In full bloom
USE LAYERS OF SCRAP FABRICS TO CREATE THIS PRETTY DAFFODIL BROOCH FOR A FRESH SPRING LOOK
GETTING STARTED
Prepare your sewing machine by attaching a freemotion embroidery or darning foot. Next, drop the feed dogs – the mechanism that grips and pulls fabric through your sewing machine. For this project, you don’t need to place your fabric in an embroidery hoop – there is enough excess fabric around the edge of the design before trimming for you to grip and maneuver the project while working with your sewing machine. Before you begin working with your machine, though, start with test fabric to make sure the tension is correct and the bottom thread doesn’t show though. Remember the stitch length is determined by the speed at which you stitch – the faster you go, the shorter your stitches will be. When machine embroidering, try to work in one continuous line. If you do need to stop, make sure you lower the foot so you don’t have jumps in your stitching.
Cotton fabric: 10x10cm, green, peach and yellow
Wool felt: 8x8.5 cm, light yellow x2 Brooch back: 2.5cm long
Sewing machine with freemotion or darning foot
Machine cotton: black
Bondaweb
Basic embroidery kit
STITCHES USED
Straight Stitch
NOTES
Find the template on p77.
01 Start by tracing each coloured element of the design onto the Bondaweb’s paper backing separately. You will need: one yellow piece for the petals, one peach trumpet piece and two green leaves. Cut out the Bondaweb with a small border around the design and iron it onto the back of the fabrics.
02 Once the Bondaweb is securely stuck to each piece of fabric, carefully cut around the edge of each outline. Then, remove the paper backing from each of the shapes.
03 Take one piece of the felt and arrange the daffodil sections on top, in the centre, to recreate the design. Please note that the pattern will be the mirror image of what you drew on the back of the Bondaweb. Iron carefully, pressing down rather than sweeping your iron to make sure you don’t disturb the position of your daffodil pieces. Transfer the design of your daffodil onto
04 the fabric pieces using your preferred method – we used an erasable pen. Thread your sewing machine with black. Drop the feed dogs on your machine and attach your freemotion foot. Use Straight Stitch to work the design of the leaves, petals and trumpet of the daffodil, moving your fabric in one smooth motion to create the details. Remember to reverse over yourself at the start and end of your stitching. When moving to a new area, there is no need to cut the thread. Simply trail over to the new area and then use some embroidery scissors to cut away the loose threads after you have finished stitching.
05 Remove your design from the sewing machine and trim any loose ends or trailing threads. Cut a square of Bondaweb that is bigger than your design but smaller than the piece of felt. Iron the Bondaweb to the back of your design. Remove the paper backing and place the second square of felt over the sticky back of your design. Iron the two together, creating a neat back and two layers of felt on the reverse of your design.
06 Carefully cut around your design, removing the excess felt. Take care to ensure none of the felt is showing – you may want to use a pair of small, sharp scissors to help you with the corners. Stitch or glue the brooch fastening to the centre of the back. Feel free to play with the shades and patterns of your fabrics. Daffodils come in a variety of colour combinations, so this is a great way to use up some of your fabric stash. Fabric with a small pattern works well to give more interest to your brooch.