Ideas for Crafts Made With Fabric

Get creative when using fabric pieces leftover from sewing projects to make a variety of crafts. These can include drawstring bags, aprons, wall hangings, stuffed toys, shopping bags, holiday stockings and embellished, three-dimensional greeting cards. Children and adults can spend hours making functional one-of-a-kind items. Handmade gifts are always appreciated for any season or occasion.

Collect assorted pieces of fabric such as themed prints, solids and textured styles. Other materials can include medium or lightweight muslin and white cotton by the yard (to use as backing for craft projects), fusible webbing and polyester filling. Enhance projects with a variety of trims like lace, fake flowers, ribbons, frilly yarn, beads, bells, plain and novelty buttons. You also need a sewing machine, scissors, iron, thread, needles, hot glue gun and glue sticks, sequins, card stock and dimensional paint.

Make cute, little, stuffed toys by cutting two sides of a simple cat design (see images) out of lightweight muslin. Cut matching fusible webbing pieces and lay them on top of the muslin. Take fabric pieces and lay them in a random fashion over the muslin and fusible webbing. Use a hot iron (no steam) to "fuse" all the pieces together. Trim excess fabric. Place the two pieces of fabric together, right side in. Straight stitch one-fourth of an inch all around the outline of the toy, but leave three inches open. Turn it right side out, fill with polyester stuffing and close the opening using an overcast stitch with a thread and needle. Sew on button eyes securely and other embellishments to decorate.

Create frameable friendship quilt greeting cards. Weave one-half-inch strips of contrasting fabrics in a simple basket weave pattern (see references below) into a four-by-six-inch rectangle. Hot glue the mini quilt onto the front of a fuve-inch by seven-inch blank card (a folded 10-inch by seven-inch piece of card stock). Attach trim and embellishments. Be sure to sign the back of the card.

Check home decor, upholstery and drapery stores for their expired sample books. Many times these contain beautiful, expensive fabrics perfect for crafts. The books are free for the asking. Fabric shops often have inexpensive bags of end pieces or decorative trims. Thrift shops and garage sales are also likely places to look for pretty or themed fabrics and unusual buttons that can be recycled into crafts.