March 29, 2011

What to Do with Scraps of Felt, Part III: Make a Cute Bracelet

This one is super-easy and perfect for Spring (which I trust will arrive any day now). Keep it simple and unrestrained or bump it up a notch with a few extra steps for a more sophisticated look.

Materials


  • Scraps of felt cut up into squares, rectangles, triangles, circles, or what-have-you
  • Elastic stringing material such as Stretch Magic or Elonga; I used 5 mm but 7 mm would also probably work, depending on the size of your felt bits
  • Scissors
  • Needle
  • Beads (optional)
  • Fabric glue (optional)
  • Thread (optional)

Steps
Decide whether you want a more or less restrained final piece. If you go the less restrained route, simply thread your needle with about one-and-a-half to two-times the amount of stringing material you need to go around your wist, tie a knot in one end, and begin stringing the bits of felt onto it. When you've got enough to go around your wrist, pull the knotted end of the stringing material away from the felt so that you have enough loose material on either end to make a knot (I used a modified square knot; click on the Elonga link above for a great illustration). Wear it as-is, or trim away some of the shagginess with a scissor.


If you want a slightly more restrained (but no less festive)-looking final product, select bits of felt that are of roughly equal size and alternate their colors. Add some beads at regular intervals for even more variation. I used felted beads in the sample above but most 7-10 mm glass, stone or plastic beads would also work well. Just be sure the hole is large and smooth enough to fit your stringing material without shredding it.

Finally, if you're feeling really ambitious, or if you want an even more polished final product, you can stack your bits of felt in different color combinations and either glue or sew them together to make your own beads. String them alone or with a few accent beads in-between.


Easy-breezy Springtime fun, both to make and to wear!

Until next time -

Enjoy!


Linda

6 comments:

Linda B said...

Love the bright colors. It's a fun bracelet.

Simone said...

You always come up with amazing things you make out of felt. Love the pin you made for Kimm

Kelly/Aperture Agog said...

Super fun! Thanks for the simple idea.

Metalicious said...

EEEK! That's adorable!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi fellow crafters!

I just found this deal for NYC and its really awesome for crafting. They have so many different projects to choose from and alot of Spring/Easter ideas too :)

https://secure.lifebooker.com/getloot/little_shop_of_crafts_1

Happy Crafting!
Kirsten

Lu said...

What a great idea - and I love the gluing together to make blockier bits.