Zoo Buddies play case - Trimcraft

 Today's project is a little play case (suitable for children over the age of 3) using Dovecraft "Zoo Buddies". These are 9 different animal shapes - lion, tiger, elephant, zebra, giraffe, parrot, panda, monkey and penguin - made of wood with felt accents and are 8-12 cm tall.

You can see the monkey and giraffe from the set on the front of my case above.

To make this you will need :)

Dovecraft Zoo Buddies

Create Craft suitcase (26429)

white paint

green paint 

Dovecraft A4 multipack felt - white, blue, green

Dovecraft A5 foam multipack

Dovecraft Crafters Glue

Dovecraft Puffy Paint

Trimcraft First Edition dies - Fruit

Trimcraft First Edition dies - Tropical

wire stems

Dovecraft green buttons

red card

black fineliner pen

hook and loop fastener tape

heat gun

glue gun

die cutting machine

How to make it - 

1. This is the suitcase before being decorated.

2. Draw around the lids (back and front) on blue felt and cut out. Set aside.

3. Paint the outside edges of the top and bottom lids. 

                                                 4. Paint the inner rim of the top lid.

             5. Spread a thin layer of glue evenly all over the lids of the case and attach the blue felt -                                                                             pressing down firmly.

6.Set the blue felt inside the top lid and draw around it - cut out and glue in place. Paint the inner edges of the bottom of the suitcase lid with green paint and make a green felt base as above. Glue in place.

7. Hand cut several strips of green and brown foam and glue in place with a glue gun. Twist and fold some of the strips.

8. Hand cut a basic tree trunk shape from brown foam and 3 leaves from green foam Glue to the right side of the suitcase.

9. Die cut the flowers from red card and add yellow Puffy Paint on each petal. Use the heat gun to make the paint puff up. Glue the flowers to the long foam grass.

10. These are the shapes you will need to cut from foam. Die cut the banana and 2 circles for suns. Hand cut the branch, water and grass. Add detail to the banana and branch with a black fine liner pen. Add hook and loop fastener tape to the back of the pieces.

11. To make the berries - 

a) cut the wire stem from the flower

b) bend the top of the wire and push through the button, securing at the back.

c) Add a spot of Puffy Paint - apply heat gun to make this puff up

d) cut 3 green felt leaves, glue the berries to the back and add dashed lines to the leaves

Add hook and loop fastener tape to the back of the leaves

12. These are the pieces which you will need to cut from felt. Add hook and loop fastener tape to the back of the pieces. 

Add hook and loop fastener tape to the back of the animals :)

Now you are ready to play!

I have kept the back of the case plain as a storage area for more animals