Life in the Craft Lane: Holiday Felt!

This is the month when I start to get serious about holiday projects: home dec, ornaments, gift giving, etc. so it seemed like a good time to join the Designer Crafts Connection blog hop with Kunin felt. I've created a number of projects for Kunin over the years, so I have a good supply of felt to work with.

Felt is one of those materials that has been around for-ev-er........ I remember making an embroidery project and a doll with it in elementary school in the 50's, but felt is all grown up now, just like me, and definitely not just for elementary school projects any more.......

Felt is so versatile, it wasn't easy to decide what to make, so I actually ended up with a technique with sticky felt that I think you'll really like, and two projects - a pillow wrap and a bottle gift bag!

You'll Need:

Kunin® Classic Felt - 1 yd Tomato Red
Kunin® Presto Felt - Kelly Green
Gwen Studios Taffy Stripe ribbon - 3/8" & 5/8" Red
Gwen Studios double faced satin ribbon - 3/8" Green
Gwen Studios double faced satin ribbon - 3/8" White
Gwen Studios Snap tool
Joy® Embroidered iron-on letter sheet - Green
1/2" pom pom - 4 red
Novelty yarn - white fur
Jingle bells - 5 silver
Glue gun and fabric glue sticks
1/4" double sided tacky craft tape
Scissors
Embroidery needle
Thin yarn, or embroidery floss - white

First things First... let's make the Gnome embellishments!

1. Create a pattern from card stock as follows:

Fold a 2 1/2" x 6" piece of card stock in half lengthwise. Starting about 1" from the bottom edge, cut a straight line from the outside edges across to the top of the fold. Starting at the same point, cut a curve to the bottom of the folded edge. Unfold the paper and it should look something like this. It doesn't have to be perfect.

2. Trace the pattern onto the back of the Presto (sticky back) felt. You'll need one for each gnome, so I cut 5.

3. Starting at the top, carefully peel the paper away from the felt about an inch. The adhesive is very aggressive so it's best to do this a little at a time. Starting 1/2" from the top, layer the white satin and narrow striped ribbon across the sticky side of the felt, alternating the ribbons and peeling the paper back as you go. Let the ribbon pieces extend over each side. Place the last piece of ribbon about 1" from the bottom. Leave the backing paper in place.

4. Flip over then trim the excess ribbon even with the edge of the felt. Flip back then remove the rest of the backing paper. Starting at one edge below the ribbon, adhere the furry yarn along the bottom curve. Add a second piece of yarn above the first and press the red pom pom at the center for the nose. Press the bell onto the top of the hat.

NOTE: I used the narrow striped and white ribbons for 4 gnomes for the pillow wrap and the gift bag. The finished gnome shown below will be used as an ornament to hang on a tree, wreath, or garland, or over the neck of a bottle of "holiday cheer". I alternated the wider striped and green ribbon for this one and added a loop of yarn at the top for a hanger, a red berry for his nose instead of a pom pom and I added a snowflake I'd cut from white Presto felt at the back. Presto (sticky) felt also comes in other colors, but it didn't matter what color I used for gnomes, since the tacky side is covered and they'll be glued to the pillow wrap and gift bag.

Bottle Gift Bag

Nothing says "Happy Holidays" better than a gift of wine, especially when placed in such an adorable gift bag!

1. Cut a 30" x 6" piece of red felt then fold in half. Starting at the folded edge, stitch the sides together using blanket stitch. Stitch all the way up to the top, along one side at the top then stitch both sides together down the opposite side to create the bag.

2. Glue an 30" piece of the the 5/8" striped ribbon to the center of the back of the bag, about 3" from the top edge. NOTE: The back edge is not stitched.

3. Glue one of the gnomes to the from of the bag about 3" from the bottom edge, then place the iron-on letters above. Use a pressing cloth to iron the letters in place on top of the felt.

Pillow Wrap

Pillows are a great way to add a decorative accent in the home for different seasons and holidays throughout the year. There are so many fun pillows to choose from for every occasion, but finding a place to store the ones that are "out of season" can become a challenge, so I purchased a couple of plain pillows and create custom pillow wraps.... easy to make and store!

1. Cut a piece of felt 14" x 28". Pillows however, come in a variety of sizes, so you'll need to cut a strip of felt long enough to go around your pillow, plus 2" or 3" to overlap. The width will also vary. I cut mine so there is about 4"-5" showing on either side.

2. I used tacky tape to adhere the 5/8" striped ribbon along the edges of the felt wrap, plus 2" to overlap at one end. Fold this end under to create a 1" tab to attach a snap - one at each side. Attach the other snap piece about 1" from edge of the opposite end. When the wrap is placed around the pillow, the snaps will hold it in place. NOTE: Yes, you can also use safety pins 😀

3. Glue the remaining 3 gnomes to the from of the wrap. I also GLUED the letters J O Y, one letter to each hat, but this is optional. I DID NOT IRON THEM ON.

I hope you'll enjoy making your holiday projects as much as I enjoyed making them! You can find more felt projects by checking out the links on the DCC blog..... and, of course the Kunin Felt blog.