Friday, December 23, 2011

handmade holiday | felt food ornaments

felt food ornaments


I mentioned that my Christmas tree was non-traditional, but to be honest, it's downright eclectic.

Anyone else have an asparagus ornament on their tree?

(That was another idea that came to me as I was trying to fall asleep. Vegetables on Christmas trees! Insomniacs come up with some weird sh*t in the middle of the night!)

But Larry and I do love to cook, so it's only fitting that our tree have a few culinary adornments. What these particular ingredients make, I do not know (really gross salsa?), but what tree doesn't need a few more veggies? And fruits? And...fungi? (Not to mention if the fungi is red with white spots, I'm pretty sure it's actually a toadstool, and it's poisonous...)


PIPE CLEANER ASPARAGUS
asparagus ornament
Materials | pipe cleaners, yarn, felt, thread, embroidery floss, glue, hemp twine (for hanging cord)
Equipment | scissors, needle
Tips | Wrap the pipe cleaners with yarn, and glue at the ends.
          Create the asparagus tips by sewing a pocket with two pieces of felt. 
          Insert the yarn-wrapped pipe cleaner in the open end of the asparagus tip.
          Sew around the pipe cleaner until the tip is secured to the stalk.


FELT MUSHROOM
mushroom ornament
Several years ago, I hosted a woodland-themed baby shower and created big felt mushrooms for tabletop decorations. When I saw that Alisa, the host of this year's Freshly Blended Ornament Swap, had created some adorable needle felted toadstool ornaments, I was green with envy that I wasn't on her swap list. I have no clue how to needle felt, but I remembered the technique I had used for the felt mushrooms two years ago and decided to make a miniaturized version for my tree. They're not nearly as cute as Alisa's, but they do the trick.

I had also planned to stuff the caps with poly stuffing, but my studio is such a mess, that I couldn't find any. I found that a cotton ball was the perfect substitute!
felt mushroom tutorial
Materials | felt, thread, cotton ball, cardboard circle, baker's twine (for hanging cord)
Equipment | scissors, needle
Tips | Make the cap by sewing a loose running stitch around the perimeter of a felt circle (2 1/2" diameter).
          Pull both ends of the thread like a drawstring to create a felt purse.
          Stuff the felt purse with a cotton ball and top with the cardboard circle to create a base.
          Cinch the thread tight and tie in a knot so the mushroom cap holds it's shape.
          Create the mushroom stem by rolling up a piece of adhesive-backed white felt.
          Glue the stem to the cardboard inside the mushroom cap.
          Cut circles out of adhesive-backed white felt to create the spots on the mushroom cap.


FELT TOMATO
tomato ornament
Materials | felt, thread, cotton balls, baker's twine (for hanging cord)
Equipment | scissors, needle
TipsI made the tomato using the same technique as the mushroom cap (but without the cardboard circle). Use a 4" diameter (or larger) felt circle to create the tomato and stuff with 4 or 5 cotton balls. Then hand sew the leaves on top to cover the opening.


FELT AVOCADO
avocado ornament
An homage to my favorite party dip - guacamole!

Materials | felt, thread, wired floral stem (for hanging loop)
Equipment | scissors, needle

Here's to a delicious Christmas!

P.S. Don't eat the toadstools.

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