Tag: greeting cards

an (almost) no-sew project

After browsing through the card section at a local store recently, I walked out disappointed by the selection (and the price.) Inspired by something I saw at a craft store, I wondered if I could make my own cards. What did I have on hand? Scraps. Lots and lots of fabric scraps leftover from various sewing projects.

I came up with this simple and (almost) no-sew project using what I had at home. Here’s how:

1. Make your “patchwork”

I used cotton or cotton blend pieces leftover from previous projects. Using my rotary cutter and mat, I cut random sections into squares, triangles, and strips ranging from 1″-2″. I then arranged the fabric bits on a 7″ x 10″ piece of fusible fleece, with the sticky (bumpy) side up. You could also use fusible interfacing if that’s what you have, but I like the puffy effect the fleece gives the project. I tried to cover the entire fleece, playing around with colors and shapes, trimming as needed to fill the space.

2. Adhere the patchwork to the fleece

Carefully take the patchwork to the ironing board, cover with a pressing cloth, and press to adhere the fabric to the fleece.

3. Cut the Hearts

Make a heart pattern from cardstock, then trace the shape onto the backside of the patchwork piece. Cut the shapes out. I think it would be fun to experiment with different patterns: Christmas trees, balloons, flowers. Simple shapes would work best.

4. Stitch the hearts onto blank greeting cards

I purchased a pack of plain white 4″x6″ greeting cards and envelopes (from Amazon). Then, using a zig-zag stitch, stitched around the edge of the heart. You might notice I added a button. ( You know I can’t resist adding buttons from my vintage button stash to my sewing and craft projects) If you want to do this, sew it on before you stitch the heart to the card.

I love the way the stitching secures the edges of the heart and gives a quilt-like effect. Not a sewist? No worries! You could always glue the heart onto the card.

5. Add a message

I used a black sharpie fine point pen (and my best kindergarten teacher printing) to write a message at the top of the heart. This is where you can really personalize the card.

That’s it! Have fun!