Sew Cute: Mother’s Day Bouquet

Mother’s Day is just around the corner on May 11. It’s always seemed to me that one day out of the year isn’t enough to really honor my mother. Besides being an incredibly warm, generous, inspiring person, she taught me to sew and gave me my love for making things. That and, you know, she gave birth to me, raised me, kept me out of trouble, et cetera.

This week, I wanted to make something sweet for my mom. I stitched together some cheerful daisies, complete with bendable stems and little leaves. They look adorable clustered together in a vase: as pretty as a real bouquet, but made by hand and with plenty of love. Try making a bunch of these for a special person in your life—something crafted is always a thoughtful gift.

Materials:

• Colorful felt for the petals
• Black felt
• Green felt
• Basic sewing needle
• Thread in a corresponding color to the petal felt
• Black thread
• Green thread
• Florist’s wire
• Florist’s tape
• Craft glue
• Scissors
• Piece of paper
• Ballpoint pen
• Measuring tape

Craft away:

• Draw a petal shape onto the paper, 2-inches long by 3/4-inch wide. Cut out the petal template.
• Draw a small circle onto the paper, 1-inch wide. Cut out the circular template.

• Trace the petal template seven times onto the colorful felt, and cut out the pieces.
• Trace the petal template once onto the green felt, and cut out the piece.
• Trace the circular template once onto the black felt, and cut out the piece. You can trace the template with a white colored pencil, or just hold it in place while you cut around it.

• Cut a couple of feet of the thread that matches the color of the petal fabric, fold it in half, then thread the needle and tie a knot.
• Stitch the petals together in a circle. To do this, layer the petals over each other, and connect them together using small stitches at the corners of the petals.

• Put the black circle over the middle of the petals, and stitch it in place with the black thread. Use looping stitches to help hide your work.

• Cut a 10-inch long piece of the florist’s wire. Be careful—the ends are sharp!
• Put a small dot of craft glue at the end of a piece of florist’s tape, and attach it to the end of the wire.
• Wrap the florist’s tape around the wire, covering it completely. Use another bit of glue at the top to set the tape in place.

• Fold the base of the green petal piece (the leaf) around the wire, about 3 inches from the top. Use the needle and the green thread to stitch it in place.

• Place the flower at the top of the wire, with the wire flat against the back of the felt. Use the needle and the matching thread to stitch it in place. Take lots of small stitches—this will make your flower more secure, and help hide your work.

• Repeat the above steps until you’ve made however many flowers you want for your bouquet.
• Arrange your handmade blooms in a pretty vase, or tie them together with ribbon. Then, give them to your mom, or the special person whose day you want to brighten.