Now I'm going to put it out there. In the DIY gift arena, it doesn't get much cooler than an entirely felt ice-cream parlor. And sure, its pretty to look at but it's also a detachable tactile wonderland. The ice-cream scoops have lovingly attached velcro at their base, as do the tops of the cones. You want chocolate mud-cake in a waffle? Sure thing. Peppermint chock chip in a cake cone? Done. Still  got room? How about a strawberry chunk surprise (with real strawberries), orange sherbet and caramel triple scoop. Lets not forget the cherry! Kids or no kids, I would probably still have made this set...and gifted it to myself.

 I went hunting for felt food inspiration on Etsy and found an absolute gold-mine of pdf felt food patterns for anything from roast chickens to dim-sims. One particular shop sells pdf patterns for some seriously delicious looking felt delicacies and also the kits to make them with good quality wool blend felt included. With the head-ache of sourcing the right felt colors out of the equation, I got a little over-ambitious and bought the ice-cream set, the pizza and the hamburger lunch. 

The deets...
Pattern: You can buy the pattern from here or buy a ready-to-go kit, which I think is the way to go. The felt has a good wool content, feels nice to touch and the colors are a slightly muted palette which adds to the that yesteryear ice-cream parlor charm. I gathered the other materials: tacky glue, needles, velcro and thread and set off on what was supposed to be the slow-food equivalent for sewing. I got excited and impatient and finished the whole thing in a week. 
Difficulty rating: The instructions are clear and the actual construction is not complicated, but patience is necessary as is the willingness to develop a decent callous. 
Time spent: Probably between 15 and 20 hours. They took a whole week with couple of hours devoted each day. There's the tracing, the cutting, and then the assembling. 
Was it worth it: ABSO-FREAKIN-LUTELY! Look at these babies. This is the sort of hand-made gift that blows anything store bought out of the water.
The love rating: Played with for hours, cherished forever. That's the best case scenario. Mostly likely they will be loved. Hard.
Recommend: Yes! 

If you find yourself hovering over your felt food creations like an anxious mother bird, just know you wouldn't be the first!