project // star wars day blue milk coaster

Do you, like Luke Skywalker, enjoy drinking blue milk? It has long been a beverage of Star Wars legends, but thanks to Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, it's real. And now you can also make your own coaster featuring a smiling felt glass of blue milk.

Star Wars Day (May the 4th) is an important holiday at my house and every year, so every year I share some kind of a Star Wars tutorial here on my blog. Sometimes I make even more patterns throughout the year, and you can find them all here. Don't worry. I'll still be here when you come back.

This year, since I've been making some Disney snacks as ornaments, I thought it would be fun to make something similar. Especially since this is a Disney parks treat. Rather than making another ornament, I made my little cup of blue milk and added it to a coaster. This way you can actually use it while drinking your blue milk.

Now you may be wondering, why would I bring this coaster with me to get a blue milk at a Disney park? The answer is of course that you don't have to. Because blue milk exists and you can get it at your local American grocery store.

Personally, I'll be using my coaster with my coffee or water, even if that isn't very Star Wars-y. Milk of any shade isn't really my thing. But making things is! So let's do that.



You will need:

Standard wool or wool blend felt (at least a 4x4 inch square, plus scraps)
3mm thick felt
Embroidery floss
Ruler
Pencil
Freezer paper
Iron
Scissors
Needle
Craft glue

DOWNLOAD THE BLUE MILK PATTERN PDF



Cut a 4x4 inch square of felt for the top of your coaster and a matching 4x4 square of the thick felt for the bottom of the coaster.



Trace the blue milk pieces onto freezer paper and iron them onto the small felt pieces. Embroider the face with three strands of black embroidery floss.

I used white for the top and blue for the bottom, but green milk is also a thing, so go with what you like. You could also use this pattern to have chocolate milk or other beverages. Oh, and the face is optional, as always, but I think it's super cute!



Cut out the two pieces and peel off the paper. Carefully tear it away from around the face stitching.



Stitch the pieces onto the top coaster square with two strands of matching embroidery floss and whip stitch. You can see how I do it in this video.



Apply a thin layer of craft glue over the back of the felt square, making sure you get it pretty close to the edges and corners.



Press the top square onto the thicker bottom square of felt. Smooth it out and make sure that the edges are all even. Let the glue dry.



Pour yourself a tall glass of blue milk or grab your favorite Star Wars mug and enjoy using your new coaster. It's better than using the force to avoid rings on your coffee table! By the way, the size of this happy little felt applique is also the same size as the felt ornaments I've been making with other Disney snacks this year. That means you can use this to make an ornament OR that you can use those appliques to make coasters or other fun things!

Happy Star Wars Day, and May the Fourth be with you!

project // embroidered macaron ornament

Have you seen those adorable macaron zip pouches? This is inspired by those, but without the zip pouch part. It's an embroidered macaron ornament with a sweet flower for Mother's Day!

Now, I want to acknowledge that I have been on an ornament-making kick this year. And I know that some folks are probably wondering why. Or maybe what in the world are you supposed to do with all these when it's not even Christmas. All I can say is that I love making them because they are small and fun little things to make and give as gifts. That's the why.

As for what to do with them, I just like finding places to hang them or display them. You can put them on a little branch in a vase. Display them on your wall alongside other small art pieces. Maybe even hang them from your rearview mirror! Ultimately, they are just fun. But also, you can use any or all of the ornaments patterns I share to get a headstart on holiday gifts. Just sayin'.



If you're also wondering what makes this a "macaron" ornament when it looks like a circle with a flower on it, take a look at it from the side. The front and back are domed like a French macaron. The middle of the ornament has trim that's kind of like the edges or filling of the tasty treat.

To make this, you'll need the little macaron forms that Zakka Workshop makes. Mine came from Missouri Star Quilt Co., where you can purchase a pack of four discs without the zippers designed for making a macaron pouch. But I do want to point out that you could use my flower embroidery pattern on one of the zip pouches.

But if you're looking for simple, let's make an ornament!



One last thing before I list all the materials. I mentioned Missouri Star Quilt Co., and the fabric and macaron discs for this were provided for me by them. They also are offering 20% off orders of $50+ when you use this link. (affiliate link) Here's what you need:

Quilting fabric (I used Kona's color of the year, plus MSQ's Quilt Town)
Embroidery floss
Felt
2" Macaron discs
Perle cotton and tiny crochet hook -OR- Small trim
Embroidery marking pen
3-inch Embroidery hoop
Needle
Scissors
Quick-drying glue

DOWNLOAD THE FLOWER EMBROIDERY PATTERN



Trace the inside of the embroidery hoop onto felt two times and cut out the circles.



Trace the embroidery pattern onto your fabric for the front of the ornament.

I've recently been loving having pre-cut packs of solid colored fabric to use for embroidery. It's super handy! And while this time I got a pack of all one color (I'll be using the rest for another project), the multicolor packs are great for giving you lots of color options without needing to buy a ton of fabric.



Place one of the felt circles behind the embroidery hoop. You'll embroider through the fabric and the felt. This makes the embroidery look nicer when it's wrapped around the disc.



Embroider the pattern. I used three strands for everything. For stitches, it's mostly back stitch with some French knots for the eyes, tiny flowers and the center ring. Plus some lazy daisies, a few straight stitches on the petals, and a scallop stitch mouth.

Remove the pattern markings. Because I used a pen than vanishes over time, I just let it do its thing. If you need to soak it, remember that the felt will take longer to dry!



For the back of the ornament, place the second felt circle on the wrong side of your fabric and cut out a circle that's about 1/4" larger than the felt. Err on the side of cutting it larger than smaller. Place the disc domed side down on the felt.

Follow this same process to cut out the embroidered circle for the front.



Use embroidery floss or perle cotton to sew around the edge of the fabric with running stitch. It's best to keep the stitches under 1/4" long. Mine were probably 3/16".



Pull the thread to gather the fabric tight onto the back and secure it with a knot.



Repeat the process for the second half of the ornament.



If you're using small trim, you can skip this step, but I made the trim with a crochet hook.

To do this, make a crocheted chain of perle cotton that's about 12 inches long or a little longer. I used a 2mm hook.



Fold the trim in half and glue the two ends of the trim so they will be inside the macaron with the rest of the trim coming out from the bottom.

Add more glue around the inside and place the second half of the macaron on top. Press the halves together and let them dry.



For the best coverage, have the two sides of the trim cross to the opposite side. This covers the little gap that you see otherwise.



Run a tiny line of glue around the seam of the macaron.



Bring the trim up to the top of the macaron, pressing it into the glue. Add an extra dot of glue at the top, and once again cross the trim. This forms the hanger and covers all the edges.

Let the glue dry thoroughly before hanging the ornament or wrapping as a gift.



I just think this is adorable and a fun little decoration to make and share. It would even make a sweet gift topper! Perhaps on a box of real macarons?

To customize it more, you can also skip the print on the back and use another piece of solid fabric. Embroider "MOM" or a name to make something truly unique.



On the edible kind of macarons, they have what is known as "ruffled feet". The trim on my ornament is kind of like a ruffled foot, but the edge of a stack of pre-cut charm squares has an even better texture! (It can be a bit messy though...IYKYK!)

project // magnetic felt frame (with flowers for mother's day!)

Want to make a sweet little frame for your mom this Mother's Day? This one is made from felt and has magnets so she can stick it on the refrigerator! I'm showing it here with a little poetry line, but you can add a photo or anything you'd like. It's especially good for a gift to give grandma with smiling grandkid faces inside. And they can help make the frame too!

I've had more felt crafts than usual around here lately, many of which use deep-etch dies from Benzie and a manual die cutting machine. But I've just really been having fun using them, and when I can find a new way to combine my favorite things, I go for it! This time around I'm using the Squares and Scallops set (affiliate link). And the flowers use a technique that I recently saw on Instagram, and just HAD to try out.

Are you ready to give this a try? Let's go!



You will need:

Felt for the frame (two squares a little larger than 4 inches)
Felt scraps for the flowers
Embroidery floss
Two small magnets (see note below)
Glue (Beacon 3-in-1 holds the magnets and the felt!)
Scissors
Needle
Coins
Vanishing ink pen
Squares and Scallops deep-etch die (affiliate link) and manual die cutting machine

About the Magnets: I used super strong neodymium magnets because they will hold through felt, while still remaining barely noticeable. HOWEVER, these are not child safe even a little. You may want to use different magnets and attach them to the back of the frame instead. Use your judgement!



Use the two largest scallop squares to cut out the front of the frame. Center the smaller of the dies in the middle to make the opening.



Use the largest scallop square to cut the back of the frame.

You'll end up with a large solid square and a large open square. You'll also have a smaller scallop square, which you can save for making another project (I'll definitely have more projects using these dies!).



Thread a needle with six strands of embroidery floss and start it with a knot at the top corner as shown. You want to go through the felt on the back layer, and then up through both frame layers in the corner hole.



Stitch with running stitch across the top through ONLY the front layer. This will make all the edges look the same, while keeping the top open. Go through the front and back on the corner hole.



Continue stitching around the sides, but now you should stitch through the front and back at the same time.

When you reach the end, secure the thread with a knot hidden between the layers or on the back. You'll need to go through the felt and not just a hole, otherwise the stitching may come undone.



To make the flowers, I used a method that I saw from DusiCrafts on Instagram. You should definitely go watch her video!

Instead of using templates, start by tracing a quarter and a penny onto your felt scraps. I made two large flowers and three small flowers.



Cut out the circles and then mark five straight lines from the edges. You could do four or six if you'd rather! Snip the lines with your scissors.



Where you snipped, you now have little tabs. Round those with your scissors, starting on one side, and then the other. Remove any remaining pattern markings.



Embroider loose french knots in the middle of the small flowers. You can do several stitches in the middle of the larger flowers, or cut out tiny circles of felt like I did.



Glue the flowers to the edge of the frame.



If you're using neodymium magnets you can glue them inside near the top edge of the frame. Otherwise, glue your magnets to the back of the frame.



It's all ready to have a photo or a special message added to the frame!

I decided to place a line of poetry in my frame for now. This is actually a printable I shared on my Ko-Fi page. It's designed to go with an embroidery and cross stitch pattern that my Ko-Fi Klatsch members received, but the little set of printables are available to anyone who supports me there (one time or as a subscriber!) When you're adding a photo or anything else to your frame, you'll just need to cut it down to 3 inches square.




I just love the little flower details and that it's so easy to add something cute and special in the center. I also love the idea of a photo frame as a Mother's Day gift, and have made a magnetic frame in the past too. That one used English paper piecing. But even if you aren't a mom or aren't gifting this to someone, it's still a fun frame to make a use!

Don't want to make this magnetic? Add a little hanging so it's easy to display this on a wall!

project // quilt block hoop art

This post contains affiliate links. I may receive compensation if you shop via this post.

Calling all fan of quilts and quilty things, even if you aren't a quilter. Today I'm showing you how to make a quilt block out of felt and fabric and then hang it up in an embroidery hoop for your wall. It's such a cute way to bring your love of this craft to your decor.

This project starts with inspiration from the felt quilt block ornaments I made last year, which then led to deep-etch dies from Benzie. But also this week I released two new sewing themed patterns: Sew Cute (a sewing machine embroidery pattern) and Sewing Bee (hexagon shaped ornaments with sewing tools). Quilt block hoop art feels like it rounds out the collection.



Because this is entirely sewn by hand, it's a portable project. And unlike making an actual quilt, you don't have any seam allowances to fuss over. Just fit the pieces together!

One thing that makes this different from my felt ornaments (besides the size) is that I've added some print fabric in there. You don't have to do this for the center piece. Make it all felt if you'd like. OR add the fabric to all the pieces! You'll still need the felt to make applique easier and so there's no fraying. But it would be so cute this way!

Now, shall we jump in?



Here's what you need:

Wool or wool blend felt in several colors (I used Swan, Fern, and white from Benzie)
Jeanette's Cozy Quilt Block deep-etch dies and manual cutting machine (optional)
Fabric for the backing (I used Essex Yarn Dyed Classic Wovens in Gingham Mustard)
Fabric for the quilt block (I used Quilt Town Missouri Star Small Floral)
Fusible web
Embroidery floss
Embroidery hoop
Iron
Needle
Scissors

The fabrics I used were courtesy of Missouri Star Quilt Co. You can save 20% on orders of $50 or more when you use my MSQC Partner link! Valid on most items through April 30, 2024 (and probably beyond!)



First, you're going to need to fuse the fabric to the felt. For the center, I used a piece that's a little larger than 2 inches square.



Next, cut out all the pieces.

I used the deep-etch die to make this fast and accurate. I needed to do two runs through my die cutter for the pieces where you see a second piece of felt. It was so great being able to cut the felt and fabric fused piece with the die cutter too. So easy!

If you don't want to use the dies, here's what you'll need to cut:

one 2x2 inch square
four 1x1 inch squares
four 1x1 inch squares cut into eight half-square triangles
two 1-2/5 inch squares cut into four half-square triangles



Arrange all the pieces to make sure they fit.



Embroider a face on the center square if you'd like. I just added my signature smile!



Next, place the backing fabric in an embroidery hoop and start placing the pieces where you want them. I used the gingham as a guide for placement and eventually for stitching.



Stitch each piece in place with two strands of embroidery floss and whip stitch. Come up through the backing fabric and down close to the edge of the felt pieces.



After you stitch the center square, add the small triangles. Align them to the corners of the center square. There will be a small gap where they meet on the side of the square, but that's okay.



Add the small squares and large triangles last. They should fit in the open spaces just right!



Now you can finish off the edges of the fabric and bring them to the back of the hoop. Or use this to make something else, like a pillow!



I love its happy little face and the texture that felt applique brings. You want to reach out and touch it!




The colors and fabric combination I used for this are a little different than what I would usually do, but I happened to see them together and loved them. And that's another great thing about a small project like this. It's a perfect place to try out something you haven't before. If you like something more unusual, but don't want to commit to a whole quilt, make a mini one for your wall in a single evening!

Happy stitching!