This page has three vehicles that the user can take out of the pocket and drive on the summer scene at the bottom of the page.
I think this page might be my favourite one. They colours are really pretty and the velcro adds a great interactive quality. The balloons are held on to the page with velcro. You can pull the balloons off and reattach them. The cord is sewn into the edge of the page so they won't get lost.
I wanted to mainly focus on texture for the last page. The wool is sewn on with bias binding to hold everything in place. The lace adds even more texture for the owner to interact with.
Here is the final product in a video. The best way to understand interaction with the sensory book bag, is to see it in action. I'm so pleased that my first attempt turned out as well as it did.
