“A treasure to a little boy does not consist of money, gems or jewelry. He will find far greater pleasure in the wonder of a rock, pebble, stick or beetle.” Author Unknown
Robert, 5, with his first bug bag
I’ve always referred to this as a bug bag, but after reading this statement, I am renaming it a treasure bag. Boys and bugs go together like peanut butter and jelly, and many a peanut butter jar has been called into service as a bug container. But this version is better.
Made of regular fiberglass screen from the hardware store, the basic teepee bag style makes a very unique and wonderful gift for any boy and most girls. My two older grandchildren, Robert and Laurel, each have at least two of these bags because, according to them, they needed them! When pressed for an explanation of why a child might need more than one bug bag, I was informed that bug hunting with a friend is much more fun and each would need a separate bag. And what if they caught so many bugs that the bag were filled to capacity? There were more reasons, some more logical than others, but of course, I made two for each child.
Of course, this bag could be a simple container made from screen but it is so much fun to embellish it with machine embroidery. The bag Robert holds is embroidered with several bugs, including a column of marching ants and a ladybug.
Additionally, free-standing insects were embroidered on a double layer of black Stitch-n-Tear stabilizer, using the same color thread in both bobbin and needle. Suspended on monofilament thread from the seam line are tiny bumblebees stitched in glow in the dark thread, a scary spider, and a butterfly. A grasshopper stands on the floor, also stitched in standing position with monofilament thread and a handsewing needle.
This is a scan of the page in Creative Needle magazine.
If you are looking for a unique little gift for a little boy, this is a great project.
Doesn’t he look like the kind of boy who would love to collect bugs?
“Boys are found everywhere—on top of, underneath, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around or jumping to. Mothers {and grandmothers} love them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers tolerate them, adults ignore them and Heaven protects them. A boy is Truth with dirt on its face, Beauty with a cut on its finger, Wisdom with bubble gum in its hair and the Hope of the future with a frog in its pocket.” Alan Marshall Beck
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