I found some socks in my drawer that just didn’t spark joy for me anymore, so they had to go. But sometimes just because something doesn’t spark joy in the form of a sock, doesn’t mean it can’t spark joy in another form… Plus throwing out a pile of old socks (the size of my pile), seemed wasteful, so I made them into a kids play campfire! Because… What else would I have done?!?! Wink!

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HOW TO MAKE A KIDS PLAY FIRE PIT OUT OF SOCKS & SHIRTS

MATERIALS NEEDED:

• Used Old Socks (Grey for the rocks, and white for the Marshmallows)
• Red, Orange, & Yellow Socks or Fabric – For the Fire (I cut up old shirts)
• Brown & Beige Socks or Fabric – For the logs and Roasting Sticks (I cut up old shirts)
• Sewing Machine
• Embroidery Thread
• Needle
• Poly-Fil (optional filling if you run out of socks)
• 2 Old Knitting Needles (Or something thin and as long at your roasting stick to to make them not flop over)

METHOD:

Step 1: Cut up your grey socks into usable pieces.

Usable pieces of a sock = Flat Pieces of a sock

Just cut off the toe and heal of the sock (don’t worry the parts you cut off can be used as the stuffing). Try and use just the flat areas of the sock. Like this…

Step 2: Each sock should produce the same flat piece. Lay these flat pieces face together and sew around the edges to create any rock shape that you can dream up. (Don’t forget to leave a space open to be able to flip your sock rock the right way out). Like this…

Step 3: Stuff your rock with left over socks, and sock parts, like Miss Ivy Lynn is doing here.

Then set aside until everything is stuffed. We will hand stitch everything closed at the end.

Step 4: HOW TO MAKE THE ROASTING STICKS: Use a long brown tube sock, or some brown fabric (I cut up an old brown tank top) to create the roasting sticks. Fold your fabric in half and draw the shape of a stick. Like this…

Cut it out, and sew up the sides, but not the ends of the stick.

Step 5: Cut piece of light brown or beige fabric, a little bigger than each of the ends of your sticks.

With the brown stick fabric inside out, sew the face side of the beige fabric to the ends of the roasting sticks. Like this…

Don’t sew all the way around one of the ends of the stick so that it can be flipped the right way out, then stuffed with the cut up old socks, or Poly-fil.

Step 6: Put something long, skinny, and non breakable inside the roasting sticks. I was trying to find a long thin dowel, but I couldn’t find one at home… I sware we have some… I’ll find it in a week when I no longer need it (I know it!!). Anyways, I found some old long Knitting Needles instead… stuck those suckers inside the roasting sticks, to prevent them from being flacid roasting sticks! (I hope the kids don’t stab each-other with them!!).

Then repeat these steps to make some fire logs!!… Although you can omit making them stiff with knitting needles…

Then set aside until after you create the fire…

Step 7: SEW THE FIRE: On the if you had 2 sets of red socks you could pull of making the fire out of them, but I didn’t, so I cut up an old red tank top, a salmon colored shirt, and a yellow shirt, to create the fire.

This is how I made my fire…

On the front of a shirt draw the outline of a dreamy flamey fire on the front of the shirt. Then cut it out with scissors, making sure to cut through the back as well, to create 2 amazing flaming pieces.

Place them front sides together, and sew around the edges (keeping an edge unsewn to be able to flip it the right way out! Don’t forget!).

Flip the right way out, and stuff with old socks or poly-fil.

Then cut out a smaller orange fire, and hand stitch it to the front of the fire… then I cut out an even smaller yellow piece of fabric, and hand stitch it to the front on the orange fabric… I just used a top stitch (I have been loving this top stitch look lately).

Step 8: MAKE THE MARSHMALLOWS! Take an ankle sock and cut off the toe and the heal, so that you have a straight sock tube. Fold it in half inside itself (Lol… Of course I don’t have a photo of this, When I had a billion of them on how to sew a rock!! GRRR).

Then stuff with more white socks. It should look like a white donut (mmmm donuts).

Set aside until you get cozy on the couch to hand-stitch everything close. (coming up………………………… NOW!)

Step 9: HAND STITCH EVERYTHING CLOSED!

Honesty Moment: I have never been a fan of hand stitching… Call it lazy… call it stuck in my ways… But I now call it MISS INFORMED or just plain UNEDUCATED!! I recently came across the invisible stitch, and it has changed my sewing life FOREVER!!. HAND STITCHING IS SO MUCH FUN! And addicting! I want to hand-stitch everything. I can see now why people actually make quilts strictly by hand. I used to think they were crazy… But they arn’t!

Anyways, Back to the project… At this point I took all my unfinished (but stuffed) rocks, marshmallows, roasting sticks, logs, and fire to my couch, flopped myself down after the kiddos went to sleep, and hand-stitched my heart away (I mean everything close). Then…

Step 10: HAND STITCH EMBROIDERY DETAILS!

Then I took some brown embroidery thread and stitched circles to the “cut” ends of my roasting sticks, and logs. Like this…

I know!! Looks legit right!! And it’s made out of old socks and shirts! I’m DONE! Life complete!

Then the kids decided to burn their toes in the fire…

And roast some marshmallows!

I hope this fun tutorial has inspired you to find a way to make something out of your old socks! Make something that sparks joy from something that doesn’t!

I’m excited to set up a tent and camping chairs around our new campfire, in our basement to practice our camping skills before this summer!!

Until next time, up-cycle is the new recycle, and don’t forget to create beautiful things everyday!

XO JCL