fabulous felt

four fiskars design team members each share a sewing project with one thing in common- felt!

Designer Katrina Simeck
Fall is definitely my favorite season, and I love to decorate the house with autumn colors & themes. This felt door hanging welcomes the season with a handcrafted feel. I wanted to use rich texture & color…so felt was the perfect choice.

I started with a rectangle of brown felt, using Fiskars Pinking Sheers on the top & bottom edges. After folding the top edge down approximately 2 inches, I sewed across to create a pocket for a small wooden dowel to slide in. The Ultra Shapexpress made it simple to create templates for the green felt squares, and for the button heart.

After pinning the paper templates to the felt, I trimmed the squares using Fiskars Classic No. 8 Scissors. Lil’ Davis Designs Stripped Chip alphas, and Kimberly Polson buttons add fall color to finish the sign.

Designer: Lisa Truesdell

My son Ben just started Kindergarten, and I know that we’re headed towards another milestone in the near future – his first loose tooth.  When that day comes, he’ll be ready for the tooth fairy.  I kept this pillow simple so that he could help make it.  First, we dug into my felt stash.  He picked out his 3 favorite pieces – one for the pillow, one for the pocket, and one for the stars.  I used my Fiskars SoftGrip pinking sheers to trim the blue polka dot felt to 7in x 5in, and the green polka dot felt to 2.5in x 3in. 

We positioned the green polka dot felt on the right side of one of the pieces of blue polka dot felt and sewed around three sides of it to create the pocket.  Next, Ben found the letters to spell out his name on a sheet of Heidi Grace We Are Family chipboard letters, and we placed them on the pillow. 

To create the felt star accents, Ben used a Fiskars Squeeze Punch on a sheet of paper and I used it as a template to cut the stars from felt using my MicroTip scissors.  I sewed them in place on the pillow using red embroidery thread, and we added some orange buttons from the Kimberly Polson Cabana Blooms line.  To finish the pillow, I stitched around the edge, leaving a small opening.  Ben helped me fill the pillow with stuffing and then I stitched it the rest of the way closed. We had such fun doing this project together, and we can’t wait for Ben’s first visit from the tooth fairy! 

Stephanie Ackerman

These days a gift card (or cash) is a very welcome gift, and I want to inspire you to create something homemade and from the heart to go along with it. As crafters, we have lots of stash, including felt, fabric and paper. Don't have the gift card yet? Jut use a credit/ATM card right out of your wallet for the approximate size and then all you need to do is cut, stitch and give. It really is that easy…and the thought of putting the work into the packaging will be very impressive to the person you are gifting, but what if you don’t have felt? Then use paper…just stitch through your paper the same way you would stitch through fabric.

Gift cards have become such an easy way to give someone a gift, and although it is meaningful, show someone you care just a bit more by enclosing it in something that is handmade and from the heart. This simple little felt pouch and card can be made for any occasion and they are easy enough to make a few at a time for those last minute gifts.

Patti Milazzo
Everyone who sews – even just a little – should have a pincushion.  And felt is a great material for this project since it’s inexpensive and something I always have on hand.  Here’s an embroidered pincushion that will not only hold needles and pins, but it also serves as a small container for other notions like buttons or spools of thread. 

To create the pincushion box, start with a small wooden craft box* and apply a basecoat of acrylic paint.  Then cut 2 pieces of light blue felt ¼” larger than the box lid all the way around.  Use punches to make paper templates to cut petal and leaf shapes for the flower.  I found the 18mm Stick Rotary Cutter to be a fabulous tool since the tool maneuvers easily to cut these small shapes.  Once your felt shapes are cut, pin and stitch them onto one of the blue pieces of felt using a variety of decorative stitches – Lazy Daisy, French Knot, and Backstitch.  When the decorative aspect of your design is complete, use a Blanket Stitch to stitch both blue rectangles together – leave a 1 ½” opening.  Then fill will fiber or other stuffing and finish the Blanket Stitch all the way around.  Use a strong adhesive, like Fiskars Easy Squeeze Glue and Glue Gun, to adhere the felt “pillow” to the box lid.  Cut a narrow strip of green felt and adhere it to the side of the box’s lid.  Now that your box is complete, fill it with sewing notions and enjoy!

*Variations:  Other containers can be used in a similar fashion for this project.  Try a baby food jar, a small coffee tin or paper mache box. 

Note: If you are creating this as a gift for a sewing enthusiast, find a box slightly larger than a gift card and include that inside your handmade pincushion

By Fiskars design team