Easy Clean Kids' Sit-Upon Tutorial

I recently began working in the nursery at my church, which means I am in charge of the kids 18 months - 2 years, including my daughter Violet. After the first Sunday, I decided to come up with some new ideas to add structure. These kids seem to thrive with structure. We already have a designated singing time, snack time, and coloring time, but the rest of the time is just free play. We ought to be trying to teach the kids a church-themed lesson, but this age is really hard. So I decided to make a bunch of Easy Clean Sit-Upons that we can use to gather the kids into a circle. I hope that with a specific "spot," they will be more inclined to stay together.

Here is how I made them:

These circles are 15 inches across. If you're looking to make these for bigger kids, I would recommend going with 18 inches. Sorry for the lack of step-by-step photos. Hopefully the text explains clearly, but if not, feel free to ask questions in the comments.

Materials

Fabric scraps, 16 inches long
Fusible fleece
Clear plastic (I found QuickCover clear plastic at Dollar Tree)
Assorted ribbon, at least 1 inch wide
Thread

Step 1:

Choose your fabrics. Cut them into strips, 16 inches long. I did random widths. Cut enough strips that when sewn together, they will be 16 inches or more wide. Make sure to account for seam allowances. Cut one full circle for the back.

Step 2:

Sew your strips together: With right sides together, sew two strips together with a 1/4 inch allowance. Press your seams flat. Trim into circle, 16 inches in diameter.

Step 3:

Iron your pieced strips to your fusible fleece. Put your "sandwich" together with the strips on the top, fusible fleece in the middle, and backing fabric on the back. Stitch around the circle. Trim off any excess fabric or fleece around the edges.

Step 4:

Quilt your circle. I did straight line quilting following the seams in my pieced fabric.

Step 5:

Pin your ribbon in place around the circle, being sure to pin it over the edge so you have 1/2 inch on the front and 1/2 inch on the back. Carefully stitch it in place. I used a zig-zag stitch to make sure that I caught all the layers all the way around the circle.

And you're done!

{Linked on We Like to Learn as we Go, DIY Crafty Projects, Fluster Buster, Someday Crafts, Daisy Cottage Designs, Ginger Snap Crafts, Handy Man Crafty Woman}