FABRIC CROWN

YOU WILL NEED Printed fabric Natural fabric Foam stabiliser Sewing machine Scissors Needle Thread

1 Make a template for your crown the depth of the recipient’s forehead x the circumference of their head. Draw around this onto natural backing fabric and a coloured fabric. Cut out both.

2 Lay both crown shapes, right sides together, and place them on top of a foam stabiliser. Loosely cut around. 3 To make the ties, cut two 8cm x 50cm strips of natural fabric. Press in half lengthways. Fold in one end of each strip by 1cm and press. Refold in half again. Fold both long edges into the middle and press. 4 Fold the ties in half lengthways again, encasing the raw edges on the inside and press flat. Sew down the long open edges to secure.

5 Take your crown outer fabric and foam piece and place the open ends of the ties on either end, so they are running down the centre. Pin in place. Make sure they are 4cm from the bottom edge of the fabric.

6 Lay the backing fabric on top. Pin around the edges. Sew around the edge of the crown using a 1cm seam allowance. Leave a 10cm gap around the bottom edge.

7 Trim the seam allowances of the foam to match the fabric pieces. Cut the corners off all layers, avoiding the stitches. At all ‘inner points’, cut small snips towards your stitches.

8 Pull your crown right sides out through the gap. Use a knitting needle to carefully poke out the corners. Press flat.

9 Turn the seam allowance of the bottom gap to the inside and press. Use a ladder stitch to sew the gap shut.

Personalise chair backs with a hessian ribbon bow and handmade tag with the recipient’s name William Morris cotton fat quarters, £7 for pack of four; hessian natural fat quarter, £7 for pack of four, Hobbycraft Swap paper hats for reusable fabric crowns