Better Homes and Gardens (Australia)
4 SCRAPPY LABELS
Your fun and easy projects to bring seasonal colour inside
Give your flora a taste of patchwork style with these super-simple labels. Made using a mix of hand-stitching and machine-stitching, you’ll knock them up in no time at all.
CURATED NATURE
Gather your supplies
• Extra fine crepe paper (Lia Griffith Fine Coral, Blush)
• Crepe paper in Peach, Pink, Cream, Yellow and Green
• Scissors
• 30 lengths of 24-gauge floral wire
• Tacky glue
• Wooden skewer
• 20 Orange wooden beads, 0.5cm diameter
• 15cm embroidery hoop
• 20 x 40cm tulle fabric in Pale Pink or Nude
Here’s how
STEP 1 To make sweetpeas, cut 18, 2 x 2cm squares in a combination of Coral, Blush, Peach, Pink, Cream and Yellow paper. Cut into heart shapes with deep central grooves.
STEP 2 Cut 18, 3 x 3cm squares in a combination of Coral, Blush, Peach, Pink, Cream and Yellow paper. Cut into heart shapes with shallow central grooves.
STEP 3 Cut 9 floral wires in half. Place a tiny dot of glue on the boom point of each small heart. Aach 2 hearts to each wire and pinch to secure. Place skewer against the 2 tops of each heart and use your fingers to help gently curl the paper over the skewer so the 2 pieces close in on each other.
STEP 4 Taking 3 o r 4 larger hearts at a time to prevent tearing, gently stretch the tops of the hearts to create so waves. Place a tiny dot of glue on the boom point of the hearts. Aach each larger heart to wire behind a small heart and pinch to secure, pairing the colours.
STEP 5 Cut 18, 2 x 2cm squares from the Green crepe. Cut five-pointed shapes from the base of the squares. Place a tiny dot of glue on the base point of each piece of greenery. Aach 2 greenery pieces to the base and back of each sweetpea, pinching to secure.
STEP 6 Gather 3 sweetpea pieces together and arrange. Cut an 0.5cm-wide strip of Green paper to make a ribbon and, starting just below the boom flower, secure with glue then wind the ribbon around and down the stems, securing along the way with glue, and at the end.
STEP 7 For the leaves, take 8 floral wires and curl and wind the ends over and around the wooden skewer
to create the curling fronds.
STEP 8 Cut thin, 4-5cm long balloon shapes from the Green paper. Apply glue at the boom point of the leaves and aach to the 8 wires in pairs, below the curling fronds, using 2 pairs for each stem. Pinch the tops of each leaf together to create a realistic shape.
STEP 9 To make berries, cut 10 lengths of floral wire in half. Apply a blob of glue to the end of each wire and carefully place each one inside an orange bead. Once dry, form the berry shapes by dividing stems into 4 groups. Within each group, place stems at different levels and slightly bend them outwards from each other. Cut 0.5cm-wide strips of Green paper to make ribbons and secure with glue a couple of centimetres below the lowest berry in each group. Wind ribbon around and down stems, securing along the way and when you reach the end.
STEP 10 To make wild flowers, cut a 2.5 x 13cm strip from both the Coral and Blush paper. Cover piece lightly with glue and laminate together with second colour strip. Repeat twice, for 3 flowers total, and leave until dry.
STEP 11 Snip vertically with grain of paper along strips, making cuts as narrow as possible to create delicate fringes, and leaving only 0.5cm of bases fully intact, as shown in Step 12 image.
STEP 12 Apply a light layer of glue to the base of each piece of fringed crepe and wrap around the top of a length of floral wire.
STEP 13 Cut another 0.5cm wide strip of Green paper to make a ribbon for each wild flower. Apply glue and just cover the base of the flower, as shown; don’t move it further down the stem. Use your fingers to lightly roughen up the fringe.
STEP 14 To decorate inner hoop, secure a stem of sweetpea by holding the stem with your thumb where you’d like it positioned, then wind the stem tightly around the inner hoop. Arrange sweetpeas around hoop at organically regular intervals, referring to the Step 17 image as a guide.
STEP 15 Repeat Step 14 with the clusters of berries and sweetpea leaves to complete the inner hoop.
STEP 16 Unscrew outer part of the embroidery hoop to its loosest fiing. Fold the tulle fabric in half to form a double layered 20 x 20cm square and place it over the outer hoop. Now carefully place the decorated inner hoop in the outer hoop and push down so they’re siing snugly together. Screw outer part of hoop tight. Secure fabric to outer hoop with glue and trim away excess.
STEP 17 To finish, thread the wires of the wild flowers through the tulle fabric at your desired points. Bend the wire at 90 degrees to the flower head and feed through the fabric again to secure it around the hoop once or twice. Trim away any excess wire ends to neaten.
Here’s how
STEP 1 Remove glass and backing from picture frame and bend the holding pegs towards the back. Mark 0.5cm intervals along the top and boom of the inside lip of the frame. Hammer tacks into place at marked intervals, leaving enough room to wrap thread around each one.
STEP 2 Tie end of warp coon securely to first nail. Running vertically from tack to tack, warp the loom, keeping hold of coon to maintain consistent tension. Tie off coon around last tack and trim excess.
STEP 3 Select 1 flower template and aach it to front of frame with Blu Tack, facing back. Using main image as a guide, thread needle with first shade of yarn you’ll need, working from boom up. Working le to right, weave the first row over the template, going over and under each alternating warp string. Pull yarn through until there is a 3cm tail at the starting point.
STEP 4 Work the next row, going back the other way, alternating unders and overs from the first row. Pull yarn
into an arch shape and, using your fingers, push the arch down on top of the first row. This will keep the correct tension across the weave and not pull in the sides. If you find you have excess yarn hanging over at the end of each row, decrease the height of the arch. This weaving technique is called tabby stitch.
STEP 5 Continue following the template, weaving under and over using tabby stitch until you’ve filled in the shape behind.
STEP 6 For the narrow stem, use 2 warp strings. Weave down and through centre of the 2 strings and to the le, bringing the needle back to the front, and then down and through to the right. Continue this sequence, gently pulling yarn tight, and pushing the column of weaving down as you go for a neat finish.
STEP 7 When changing colours for the flower head, pay close aention to which warp string you went over and under for the previous row. The aim is to keep the alternating tabby stitch consistent throughout colour changes. Continue filling out template shape.
STEP 8 Once template design is complete, weave in loose ends and secure the end points of the design by threading the tail onto the needle and weaving the thread into the backs of 2 we (horizontal) stitches. Pull through gently.
STEP 9 Repeat Steps 1-8 with the remaining flower templates. When closing the gap on the square flower, be sure to pay aention to which sequence each side of the square is on. Bridge gap to join the sides in the same alternating under/over sequence.
STEP 10 To add texture to the centre of the flowers, double up the yarn on the needle. Knot end of the yarn around a warp string, remove the template and then bring the thread to the front of the frame.
STEP 11 Curl the end of yarn into a loop, siing it over the third warp string. Thread needle under third warp string, effectively through the loop, and pull gently. This will create a knot.
STEP 12 Repeat this process on every second string, moving up to the next row, until the square is filled. Pass the needle to the back of the weave and secure the tail behind 2 available warp strings.
Here’s how
Finished size 39cm square
Assembling cushion front
STEP 1 Using the circle template, cut out 1 fabric circle from each square.
STEP 2 Knot one end of strong thread. With the wrong side of 1 fabric circle towards you, turn over a seam allowance of 6mm from the right side. Insert needle into seam with knot on the wrong side of circle. Using an even running stitch and turning seam over as you go, sew around circle.
STEP 3 Gather up stitches tightly and make a few stitches to secure. Turn gathered centre of yo-yo outwards slightly, make a couple more small stitches and knot securely.
STEP 4 Pull out fabric edges of your yo-yo and push in gathered centre to neaten.
Repeat with rest of circles.
STEP 5 Lightly press yo-yos on both sides.
STEP 6 Mark background fabric with a small X where you want to place yo-yos.
STEP 7 Pin yo-yos directly on top of crosses, arranging fabrics as desired.
STEP 8 Using neutral coon thread, sew each yo-yo to background using a neat slip stitch. Press when finished.
STEP 9 Take baing piece and lay underneath cushion front. Press from the front and then baste through these two layers using tacking stitches. There is no need for a backing piece.
STEP 10 Using Perle coon, hand quilt around each yo-yo.
STEP 11 Take 1 piece of cushion backing fabric and turn over 1cm twice. Pin and sew in place. Repeat with other backing piece.
STEP 12 Lay cushion front, right-side down. Lay back pieces on top, right sides up and with hems overlapping. The wider piece should be above the narrower one with its hem on top. Adjust back pieces so raw edges match the front exactly. Pin and sew these layers together.
STEP 13 Prepare binding by cuing 2 strips, each measuring 2.5in x WOF, and sew these into one long length. Fold along the full length, wrong sides together, and press. Use to bind the cushion.
STEP 14 Insert cushion pad to finish.