Let joy and color bloom with this radiant sunflower! Felt fabric and shaded stitching combine to give this freestanding design a soft and natural look. It's simple to stitch, and so stunning -- we'll show you how!
Supplies & Materials:
Project Needs & Notes:
- 1/2 yard of acrylic, polyester or wool felt (for petals)
- 1/2 yard of acrylic, polyester or wool felt (for leaves)
- 1/2 yard of acrylic, polyester or wool felt (for center)
- Embroidery thread
- Scissors
- Hand-sewing needle
- Sewing threads matching the felt colors
The designs used in this tutorial include:
Gather Materials:
Freestanding fabric designs have been specially digitized to sew on only a hooped piece of felt, so there is no stabilizer used of any kind. After the pieces are embroidered and cut out, only the embroidery and felt remains, allowing for the pieces to look pretty on both sides.
When you download the design, you will find multiple embroidery files containing all the pieces.
As the freestanding fabric pieces will be seen from both sides, wind a bobbin to match every thread color used in the design.
Start Embroidering:
Hoop the piece of felt firmly. Make sure it is nice and tight with no wrinkles.
Attach the hoop to the machine and load file "a". Embroider the design.
The first thing to embroider will be the "cut line". This marks the area on the felt where the piece will be cut out later.
Follow the color change sheet, and embroider the rest of the design, changing out the bobbins to match every thread color.
After the embroidery has finished, unhoop the felt. Then, using a scissors, carefully cut along the inner edge of the "cut line".
Cutting right along the inner edge will remove the cut line from the edge of the felt piece, leaving a clean felt edge after the piece is cut out.
Repeat the steps above to embroider and cut the rest of the felt pieces.
To begin putting the sunflower together, being by taking the two petal pieces (files "b" and "c"), and overlap them, with file "b" (the darker set of petals) behind file "c" (the lighter set of petals). Hand sew these two pieces together.
Now, lay the center piece (file "d") over the two previously joined petals, and hand sew it in place over them.
Lastly, take the leaf (file "a"), and position it on the back of the petal pieces. Finish the sunflower by hand sewing the leaf in place.
