Cloud Control: A Make-It-Tuesday Weather Board for Small Stitchers

There is a particular kind of British morning where the sky cannot quite decide what it is doing. Bright sun, then a spiteful little shower, then a rainbow over the Co-op. Children notice all of it. So why not give them a way to stitch the forecast themselves?

This felt weather board is a gentle make for a half-term afternoon or a slow Sunday in autumn 2026. It is not a science lesson and it is not a wall display that gets admired once and then ignored. It is a hands-on morning ritual: choose a sun, add a cloud, tuck a raindrop underneath, swap it all around after lunch. The stitching is simple, the pieces are scrap-friendly, and the whole thing is designed to survive daily play by small, enthusiastic hands.

What you will need

You do not need a sewing machine. A basic hand-sewing kit will do nicely.

• A firm board for the background — an A3 mount board, a sturdy piece of cardboard, or an old cork noticeboard
• Plain felt for the sky, ideally a wool-blend felt because it grips other felt nicely
• Scrap felt in yellow, white, grey, blue, green, pink and any other weather-ish colours
• Embroidery thread in contrasting colours
• A hand-sewing needle, scissors, pins and a pencil
• Kitchen paper or card for making templates
• Optional: self-adhesive Velcro dots, small buttons, a scrap of wadding for puffy clouds

A note on safety: this project is best for children who are happy around needles, or for a grown-up-and-child stitching session where the adult does the sharp bits. Keep tiny buttons away from under-threes, and use them only as decoration if you are making this for a very small person.

Start with the sky

Cover your board with your background felt. If you are using cardboard, cut the felt with a generous border, wrap it around the edges and stitch it down at the back with a simple running stitch. A few dabs of glue can help at the corners, but stitches are tougher. If you are using a cork board, you can staple or stitch the felt to the back.

Leave the felt plain, or add a soft green hill along the bottom with a running stitch. That little horizon line gives children a place to park the weather pieces, and it makes the board feel like a tiny landscape rather than a noticeboard.

Make a small weather wardrobe

The joy of this board is the mix-and-match factor. Cut two layers for every piece so it is sturdy enough to be handled every morning. Draw your shapes on kitchen paper first: a round sun, a cloud made from overlapping circles, a fat raindrop, a rainbow arc, a wind swoosh, a snowflake. Keep the shapes big and chunky. Small, fiddly pieces are charming in theory and lost behind the sofa in practice.

For the sun, cut a yellow circle and add rays in a bright contrast thread using a running stitch. For the cloud, use white or pale grey felt and stitch a few lazy swirls across the middle. A rain cloud can be the same shape in grey, with blue running stitches falling underneath. The rainbow is the show-off piece: cut arcs in different colours and stitch them down onto a backing arc with a simple running stitch. It does not need to be perfect. A slightly wonky rainbow has more character than a laser-cut one.

The stitches that do the heavy lifting

You only need two stitches for most of this project.

Running stitch is your decorating stitch. It is the one that looks like a neat little dashed line. Use it for sun rays, cloud swirls, raindrop details and rainbow stripes. It is also perfect for beginners because it is easy to unpick if you change your mind.

Blanket stitch is your toughening-up stitch. Use it around the outside of each double-layer piece to join the layers and stop the edges fraying. Blanket stitch can feel a bit fiddly at first, so practise on a scrap square. Once you have the rhythm, it is surprisingly soothing. If blanket stitch is not your friend yet, a tight running stitch around the edge will do the job, especially if you use two strands of thread.

For extra strength, add a few backstitches at the points where little hands will tug most — the sun’s rays, the rainbow ends and the top of the cloud.

How to make the pieces stick

Felt-on-felt is the simplest approach. Wool-blend felt has a natural grip, so pieces will cling to a felt-covered board without any extra fixings. For daily play, though, you might want a little more hold. Stitch a self-adhesive Velcro dot to the back of each piece before you blanket-stitch it closed, then add a few matching dots to the board. Alternatively, sew a small felt loop to the back of each piece and hook it over a button on the board. That is a nice fine-motor challenge for older children.

A pocket for the weather

A board without storage becomes a pile of lost clouds. Make a simple felt pocket and stitch it to the back of the board, or to the bottom front if you want it visible. Cut a rectangle of felt, fold up the bottom third, and blanket-stitch the sides. Add a running-stitch label if you like: “Today’s weather”. Keep the pocket wide enough for the rainbow — that piece is always the awkward one.

The morning forecast ritual

Hang the board at child height, near a window if possible. Each morning, the small forecaster chooses the pieces that match the sky outside. Is it a sun-and-cloud day? A full rain-cloud day? A windy day with a sneaky bit of sun? Add a rainbow after a shower and talk about why it appears. You can also add a second pocket with simple prompt cards: “What shall we wear?”, “Will we need wellies?”, “Is it a coat day or a jumper day?”

This is where the board earns its keep. It turns a grey morning into a conversation, and it gives children a way to name the weather rather than just endure it. It is also a lovely little record of a British autumn: four seasons in one day, all arranged in felt on the kitchen wall.

Keeping it sturdy for daily play

Double-layer every piece. Use strong thread and finish with a backstitch. Keep the shapes generous. Store the pieces flat in the pocket rather than crammed into a toy box. If a raindrop goes missing, do not panic — a scrap of blue felt and five minutes with a needle will soon bring it back.

And if the blanket stitch is a bit wobbly, leave it. This is a weather board, not a museum exhibit. Wonky clouds still forecast rain.