Floral Fabric Easter Egg Tutorial Number 2

So here as promised is the second design for a fabulous Easter decoration. This week my inspiration came in the form of the gorgeous, happy, yellow daffodils which are bringing Springtime cheer in our garden at the moment. Love them!

To make this egg you will need:

2 felt egg shapes, (see last week's post for sizing), 15cm ribbon, 1 orange or yellow button, 1 orange felt circle cut with pinking shears slightly larger in size then the button, 1 yellow daffodil shape approx 5cm x 5cm

Step one:

Pin and sew the ribbon across the centre of one of the felt egg shapes wrapping the ribbon around each side to give a neat edge.

Step two:

Place the daffodil shape in the middle of the ribbon, the orange circle in the middle of the daffodil and the button on top of the felt circle. Sew all three together and through the ribbon and felt egg to attach the daffodil to the egg shape.

Step three:

As in last week's tutorial (click here to view) sew around the outside of the egg leaving a small gap on one side, (I have used blanket stitch for this one), add a small amount of stuffing and sew up the gap.

Ta dah! your gorgeous second Easter decoration is now complete. Number 3 to follow next week.

Sew Fabulous, Easter! - Floral Fabric Easter Egg Tutorial Number 1

After a long and wet Winter, Spring feels like it is just around the corner- hooray! I for one am ready for some sunshine and colour.  There is gorgeous colour bursting through in our garden in the form of blossom, crocuses and Daffodils at the moment. It is a delight to see and whilst it is not quite time to throw open the patio doors and eat outside every day, it is the perfect time of year to bring some gorgeous Spring colour indoors.

Easter is on its way and its time to think about decorative touches here and there that herald this springtime celebration.We have already been thinking ahead to Easter in our school sewing clubs and have been making felt eggs as well as cute little chicks, rabbits and lambs (see the header image).

I am busy designing fabric eggs to decorate our home using different sewing techniques and for the next four weeks until the Easter weekend I shall be adding a new felt & fabric egg tutorial each Sunday. These eggs can be hung individually as decorations on an "Easter Tree" like this one that I made last year.

They will also look gorgeous hung over door handles around the home or make lots and hang them on to springtime coloured ribbon to make Easter Bunting.

So here is the first tutorial - inspired by beautiful spring tulips and using cross stitch, this adorable egg decoration is simple to make and has a gorgeous vintage look.

You will need:

Two felt egg shapes approx 12cm height x 10cm width, 12 count Aida cross stitch fabric approx 4cm X 12cm, embroidery thread, small amount of soft toy filling.

Step one:

Make your cross stitch tulip decoration. To do this I used 12 count Aida, pink and green embroidery thread and a very easy to follow pattern. (You can find the cross stitch pattern at the end of this post).

Four tulips with two squares in-between each one are ideal to place across the egg.

Step two:

Sew the tulip strip on to the front of one of the felt egg shapes using a contrasting coloured thread.

Step three:

Pin the two egg shapes together and sew around the edge using small running stitch. For a colourful decorative touch use a contrasting thread to make this lovely whipped running-stitch. To do this you simply thread the needle under each of the running stitches, wrapping the thread around each as you go. 

Leave a gap of about 5cm. Add a small amount of soft toy filling, just enough to give the egg some depth and then sew up the remaining gap using the same technique.

Ta dah! Your first Floral Fabric Easter Egg is complete. Look out for the second fabulous floral egg tutorial next week.

Fabulous Ms Fox

As a child I dreamt of having a pet fox. If the truth be told I still wouldn't mind having one as a pet. However, I am old and wise enough to appreciate the impracticalities and having had the chance to get up close to a baby fox at a local fete a couple of years ago I also realise that they smell pretty unpleasant(!)

We have the occasional foxy visitor in our garden - when we first moved into our home we were lucky enough to have a family of foxes living at the bottom of the garden and the boys and I spent ages watching the cubs playing together at twilight. They have since grown up and moved on but we still get the odd fox passing through and all feel very lucky to see these beautiful creatures.

The trend for woodland creatures in home decor and accessories looks set to continue which is brilliant as I adore anything that is just the right side of kitsch. I have been playing around with the idea of a fox cushion for a while and this is what I have come up with.

I took my inspiration for the design from retro fabrics and I was pleased to find the fabric below in a local shop. This fabric will be put to use shortly when I am designing the Hope & Gloria Summer projects - patchwork bags. Like the fox in the fabric my fox has patches of cream on his face but I have also used a retro spot fabric on his ears to give him a colourful "lift".

This lovely lady would look fab sitting on a bed or chair in a child's room and I am so pleased with her that we shall be making these as part of an Easter workshop - I can't wait!