During all of the headboard shenanigans I got a bee in my
bonnet about Valentine’s Day decor in the master bedroom. After surfing Pinterest for some inspiration
I came across a super cute felted heart wreath from The Idea Room.
I then spent the next 2 weeks running around like a crazy
person to every craft/hobby store in town trying to find Styrofoam hearts. Clearly people are stocking up on Styrofoam
hearts before the end of the world because NO one had them. Not willing to give up I decided to make my
own. I ended up purchasing a big
flat sheet of Styrofoam and cutting out 3 heart shapes. My initial plan was to cut out the middle of
each heart so they would be “hollow” in the middle similar to the original
inspiration but I thought a bigger fuller heart might be fun and it looked so
quick and easy…
This is a good time to introduce a new feature on the blog:
Project Rankings.
You often see projects given a difficulty ranking. It is a nice way to figure out if you are
going to be in over your head. However
the difficulty ranking alone does not tell the whole story. So as an exclusive feature of the Wood &
Cloth blog you will also get a “frustration” and a “make-ability” ranking.
Difficulty Ranking
Easy = Minimal tools needed, only requires one person,hard
to mess-up, so simple you could do it while watching cheesy Lifetime movies (or
sporting events if that is more your style)
Moderate = Power
tools or sewing machine may be needed,may require more than one person, a few
tricky parts here and there, you will need to pay attention to certain parts of
the project so that you avoid either bodily harm or a massive redo/goober
Difficult = Potential for having to buy specialty
tools/items, you are most likely going to need help, almost every step needs
to have calculations/measurements checked or has the potential to leave you
with fewer appendages/fingers than when you started
Frustration Ranking
Low = Project goes
together as expected, takes as much or less time than you anticipated
Medium = You threaten to quit the project at least once but
fewer than 3 times, seems or nails need to be ripped out multiple times, takes
double the amount of time it should
High (aka: Flames of Fury, I Swear to Everything Holy, Kill
Me Now) = you threaten to quit the project more than 3 times, takes 10 times
longer than you expected, crying is involved
Make-ability Ranking
100% Worth It = Projects are typically easy or moderate with
low or medium frustration rankings. The
project turns out great with minimal effort and relatively painless.
Once Is Enough = Easy, Moderate, or Difficult projects with
either a Low or Medium frustration ranking. Project may look great but had a few
frustrations or difficult steps along the way, or the project may not have
turned out as amazing as desired.
Should Have Just Bought It = (aka: When Hell Freezes Over,
Only If Someone is Paying Me to Make It) These projects are typically difficult
and almost always have a High frustration ranking. The project may have turned out perfect but
the time and effort to get there was not worth the loss of your sanity or the
amount of time wasted from your life. This category is also used for projects that
when finished do not bear even the slightest resemblance to the inspiration piece.
Felted Valentine Wall Hearts
Project Ranking
Difficulty = Low
Frustration = High for 3 Hearts, Medium for 1-2
Make-ability = Once Is Enough
Materials
½ inch thick Styrofoam sheet
Felt (~1 yard for a single 12 inch solid heart)
Pins
Upholstery Staples (optional)
Wire (optional)
Step 1: Draw out the
size and shape of heart you want to make on a piece of paper and trace it onto
the Styrofoam.
Step 2: Cut out the Styrofoam heart shape.
Step 3: Using a circle shape as a guide, I used the bottom
of a red plastic cup (~2-3 inches) trace and cut a bunch of felt circles.
NOTE: Step 3 and Step
4 are the reason the Frustration Ranking is so high on this project. When I stated a bunch of felt circles I meant
hundreds. While I didn’t actually count
the circles I know how many pins I had when I began. For my 3 ~12 inch solid hearts I ended up
cutting about 900 pieces of felt. I
probably could have gotten away with bigger felt circles which may have helped
but I liked the way the tighter smaller circles looked. If you are only doing one heart, a smaller
heart, or are cutting out the middle of the heart to make it “hollow” this
project may actually be enjoyable.
Having small children that can use scissors would also be a plus.
Step 4: Fold each felt circle in half and then in half again
so it looks like a fortune cookie. Place
a pin through all 4 layers of felt at the corner you made and stick it to the
Styrofoam. Continue this process placing
the felt pieces fairly close together so that you don’t have holes or gaps
where you can see the Styrofoam.
NOTE: I played around
a bit with the placement and positioning of the felt tufts. You want some texture and differences so make
sure you don’t pin them all going the same direction and alternate between
keeping the folds tight and loosening them up a bit.
Step 5: There are
numerous ways you could make your hearts wall hanging ready. I simply took 2 upholstery staples, measured
equal distance down from each lobe on the heart and pushed the staples into the
back of the heart. I them wrapped a thin
piece of wire between the staples and hung them.
Even though I still see felt circles in my sleep the project
came out looking even better than I thought it would. If you have only one heart to make I highly
recommend this project as an easy and semi-quick way to put a little love in
your home.
If you want to make three or
more…you have been warned.
.JPG)
