Beaded Heart Hanging Decorations

Brilliantly beaded, these handmade decs look elegant and stylish, whether they are hung from a tree or around the home. They would also make great Christmas gifts for loved ones. Each of the shapes are made from felt, embellished with appliqué and rocailles then lightly padded to give them shape and substance.

Essentials

Fabric: felt, bright pink, lilac, turquoise, at least 9cm
square; plus scraps, lime green and purple
Beads: rocailles, bright pink, light pink, turquoise, lilac, pale blue, pearly green, size 9/0; barrel-shaped, silver, one per decoration
Embroidery thread: matching colours
Embroidery needle
Transfer pen

Dimensions List

This project is custom-sized

Make a beaded decoration

Visit www.sewmag.co.uk and locate the relevant templates, then print out. Using the motifs, cut out two identical shapes (heart or bauble) from a piece of felt. From the felt scraps left over, cut small circles, each measuring 10mm to 12mm in diameter.
Arrange a number of circles onto the felt shapes: seven on the bauble, and nine on the heart (you can choose to decorate both sides or just one). Once happy with the arrangement, oversew the edges of each circle into place, using matching embroidery thread.
Stitch beads into place onto each shape, one by one. Choose a colour that contrasts with the felt circle and stitch one bead into the centre, then a ring of them around the perimeter. Sew another ring of beads around the first.
Once all the felt circles are surrounded by beads, fill in the gaps in between, using rocailles that match as closely as possible to the background colour of the felt.
Once covered in beads, place two shapes together, with wrong sides facing, and oversew the edges. Leave a small gap and insert stuffing to softly pad out the shape, then stitch the gap closed.
Thread the needle with three strands of thread and attach one end to the centre top of the decoration. Pass a barrel-shaped bead onto the needle, then 80 rocaille beads in a shade to match the background colour of the decoration. Take the needle back through the bead and fasten off the thread securely. This will form a beaded loop for hanging.