How To: Cross Stitch Sampler Brooches

A little later than planned thanks to some tech issues (ugh)... I have a fun tutorial to share today: sew some cute cross stitch brooches with little slogans on them!

I used to make these for my shop many years ago... here are some I made earlier :)

 

As well as putting together a tutorial to show you how to make them, I've drawn up some charts so you can get stitching straight away. Hurrah!

Will you declare yourself a "COFFEE ADDICT", or proclaim "I LOVE TEA"?

Celebrate thriftiness with a "MAKE DO AND MEND" brooch or the joys of reading with a "BOOK NERD" badge?

Or explain to everyone why there's cat hair on your sweater with an "I LOVE CATS" or "CAT LADY" brooch? (There is always cat hair on my sweater).

 

Or, of course, you can always get out a pencil and some squared paper and design your own stitch-y slogans!

To make a cross stitch brooch you will need...

- the cross stitch charts provided at the bottom of this post (or your own chart)
- aida (I used white, 14 count)
- white sewing thread
- stranded embroidery thread (floss) and matching felt
- white felt
- a brooch clasp
- embroidery scissors

To make each brooch...

1. Stitch your slogan! I like to stretch my aida in an embroidery hoop to give myself a nice taught surface to stitch on.

If you've never done cross stitch before, I promise it's very easy. There are lots of beginner tutorials available online, but basically you sew two stitches through the holes in your aida to form each X... and gradually build up the design you're stitching.

I usually use half the strands of my thread (floss) when cross stitching - i.e. just using three of the six strands - but for bolder text you can use the whole thread. This isn't the world's most in-focus photo (sorry!) but it shows the difference between using three strands (top) and the whole six-stranded thread (bottom).

Here are some slogans I stitched earlier. Make sure you leave plenty of space to cut them out in the next step.

2. Iron your stitching if you need to, then cut out your slogan(s). Use the holes of the aida as a guide to help cut a neat rectangle, then trim the corners so you get a nice curved shape.

3. Using your piece of aida as a template, cut a matching piece of white felt. This will be the back of your brooch. Set it aside for the moment.

4. Stitch your cross stitch design to a piece of felt in the same colour as your letters. Use white sewing thread and whip stitch to sew the aida to the felt.

Using white thread on white aida is great because your stitches will be almost invisible... but this isn't too helpful for a tutorial! Here's the back so you can see where I've stitched. Make sure you start and finish your stitching behind the aida itself as you'll be trimming the felt in the next step.

5. Use embroidery scissors to trim away the excess felt, creating a neat frame around your stitched design. Remember not to cut too close to the edge of your stitched-on-aida - you don't want to snip your stitching!

Scallop edging looks very cute but can be a bit fiddly. If you want a less frilly look or one that's simpler to cut, just cut a plain border to frame the design.

6. Turn over the piece of white felt you cut out earlier. Sew on a brooch clasp, using a double thickness of white sewing thread.

7. Then place the front and back of your brooch together, lining up the white shapes as carefully as possible. Use small running stitches to sew the layers together (I like to follow the first row of holes in the aida) then finish your stitching neatly at the back.

And you're done! Your finished brooch will look something like this:

Click here to view the template sheet in a new tab or window and print it at 100%

This tutorial is for non commercial use only. 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 charts on your site. Thanks!

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How to: Button Sweater

Today's how to is a quick and easy way to revamp a boring sweater (jumper) and turn it into a buttony thing of beauty.

You only need basic sewing skills for this, plus an assortment of small, colourful buttons, a sewing needle and thread to match your sweater... and, of course, a sweater in need of a makeover! I used an old black v-neck jumper that was getting a bit boring and bobbly and very much needed pepping up.

First, choose your buttons. I chose bright buttons in a mixture of shapes and sizes, but all small enough to fit along the neckline of my sweater. Rearrange the buttons until you're happy with the layout.



If you're aiming for a "random" layout of buttons make sure you spread colours and shapes and sizes out so there's not too much of one type in one place, and check that you don't accidentally create a pattern from your alternating colours.

Place the buttons on a tray or table in the order you want to use them.

Gradually sew the buttons in place using thread that matches your sweater, spacing them as evenly as possible along the neckline. Secure each button with lots of stitches, and sew small stitches inbetween each button. If your sweater has a lot of stretch to it (or you can't find thread to perfectly match the sweater) you might want to sew each button on seperately to keep your neckline stretchy (or to avoid having visible lines of stitching between the buttons).


Finally, if you want even more buttons on your jumper, add some to the cuffs!

Please feel free to borrow photos if you want to blog about this project, but remember to credit me and link back to the original source, and do not reproduce my entire tutorial on your site. Thanks!
 
Enjoyed this free tutorial? Buy me a "coffee" and help support my blog!


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:

Crafty Pictures

I got this cute card from a friend for my birthday this year, and I thought it was just too nice to recycle so I added it to my "pictures to buy frames for" pile.


I found it again recently when planning some long-overdue shopping for frames and was inspired to do a bit of window shopping for more sewing-themed prints (to decorate the craft room of my dreams!). Here are some of my favourites...

Sewing Mends the Soul by hellomonkey:


Vintage Sewing Collection by runningwithcrayons:


Vintage Sewing Kit by clareowendrawing:
Also spied in her sold items - a lovely Make Do and Mend print:


Make Do and Mend by farouche:


Make Do and Mend (letterpress printed onto vintage dressmaking paper!) by printfortheloveofwood:


And finally, not a print at all but some lovely fabric I'm adding to my wishlist ...

Retro Sewing Print Fabric from TamsynG:

Mending and Alterations

Ah, mending! I'd never throw things away just because they lost a button or ripped a seam but my goodness mending things is dull. It's right up there with ironing on my "loathed domestic chores" list and despite sewing things for a living the mending pile is often neglected for months.

So I'm feeling very virtuous this week for getting a top darned, a rip in a cardigan mended and two pairs of too-long trousers hemmed. Hurrah!


I'm also thinking about tackling another "make do and mend" project, altering another vintage dress that's been lurking unworn in my wardrobe for years.


I love this dress - the florals! the multicoloured buttons! the ric rac trim! - but I never wear it because the sleeves are just too huge. They start out as a sensible width and balloon out to these big flappy things that while being deliciously retro are completely impractical for anything other than a fancy dress party.


I'd love to be able to wear this dress all through the autumn, with bright tights and cardigans but to do that I need to alter the sleeve to make them more wearable (and to make them fit under my cardigan sleeves!) ... making them narrower and maybe adding a cuff? I predict much googling of sewing tutorials in my future!