Summer Wedding? Here’s A Needle Felting Gift Idea
Summer means a lot of things- no school, lots of swimming, and all the ice cream you can eat! For many of us, summer also means ALL THE WEDDING INVITATIONS! While most couples have a pretty detailed registry to choose from, sometimes a registry gift (or an envelope of cash) can seem impersonal. Here’s an idea to add an extra touch of thoughtfulness to any wedding gift.
Step One: Felt A Palm-Sized Heart
Grab your white wool, and felt an approximately palm-of-your-hand sized heart. It can be relatively flat, or three dimensional. It’s up to you! You’ll want a fairly tight felt on this one, so stab away until your edges are fairly smooth.
Step Two: Grab a Sharpie
Depending on how strong your penmanship is, you may or may not want to get a stencil for this one. We’re going to do lettering, but it doesn’t need to be fancy. even just straight, sans serif letting will do. On one “bump” of the heart, write the initials of one half of the happy couple. Repeat the process on the other bump with the other half’s initials. Then, below that, write the date of their wedding. (I find 07-24-18 style of date to be the easiest to work with.)
Step Three: Select Your Wool
While you may not know the couple’s preferred wedding colors in advance, you can often get a decent idea of their theme based off of the invitation. You may want to select their official wedding color for your lettering, or you may just want to go with a classic, like blue (something old, something new…)
Step Four: Felt The Lettering
Using very fine pieces of wool, felt over your Sharpied letters. It doesn’t matter how thick or thin you make them, just try to make them an even thickness, and cover over all the visible Sharpie lines.
Step Five: Adornment
You may want to add extra felted flair, or you may want to leave it as-is. Some ideas include birds, bells, flowers – any sort of wedding-y theme. If you have friends like mine who had a full-sized R2-D2 at their wedding, you may want to consider adding something Star Wars-y to your piece. Or not. But you get the idea.
Step Six: Add A Ribbon
At the top of your piece, secure a ribbon loop. You’ll want to sew this on to make sure it stays.
And voila! You have a customized Christmas tree ornament for the happy couple! Attach it to the top of your gift, or on the card for just that added extra something. Even though it’s not on the registry, it’ll be something they enjoy for years to come!
Want more project ideas, or help navigating felted lettering? Consider joining my academy! You’ll get access to courses, videos, and a community of felters like you who can help you through tricky spots, offer feedback, and help you brainstorm ideas for your next project. Sign up now! We’re waiting to craft with you.
