Fabric Flower Tutorial

So…with the iminent release of my next pattern, an A-line Pinafore with multiple options, I was taking product shots of Brylie today and I had made her a wee flower headband to match her dress.

This dress is the Panelled Pinny version. Which features a panel (wow, really?) in the centre front.

You can choose to do fully lined, hence it can be reversible, or just a facing (top of the bodice lined)  which makes it cooler in for the summer months.  Which is particularrly handy in HOT, did I mention HOT Tauranga, NZ.

You can do buttons and button holes, or snaps.  I did buttons and buttonholes on this dress (but only because I had to take phots for the tutorial, otherwise I would have used my trusty and very much loved snap press.)

Here are some pretty cute shots of the pinny itself.  I really like the “just above the knee” length, as it works well as a dress on its own, yet looks great with skinny jeans or leggings.

And heres a cute one of the headband.

NOW…on to the tutorial of how to make the flower, as you are all dying to know how.

Scraps of fabric

Scissors

Thread

SHARP needle

Iron

 1 ~ Cut 5 circles, the size of your finished flower depends on the size of your circles.  I used 8cm circles and ended up with a flower that was roughly 7cm across.

2 ~ Iron all your circles in half.

3 ~ Then iron in half again.

4 ~ Make sure you have all the quarter circles facing the same way.  I set them in a row with the points at the top, and the fold on the left and the open side on the right.

5 ~ Thread your needle with 120cm (47″) of thread and double it over and knot the ends together.  Starting from the open side poke your needle in from the top.

6 ~ Take 4 even sized tucks along the raw edge of the ‘circle’.  make sure the needle ends by coming “out” the top,

7 ~ Pull the needle and thread through so the knot catches.

8 ~ Take the second, contrasting colour (or not!) and repeat step 6&7 making sure you are starting from the open side and poking in and ending from the top.

9 ~ Repeat again!!

10 ~ Now you h ave all 5 circles on your thread.

11 ~ Pull the thread tight to bunch the petals up.

12 ~ Now you can see its starting to look like a cute little flower.

13 ~ To hold the flower in its shape, poke the needle though the petal where the knot is.

14 ~ Pull tight to close the gap and secure by making 2 or 3 stitches, joining the first and last petals together.  Tie a knot,

BUT DO NOT CUT THREAD.

15 ~ Place your button on the top and sew it on, make sure you catch little bits of the petals.  You will be sewing in a hole so as you go up and down through the button, catch bits of the petal with eatch stitch.

16 ~ Cut a little circle of felt,  big enough to cover the raw edges of the petals.

If you are adding a snap so it can be attached to a headband with a snap, (or a piece of elastic in Brylie’s case joined together with a snap) add it now.

17 ~ Stitch around the edge of the felt, catching little bits of the underside of the petals as you go.

Tie a knot when you reach the end.

If you are attaching a brooch pin, now is the time to do it!!

And you’re done.

Now wasn’t that easy??