PRETTY PINCUSHION

You’ll never lose pins or needles again with this next to you when you’re sewing.

YOU WILL NEED

✽ Pencil ✽ Paper (scrap and tracing) ✽ Polymer extra-soft lino block (15 x 20cm) ✽ Cutting mat ✽ Lino-cutting tool set ✽ Craft knife ✽ Mediumweight cotton or calico ✽ Iron ✽ Newspaper ✽ Red Speedball screenprinting ink for fabric ✽ Sponge roller ✽ Fabric scissors ✽ Pins ✽ Sewing machine ✽ Needle and thread ✽ Hollow-fibre filling

TO MAKE

❶ Draw out a heart design (10 x 10cm).

❷ Trace on to tracing paper. Turn over the tracing paper on to the lino block with the design in the centre and draw over the back so the design transfers.

❸ With the lino block on a cutting mat, slowly and gently carve away pencilled lines. Always cut away from yourself and have your non-carving hand behind the sharp tool at all times. Try this on another piece of lino first, using the different blades to see the marks they make.

❹ Use a V blade for the heart outline and fine lines, 3U blade to create dots and 4U blade to go around the edge of the heart.

❺ Brush away any loose bits of lino. Cut around edge of heart with a craft knife.

❻ Iron and cut fabric into 18cm squares.

You will need two for each pincushion.

❼ With the stamp on newspaper, cover the heart with an even layer of ink using the roller and place one piece of material on top so the stamp sits in the centre. Press down without shifting the fabric or stamp.

❽ Peel away the fabric starting at one corner. Leave to dry. Re-ink the stamp to use again or wash off the ink.

❾ After 24 hours, iron the back of the fabric (opposite side to stamped design).

❿ Cut out printed heart with a 2cm seam allowance all around. Cut another heart to the same size from the plain piece of fabric. With right sides facing, pin and sew together leaving a 2.5cm gap at the bottom. Turn right side out, stuff and hand-sew the gap closed.➺