Felt Hearts & Kisses Tic Tac Toe Set for Valentine’s Day

Instead of Noughts and Crosses, why not play a game of Hearts and Kisses!

Use colourful wool blend felt to make this felt game board and pieces decorated with hearts and X-shaped “kisses”. For even quicker crafting, glue the felt game pieces together with craft glue and make a board from colourful card.

This tutorial originally appeared on The Village Haberdashery's blog - visit their shop for lots of crafty goodness!

You will need:

The template sheet provided (click here to view, download and print the PDF).
Wool blend felt in light pink, bright pink, dark purple and light purple.
Sewing thread to match the pink felt.
Stranded embroidery thread to match the light purple felt.
A sewing needle and pins.
White tissue paper.
A ruler and a pencil.
Sewing scissors or embroidery scissors (these are great for cutting out small felt shapes!).
Optional: an air-erasable fabric marker.

To make the Tic Tac Toe set:

1. Use the templates provided to cut 12 circles from bright pink felt and 12 circles from light pink felt. Also cut out six bright pink hearts and six crosses.

2. Sew each heart and cross onto a contrasting felt circle with backstitch and matching thread, as shown.

3. Join the decorated and plain felt circles together using blanket stitch and matching sewing thread (if you prefer, you could use whip stitch or running stitch instead of blanket stitch).

4. Cut out two six by six inch squares: one from light purple felt and one from dark purple felt. Use a ruler and a pencil to create a square paper template, or use a ruler and an air erasable fabric marker to draw the squares directly onto the felt.

5. Trace the grid from the template sheet onto a piece of white tissue paper. Pin the tissue paper to the dark purple square so that the design is centred in the square. Tack the paper to the felt with large stitches, remove the pins and trim any excess tissue paper overhanging the edges of the felt.

6. Sew along the four lines with running stitch and light purple embroidery thread. Use three strands (out of the six in the skein) and try to keep your stitches evenly sized and spaced.

7. Remove the tacking stitches and carefully tear away the tissue paper, revealing the stitching.

8. Pin the dark purple and light purple felt squares together so the edges line up neatly. Sew around the edges with blanket stitch, using three strands of light purple embroidery thread as before.

The blanket stitch finishes the edges neatly and creates a bit of extra decoration, but if you prefer you can use sewing thread for less visible stitching and sew around the edges with whip stitch or running stitch.

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This tutorial is for non commercial use only: you can use it to make as many tic tac toe sets as you want for yourself or as gifts, but please don't make any for sale. You may borrow a couple of photos if you want to blog about this project, but remember to credit me and link back to this page on my blog, and do not reproduce my entire tutorial / share my templates on your site. Thanks!

P.S. Subscribe to my newsletter for a monthly free pattern and visit my crafty tutorial archive for lots more free projects.

Visit my shop to buy my printable PDF sewing patterns:

How To: Sew Some Easy Letter Bunting!

Today I'm sharing a tutorial for sewing pretty bunting!

I designed this project to re-use the WELCOME lettering templates from my rainbow wreath tutorial. I think some welcome bunting would look lovely in a hallway, but you could easily adapt this tutorial by drawing your own letter templates to spell out any word(s) or name(s) you fancy.

This would be a lovely sewing project for a birthday party, wedding, or other special occasion, or for making a decoration for a child's nursery (make sure to hang the bunting well out of reach of little fingers!).

This tutorial was originally designed for The Village Haberdashery's blog - visit their shop for lots of crafty goodness!

You will need:

* The bunting template from my easy papercrafts post.
* The template sheet from my rainbow wreath tutorial.
* Quilting cotton (I used “Posies in Aqua” from Sugar Pie by Lella Boutique for Moda).
* Felt in two contrasting colours (I used a pretty aqua blue and a candy pink).
* Coordinating ribbon, ricrac or mini pompom trim.
* Sewing thread to match the felt lettering and the ribbon / ricrac / pompom trim.
* Coordinating stranded embroidery thread, to contrast with the inner felt circle.
* Sewing needles and pins.
* Sewing scissors.
* Embroidery scissors (these are ideal for cutting out small or fiddly felt shapes!).

To make the bunting:

1. Use the bunting template to cut out seven triangular “flags” from your chosen fabric (one per letter). If you're adding more than one word to your bunting, remember you'll need an extra flag for the gaps between the words.

2. Use the lettering and circle templates to cut out the felt pieces.

3. Sew each small circle to a backing large circle with whip stitch and your chosen embroidery thread (use half the strands only – so for six-stranded thread just use three strands). I used cream embroidery thread to match my pompom trim.

Then add the letters, sewing them in place with running stitch and matching sewing thread.

4. Position each letter on one of the bunting flags, just below the centre of the flag (remember you’ll be adding the ribbon or trim later!). Sew each letter in place with running stitch in matching (pink) sewing thread, sewing flush with the edge of the smaller circle so your stitching is hidden.

5. Add the bunting flags to your chosen ribbon or trim. Leave a length of ribbon/trim unstitched (so you can tie the bunting in place when you come to display it) then add the flags one by one. Pin or hold the ribbon/trim along the top edge of each flag then sew it in place with running stitch and matching sewing thread.

Leave a length of unstitched ribbon/trim at the other end of the bunting then cut away any excess. If you’re using ribbon, cut the ends at an angle to help prevent fraying.

And you're done! Now you just need to hang the bunting up and go put the kettle on and admire your work.

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How To: Sew Easy Felt Gingerbread Men Christmas Ornaments

I'm squeezing in one more free Christmas craft tutorial before the main event: cute little felt gingerbread men decorations!

 

Or should that be Gingerbread People??? :)

Whatever you want to call them, these fun felt ornaments are super quick and easy to sew. They'd be perfect for beginners, for sewing with kids, or for those times when you just want a nice, relaxing project to work on.

 

A set of these would make a lovely Christmas gift, and one ornament would be fab tied to anothe present or slipped into a Christmas card. I think they'd also make cute brooches! Just add a brooch clasp instead of a ribbon loop.

These gingerbread men ornaments are an updated version of a design I stitched for my shops many years ago. Here's the new style...

... and here are the old ones!

 

As you can see, originally I used black sequins for the eyes and gave my gingerbread fellas big laughing mouths. This time round I've opted for beads for the eyes and a single curved line for the smile but you could copy the old version if you prefer them!

You will need:

- Ginger coloured craft felt (this may be a bit tricky to find in your local craft store if they just stock a small range but there are loads of online craft shops that stock a huge range of felt colours)
- Round sequins in assorted colours
- White sewing thread
- Black sewing thread
- Black seed beads (or small round black sequins)
- Narrow ribbon
- Sewing scissors
- The templates provided at the bottom of this post

To Make a Felt Gingerbread Man Ornament: 

1. Use the template provided to cut out two shapes from ginger coloured felt. Set aside one of the pieces for the moment.

2. Give your gingerbread man two eyes. You could use black seed beads for this, or small black sequins or just sew a couple of large French knots from black embroidery thread (floss).

If you're using seed beads (as shown above), sew each bead flat like an O with three or four stitches of black sewing thread. If you're adding small sequins, sew each sequin in place with two or three stitches of black sewing thread.

3. Now give the gingerbread man a smile! Use backstitch and a double thickness of black sewing thread so sew a small curved line for the smile.

For extra-happy gingerbread men, also sew a straight line across the top of the smile - creating a sideways D shape, and making it look like the gingerbread man is laughing or has a big grin.

4. Add sequins, mini buttons or little felt circles for the gingerbread man's buttons.

I used three different coloured sequins for each of my gingerbread men, sewing them in a row with white sewing thread. I used two stitches to secure each sequin, so all the stitches formed a neat(ish) vertical line. If you're using sequins which are all the same colour, you may prefer to use sewing thread to match them.

5. Cut a piece of narrow ribbon (approx 7 inches / 17.5 cm long) and fold it into a loop. Secure the cut ends to the top of the second gingerbread shape, with whip stitch and any colour sewing thread. Sew into the felt not through it, so your stitches won't be visible on the outside of the ornament.

Tip: the gingerbread template isn't completely symmetrical, so before you add the ribbon make sure you're attaching it to the correct side of the gingerbread shape! You'll want both shapes to line up neatly when you place them together, with the cut ends of the ribbon sandwiched between them.

6. Place the front and back of the gingerbread man together, and sew around the edge with running stitch and white sewing thread. Use small even stitches so the layers are sewn together but you also end up with a nice decorative edging to the ornament.

For a different look (with less visible stitching) you could use matching ginger sewing thread to sew the ornament together.

This tutorial is for non commercial use only: you can use it to make as many gingebread men as you want for yourself or as gifts, but please don't make any for sale. You may borrow a couple of photos if you want to blog about this project, but remember to credit me and link back to this page on my blog, and do not reproduce my entire tutorial / share my templates on your site. Thanks!

Click here to open the template sheet in a new window, make sure you're viewing it full size then print it at 100%.

Enjoyed this free tutorial? Buy me a "coffee" and help support my blog!


P.S. Subscribe to my newsletter for a monthly free pattern and visit my crafty tutorial archive for loads more free projects (including lots of Christmas crafts!).

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How To: Sew Felt Mushrooms & Toadstools!

This week I'm sharing some fun autumnal crafting projects: tutorials for sewing felt mushrooms and toadstools then using them to create an awesome autumn wreath.

Today you'll learn how to make the felt fungi, then I'll post the wreath tutorial on Thursday. (UPDATE: click here to see how to assemble the whole wreath!).

These felt mushrooms and toadstools are so easy to make! You can use them to decorate larger autumn craft projects, or add brooch clasps or ribbon loops to turn them into brooches or Christmas ornaments.

 

If you're making Christmas decorations why not give them some extra sparkle by adding beads or sequins to the toadstools, or using metallic embroidery thread for the mushrooms. You could also decorate the backs of your toadstools as well as the fronts, or use the space on the back to embroider the year you stitched them.

This tutorial originally appeared on The Village Haberdashery's blog - visit their shop for lots of crafty goodness!


You will need:

The template sheet provided (click here to download and print the PDF)
Red, white and dark brown felt
Matching red, white and dark brown sewing thread
Light brown embroidery thread
Toy stuffing
Sewing scissors
Embroidery scissors (these are great for cutting out felt shapes!)
Sewing needles and pins
Optional: air-erasable fabric marker pen, a pencil


To make the toadstools: 

1. Use the templates provided to cut out the toadstool pieces (as marked on the template sheet). Pin each paper template onto the correct felt colour, cut around it carefully with embroidery scissors then remove the pin. Don’t throw away any scraps of white felt as you’ll need them to decorate the toadstools. Both sizes of toadstool (large and small) are constructed in the same way.

2. Place the two white toadstool pieces together. Starting near the top of the cap, begin sewing the edges together with whip stitch and white sewing thread. Sew down the stalk then up the other side, stuffing it gradually with small pieces of toy stuffing. Continue sewing up around the cap, leaving a small gap at the top. Stuff the cap with more toy stuffing then sew up the gap with more whip stitches.

Tip: use the closed blades of your embroidery scissors or the point of a pencil to gently poke the stuffing into all the corners of the toadstool so it’s evenly stuffed. 

3. Use embroidery scissors to cut out an assortment of small circles from the white felt scraps. You could cut these freehand (they don’t need to be perfect circles!) or use an air-erasable marker pen to draw circles on the felt and cut them out.

Arrange the circles on one of the red cap pieces. For a natural-looking toadstool, make sure your arrangement isn’t symmetrical. One by one, sew each circle in place with white sewing thread and an X of two stitches.

Tip: don’t position the circles too close to the edge of the cap - remember you’ll need to sew around the edge of the cap in the next step. 

4. Sandwich the stuffed toadstool shape between the two matching red cap pieces. Start stitching where the cap and stalk meet, sewing up and around the cap until you reach the top of the stalk again. Use whip stitch and matching red sewing thread, joining the edges of the red felt so the white felt cap is completely hidden inside.

5. Continue whip stitching across the bottom of the red cap, sewing through all the layers of felt and stuffing and pulling each stitch tight. Turn the toadstool back and forth as you sew, so you can make sure your red stitches aren’t overlapping onto the white of the stalk. Finish your stitching neatly at the back.

Variations: for a slightly different look, you could use whip stitch to attach each felt circle instead of an X of two stitches. You could also use white seed beads, white sequins or even small white buttons to decorate the toadstool caps instead of using felt circles. 


To make the mushroom: 

1. Use the templates provided to cut out the mushroom pieces (as marked on the template sheet). Pin each paper template onto the correct felt colour, cut around it carefully with embroidery scissors then remove the pin.

2. Sew and stuff the two white mushroom pieces, using the method described in step 2 of the toadstool instructions (above).

3. Position the brown mushroom cap piece (A) on the white mushroom cap piece (B) and pin it in place. Use dark brown sewing thread and whip stitch to sew along the bottom edge of the brown felt shape. Remove the pin. Turn the cap pieces over and carefully trim the excess white felt above the line of stitching, as shown below right.

4. Place the white stalk piece on the cap pieces as pictured below, so the top of the stalk slightly overlaps the bottom of the mushroom cap. Hold or pin the layers of felt together and whip stitch along the top of the stalk with white sewing thread.

5. Cut a piece of light brown embroidery thread and separate half the strands (so, for six-stranded thread use three strands). Switch to a larger needle if necessary and backstitch around the top of the stalk, sewing flush with the edge of the felt.

Then use an air-erasable fabric marker pen to draw several lines radiating from the top of the stalk. Sew along each line with backstitch and more half strands of light brown embroidery thread. Don’t sew all the way to the edge of the white felt – leave a small gap at each end of the lines, as shown below. If you don’t have an air-erasable pen just sew the lines freehand using the photo as a guide.

6. Place the embroidered mushroom on the stuffed mushroom shape, lining up the stalks. Starting at the top of the stalk, sew down the stalk and around it using white sewing thread and whip stitch to join the pieces together.

Then add the brown mushroom cap piece (B) at the back and begin stitching up around the cap. Start with white thread, switch to brown as you sew around the brown felt, and then switch back to white again on the other side of the cap.

Finally, sew along the bottom edge of the cap at the back of the mushroom (don’t stitch through all the layers as in step 5 of the toadstool instructions) then finish your stitching neatly.

This tutorial is for non commercial use only: you can use it to make as many mushrooms and/or toadstools as you want for yourself or as gifts, but please don't make any for sale. You may borrow a couple of photos if you want to blog about this project, but remember to credit me and link back to this page on my blog, and do not reproduce my entire tutorial / share my templates on your site. Thanks!

Enjoyed this free tutorial? Buy me a "coffee" and help support my blog!



P.S. Subscribe to my newsletter for a monthly free pattern and visit my crafty tutorial archive for lots more free projects.

Visit my shop to buy my printable PDF sewing patterns: