Tag Archives: Geometric

Sewing Geometric Christmas Cards

Posted in Craft DIY by

Christmas is one of my favourite times of year – I love the cosiness, and the handmade gestures. This year, I decided to make a few Christmas cards for my nearest and dearest.

Four cards

Inspired by the branding of Mote & Produksjon (Fashion & Production), I decided to get with the trend and sew different geometric patterns onto the front of my A5 cards.

Geometric Sewing Card

Instructions:

Start by creating your A5 folded cards (cutting down from A4 if necessary). I used dark colours (a navy, and mocha) that would contrast with my cream cotton thread.

I decided to make my pattern 5cm x 5cm, so I cut out a template square to size that I could position where I wanted the pattern to be, and marked the corners with a pencil.

Using the marks as a guide, I then made further pencil marks every 1.25cm until I had a square grid consisting of 25 dots. Using a needle, I then pierced holes over each of the dots.

Geometric shape

I used a cream cotton thread for my patterns, and selected the designs by Mote & Produksjon that had the most festive feel – aka, the ones that most resembled stars and snowflakes!

Once each pattern was complete, I tied the ends of the thread together on the inside of the card and cut the loose ends. I then added a smaller black paper insert to each card.

Sewing Geometric Cards

I tried two different techniques for this – on some I used double-sided tape to secure the insert, whilst on a couple of the designs, I stitched the spine to bind the insert to the card.

Personally, I love a good theme – you could also make matching gift tags using the same emblems. What do you think? Are you handy with a needle and thread?

What Christmas cards have you been making?

Inspiration: Embroidery Hoop Art

Posted in DIY Inspiration by

When I was younger, I used to cross-stitch (I vividly remember using a lot of pink thread to sew Mr. Blobby), however I’d always thought of embroidery as being more old-fashioned. Recently, with the craft comeback, ‘old’ crafts like sewing, embroidery and dress-making have seen a revival, with talented craftspeople and artists turning to embroidery hoops as modern day canvases.

I love the following designs for their simplicity and humour – they certainly bring embroidery into the 21st century, and I love how the hoops frame the finished work. When searching for inspiration, I came across Mr X Stitch, the ‘kingpin of contemporary embroidery’, and found a lot of wares on Etsy.

Embroidery Hoop Inspiration

When you’re young, your first introduction to cross-stitch and similar crafts is through patterns, but I love the idea that you can just come up with your own idea, and start sewing it onto a hoop, even creating an abstract embroidery hoop by randomly selecting coloured thread and patterns.

As well as using these as inspiration, you could take inspiration from greetings cards, immortalise funny things your kids have said, or frame personal mottos. These are great for decorating the walls of your own home, or giving as thoughtful gifts to friends and family to brighten their day!

For further information, visit these sites:

1. The Love Whale Embroidery Kit, Studio MME | 2. Little Mountain Range, Powerfulanimals | 3. Geometric Hand Stitched Embroidery Hoop, Powerfulanimals | 4. Beetle Geometric Asymmetrical 4 inch Embroidery, Rehabbed Handmade Vintage | 5. Dinosaur Embroidery Hoop, Stephanie Tillman | 6. Hug 4 inch Hoop Art, Grace Gatley Textiles | 7. Friendship Sloth, Stephanie Tillman | 8. Oh, Hey! 5 inch Embroidery Hoop, Sarah K Benning