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This is a cute and easy tutorial for a perfect Valentines Gift. This little handmade heat can simply be given as a small little token or stuffed with sweets and treats!! What you will need: Pencil Scissors Pins 40cm ribbon (optional) Fabric glue (optional) Sewing machine (optional) The Craft Cotton Company’s Felt Set First, cut your template and fabric: Click here to get the template. Print off and cut out the template. Draw around the template on the pink felt. Fold the felt in half along the bottom part of the shape. Cut around the shape. For the fingers, cut vertical lines along the drawn lines, but do not cut along the crease. Repeat these instructions with the piece of red felt. Finally, pin and weave: Pin the tops of each shape so that they are folded in half together (this makes it easier to weave). Place the red pelt on the left and the pink felt on the right. Get the first finger of the pink felt and the last finger of the red felt. Put the pink finger through the red finger. Then, get the first finger of the pink felt again and thread the third finger on the red felt through the pink finger. Repeat this for the rest of the first finger on the pink felt. Repeat this process, alternating between the red and pink felt until it takes them shape of the heart and has a check-board pattern. Optional steps: You can also make your heart into a little basket. Fold the ribbon ends over by 1cm. Place the ribbon on the fingers closest to the curves of the heart on each side. If you do not want to sew, use fabric glue to attach the ribbon. If you want to give the heart more structure, sew around the perimeter of the heart, up to the start of the curves on the heart. © by Raeven Erin for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #valentinesday

This is a cute and easy tutorial for a perfect Valentines Gift. This little handmade heat can simply be given as a small little token or stuffed with sweets and treats!! What you will need: Pencil Scissors Pins 40cm ribbon (optional) Fabric glue (optional) Sewing machine (optional) The Craft Cotton Company’s Felt Set First, cut your template and fabric: Click here to get the template. Print off and cut out the template. Draw around the template on the pink felt. Fold the felt in half along the bottom part of the shape. Cut around the shape. For the fingers, cut vertical lines along the drawn lines, but do not cut along the crease. Repeat these instructions with the piece of red felt. Finally, pin and weave: Pin the tops of each shape so that they are folded in half together (this makes it easier to weave). Place the red pelt on the left and the pink felt on the right. Get the first finger of the pink felt and the last finger of the red felt. Put the pink finger through the red finger. Then, get the first finger of the pink felt again and thread the third finger on the red felt through the pink finger. Repeat this for the rest of the first finger on the pink felt. Repeat this process, alternating between the red and pink felt until it takes them shape of the heart and has a check-board pattern. Optional steps: You can also make your heart into a little basket. Fold the ribbon ends over by 1cm. Place the ribbon on the fingers closest to the curves of the heart on each side. If you do not want to sew, use fabric glue to attach the ribbon. If you want to give the heart more structure, sew around the perimeter of the heart, up to the start of the curves on the heart. © by Raeven Erin for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #valentinesday

This Valentine’s Day lavender heart is a cute little way to show your token of love to somebody special. You can fill this little heart with lavender or rose buds to give it that romantic touch. This tutorial shows you easy step-by-step instructions on how to make your heart in 30 minutes. The heart was made using The Craft Cotton Company’s Paisley Heart polycotton- perfect for Valentine’s Day! What you will need: Scissors Needle and thread Sewing machine Iron Toy stuffing or lavender 24cm Ribbon Pins Toy stuffing or lavender 24cm Ribbon The Craft Cotton Company’s Paisley Hearts poly cotton First, make the template and cut the fabric: Select your fabric and draw out your template on to a piece of paper or card. If drawing, fold your paper in half and draw half of your heart so that when you cut out the shape it will be symmetrical. You can download a simple heart shape from the internet to use as a guide. Cut out your template leaving 1cm around all edges, this will be your seam allowance. Pin your heart template onto the fabric with the right side facing up, cut x2 hearts. Now, add the ribbon and sew: Place your 2 hearts right side together. Loop the ribbon in half and sandwich it in-between the two hearts with 1cm hanging over the edge (near the top centre of the heart). Make sure the rest of your ribbon is tucked in. Sew around the edge of your heart using a 1cm seam allowance, leave approximately 4cm unsewn on one side of the heart so that you can add in your filling later on. Make sure you back tack at the beginning and the end of your stitching to secure. Finally, clip and fill: Clip every 1cm of your seam allowance, taking care not to cut into the stitch. Cut the point off the bottom of your heart. Turn your heart right side out and using a blunt object make sure that all your points are pushed out and then iron it to remove any creases. Take your filling and fill your heart. Hand sew up the remaining un-stitched side and you now have your hanging heart ready to give to your Valentine! by Victoria Louise for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #valentinesday

This Valentine’s Day lavender heart is a cute little way to show your token of love to somebody special. You can fill this little heart with lavender or rose buds to give it that romantic touch. This tutorial shows you easy step-by-step instructions on how to make your heart in 30 minutes. The heart was made using The Craft Cotton Company’s Paisley Heart polycotton- perfect for Valentine’s Day! What you will need: Scissors Needle and thread Sewing machine Iron Toy stuffing or lavender 24cm Ribbon Pins Toy stuffing or lavender 24cm Ribbon The Craft Cotton Company’s Paisley Hearts poly cotton First, make the template and cut the fabric: Select your fabric and draw out your template on to a piece of paper or card. If drawing, fold your paper in half and draw half of your heart so that when you cut out the shape it will be symmetrical. You can download a simple heart shape from the internet to use as a guide. Cut out your template leaving 1cm around all edges, this will be your seam allowance. Pin your heart template onto the fabric with the right side facing up, cut x2 hearts. Now, add the ribbon and sew: Place your 2 hearts right side together. Loop the ribbon in half and sandwich it in-between the two hearts with 1cm hanging over the edge (near the top centre of the heart). Make sure the rest of your ribbon is tucked in. Sew around the edge of your heart using a 1cm seam allowance, leave approximately 4cm unsewn on one side of the heart so that you can add in your filling later on. Make sure you back tack at the beginning and the end of your stitching to secure. Finally, clip and fill: Clip every 1cm of your seam allowance, taking care not to cut into the stitch. Cut the point off the bottom of your heart. Turn your heart right side out and using a blunt object make sure that all your points are pushed out and then iron it to remove any creases. Take your filling and fill your heart. Hand sew up the remaining un-stitched side and you now have your hanging heart ready to give to your Valentine! by Victoria Louise for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #valentinesday

Try out this tutorial to make a cute heart cushion for your room or sofa. Cushions are the perfect way to decorate any room and this is a great project to experiment with different shapes! 'Scatter cushions are great for adding a splash of colour or interest. Here’s how to make a great looking heart cushion cover that looks more complicated than it really is (don’t tell your friends).' Have a go at this tutorial to make a cute cushion for your room. Click here to see the tutorial. By Andy Isaacs for Hobbycraft. #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #hobbycraft

As you go through this tutorial we will show you how to make your own set of Fusible Patchwork Placemats. This will be a great opportunity for you to finally get all of your furniture and accessories to match whilst giving your home that homemade touch! This tutorial was created using The Craft Cotton Company’s Vintage Floral Fat Quarters. What you will need: Sewing machine Large sheet of paper or grease proof paper Tape measure Pencil Cutting board Scissors or rotary cutter Ruler An iron Bosal Fusible Placemats (sold in packs of 4) The Craft Cotton Company Vintage Floral fat quarter set (2 fat quarter sets to cover all 4 placemats) First, draw your pattern: Draw around the placemat on the paper and draw a line down and across the middle (at 20.3cm and 15.75cm). On the first half of the template, slit the half into 3 equal sections (6.75cm) and draw 2 lines straight down. On the second half of the template, split the half into two (10.15cm) and draw a line straight down. Cut these pieces out. Next, cut out your fabric: Draw around the template on the wrong-side of the fabric, making sure the fabric pattern is facing the right way. Cut out your fabric leaving a 1cm seam allowance. Sew your fabric together to make the front: We started by sewing the top row together and then the bottom row together. We then joined these two piece together. Sew along the seam allowances, making sure all of the seams fall in the same direction. Draw out the back and attach both sides: Choose the fabric that you want for the back. Draw around the placemat on the wrong-side of the fabric. Cut out the fabric leaving a 1cm allowance. Iron both the front and the back pieces to get out any creases. Place the front piece onto the placemat, making sure there is an equal over hang around the edge, iron onto the placemat until the fabric bonds with the fusible fibres. Repeat the same for the back piece on the reverse side of the place mat. Leave the placemat to cool and set. Trim the fabric to the edge of the placemat. Next, making the binding: To make the binding, use the largest part of fabric (the diagonal part). Measure the circumference of the placemat and add on an extra 10cm to ensure your binding is more than long enough. On the wrong-side of the fabric draw out the binding in two strips to be joined together (each 5cm wide), starting from one corner and drawing diagonally across the fabric at a 45° angle to create your bias binding. Sew the two pieces of binding together as shown and trim the excess fabric, press the seams open. Fold the top and bottom part of the strip of binding by 1cm and iron to create a crease. Then, fold the whole binding in half and iron to create another crease. You should now have 3 creases. Place the wrong-side of the binding to the back of the placemat and match the raw edge of the fabric to the edge of the placemat. Sew around the binding on the first 1cm fold, leaving 2cm unstitched at the beginning so that you can join the binding ends together. Joining the binding: When you have stitched around your binding, turn the beginning of your binding back by 1cm. Overlap the ends by 1cm and then trim the excess. Stitch along the join making sure your fold marks on both pieces match up. Finally, top stitch your binding: Pull the binding over the edge of the placemat so that the fabric’s right-side is facing up, and the centre fold runs flush with the edge of the placemat. With the front of the placemat facing you, tuck the remaining edge underneath and top stitch neatly around the edge of the binding making sure your first stitch is fully covered, this should catch on the other side of your binding too create a neat finish. © By Raeven Erin and Victoria Louise for The Craft Cotton Company 2015 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #patchwork #kitchen #easter

As you go through this tutorial we will show you how to make your own set of Fusible Patchwork Placemats. This will be a great opportunity for you to finally get all of your furniture and accessories to match whilst giving your home that homemade touch! This tutorial was created using The Craft Cotton Company’s Vintage Floral Fat Quarters. What you will need: Sewing machine Large sheet of paper or grease proof paper Tape measure Pencil Cutting board Scissors or rotary cutter Ruler An iron Bosal Fusible Placemats (sold in packs of 4) The Craft Cotton Company Vintage Floral fat quarter set (2 fat quarter sets to cover all 4 placemats) First, draw your pattern: Draw around the placemat on the paper and draw a line down and across the middle (at 20.3cm and 15.75cm). On the first half of the template, slit the half into 3 equal sections (6.75cm) and draw 2 lines straight down. On the second half of the template, split the half into two (10.15cm) and draw a line straight down. Cut these pieces out. Next, cut out your fabric: Draw around the template on the wrong-side of the fabric, making sure the fabric pattern is facing the right way. Cut out your fabric leaving a 1cm seam allowance. Sew your fabric together to make the front: We started by sewing the top row together and then the bottom row together. We then joined these two piece together. Sew along the seam allowances, making sure all of the seams fall in the same direction. Draw out the back and attach both sides: Choose the fabric that you want for the back. Draw around the placemat on the wrong-side of the fabric. Cut out the fabric leaving a 1cm allowance. Iron both the front and the back pieces to get out any creases. Place the front piece onto the placemat, making sure there is an equal over hang around the edge, iron onto the placemat until the fabric bonds with the fusible fibres. Repeat the same for the back piece on the reverse side of the place mat. Leave the placemat to cool and set. Trim the fabric to the edge of the placemat. Next, making the binding: To make the binding, use the largest part of fabric (the diagonal part). Measure the circumference of the placemat and add on an extra 10cm to ensure your binding is more than long enough. On the wrong-side of the fabric draw out the binding in two strips to be joined together (each 5cm wide), starting from one corner and drawing diagonally across the fabric at a 45° angle to create your bias binding. Sew the two pieces of binding together as shown and trim the excess fabric, press the seams open. Fold the top and bottom part of the strip of binding by 1cm and iron to create a crease. Then, fold the whole binding in half and iron to create another crease. You should now have 3 creases. Place the wrong-side of the binding to the back of the placemat and match the raw edge of the fabric to the edge of the placemat. Sew around the binding on the first 1cm fold, leaving 2cm unstitched at the beginning so that you can join the binding ends together. Joining the binding: When you have stitched around your binding, turn the beginning of your binding back by 1cm. Overlap the ends by 1cm and then trim the excess. Stitch along the join making sure your fold marks on both pieces match up. Finally, top stitch your binding: Pull the binding over the edge of the placemat so that the fabric’s right-side is facing up, and the centre fold runs flush with the edge of the placemat. With the front of the placemat facing you, tuck the remaining edge underneath and top stitch neatly around the edge of the binding making sure your first stitch is fully covered, this should catch on the other side of your binding too create a neat finish. © By Raeven Erin and Victoria Louise for The Craft Cotton Company 2015 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #patchwork #kitchen #easter

Make your gifts stand out this year with this brilliant tutorial! A clever idea that can be part of your gift for your friends and family. 'Instead of putting my gifts into paper gift bags this year I’ve decided to do something a bit different and make some fabric ones. What I like about these is that they also act as an extra part to the gift as they can be re-used by the recipient. These will also make sure your presents stand out from the other gift bags around the tree.' Click here to see the tutorial. By Lesley Foster at Hook, Stitch, Sew for The Craft Cotton Company #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #christmas #bag

Make your gifts stand out this year with this brilliant tutorial! A clever idea that can be part of your gift for your friends and family. 'Instead of putting my gifts into paper gift bags this year I’ve decided to do something a bit different and make some fabric ones. What I like about these is that they also act as an extra part to the gift as they can be re-used by the recipient. These will also make sure your presents stand out from the other gift bags around the tree.' Click here to see the tutorial. By Lesley Foster at Hook, Stitch, Sew for The Craft Cotton Company #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #christmas #bag

It's time to upgrade my advent calendar - I really like my current one but it has been well used since I was a child and unfortunately has seen better days. I might see if I can restore it in future, as it would be sad to see it go completely, but I thought for now that I would make a new one. I have been looking about for ideas without much luck, but then the other day something really caught my eye - advent bunting, I do love a bit of bunting so I knew it would be perfect! Once I had the idea for bunting, I just had to think of a bunting shape to go for; I opted for a rectangular shape with the two bottom corners removed. I didn't go for a traditional triangular shape for the bunting as I thought the shape I chose to use would be best for putting in the sized sweets I wanted to use. You will need:​ Woven bias binding in pink - 5 1/2 metres Embroidery threads in 3 different colours, I used dark grey, light grey and a light blue Pins Scissors One full Fat Quarter set - I used The Craft Cotton Company North Pole Fat Quarter. 2 quarters from another Fat Quarter set (so 8 quarters are used in total) - I used the blue spot and pink star from The Craft Cotton Company North Star Fat Quarter. First, make the pattern pieces: For the front and back pattern pieces, draw a rectangle 13 x 16 cm. Mark a point 4cm up from the bottom and another point 4cm from the left hand side, then draw a line to join the two points. Repeat this on the other side then cut off these corner pieces. For the pocket pattern piece, cut out another pattern piece the same as the front and back piece. However, with this one, remove 4cm from the top to make the pocket piece. Next, cut out the fabric: You want 24 pairs of fabric (one piece for the front and one for the back) to make 24 pockets. I chose the same fabric for the front and back bunting pieces and a different coloured pocket piece. Be careful when cutting out the fabric as there won’t be much spare. Hem the top of the pocket: Turn over the top edge of pocket twice to hem, and sew along to seal. You can use a straight stitch for this if you like, but I chose to use a snowflake stitch to add a bit more detail. Draw on your numbers: Draw your numbers onto the pockets in pencil. You could do any style of number you like; I chose to do an outline of each of the numbers. Complete a threaded running stitch using embroidery thread around the number outline: To do this, first complete a running stitch in dark grey around the outline of the number - I used 4 strands of thread for this so it would stand out well. Then thread another colour in and out of the running stitch (I chose a light grey) and then repeat with a second colour threading it the other way (I chose a blue-grey). For these two colours, I used 2 threads. Sew the bunting together: Place the back and front right sides together with the pocket piece in-between. Sew around the edges leaving the top edge unsewn. Turn the bunting right way around. Then put the bunting together: Lay out your woven bias binding and take your first bunting piece and place it 60 cm from the start of the binding - place the bunting piece so the top edge is in the middle of the binding and fold over the binding and pin. Place the next piece of bunting 5cm along from the first piece, again with the top edge of the bunting in the middle of the binding and fold over the binding and pin. Repeat with the rest of the bunting pieces. Finish by leaving 60cm of binding at the other end after pinning final piece of bunting. Sewing the binding: Now to machine sew along the binding. To begin with, fold the raw edge of the binding inwards before folding down the top edge then pin, this will seal the raw edge. Repeat this processes at the other end. Now, sew the whole length of the binding, sewing close to the edge. Finally, fasten off any loose ends: Ready to be hung up and filled! © By Lesley Foster at Hook, Stitch, Sew for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #christmas

It's time to upgrade my advent calendar - I really like my current one but it has been well used since I was a child and unfortunately has seen better days. I might see if I can restore it in future, as it would be sad to see it go completely, but I thought for now that I would make a new one. I have been looking about for ideas without much luck, but then the other day something really caught my eye - advent bunting, I do love a bit of bunting so I knew it would be perfect! Once I had the idea for bunting, I just had to think of a bunting shape to go for; I opted for a rectangular shape with the two bottom corners removed. I didn't go for a traditional triangular shape for the bunting as I thought the shape I chose to use would be best for putting in the sized sweets I wanted to use. You will need:​ Woven bias binding in pink - 5 1/2 metres Embroidery threads in 3 different colours, I used dark grey, light grey and a light blue Pins Scissors One full Fat Quarter set - I used The Craft Cotton Company North Pole Fat Quarter. 2 quarters from another Fat Quarter set (so 8 quarters are used in total) - I used the blue spot and pink star from The Craft Cotton Company North Star Fat Quarter. First, make the pattern pieces: For the front and back pattern pieces, draw a rectangle 13 x 16 cm. Mark a point 4cm up from the bottom and another point 4cm from the left hand side, then draw a line to join the two points. Repeat this on the other side then cut off these corner pieces. For the pocket pattern piece, cut out another pattern piece the same as the front and back piece. However, with this one, remove 4cm from the top to make the pocket piece. Next, cut out the fabric: You want 24 pairs of fabric (one piece for the front and one for the back) to make 24 pockets. I chose the same fabric for the front and back bunting pieces and a different coloured pocket piece. Be careful when cutting out the fabric as there won’t be much spare. Hem the top of the pocket: Turn over the top edge of pocket twice to hem, and sew along to seal. You can use a straight stitch for this if you like, but I chose to use a snowflake stitch to add a bit more detail. Draw on your numbers: Draw your numbers onto the pockets in pencil. You could do any style of number you like; I chose to do an outline of each of the numbers. Complete a threaded running stitch using embroidery thread around the number outline: To do this, first complete a running stitch in dark grey around the outline of the number - I used 4 strands of thread for this so it would stand out well. Then thread another colour in and out of the running stitch (I chose a light grey) and then repeat with a second colour threading it the other way (I chose a blue-grey). For these two colours, I used 2 threads. Sew the bunting together: Place the back and front right sides together with the pocket piece in-between. Sew around the edges leaving the top edge unsewn. Turn the bunting right way around. Then put the bunting together: Lay out your woven bias binding and take your first bunting piece and place it 60 cm from the start of the binding - place the bunting piece so the top edge is in the middle of the binding and fold over the binding and pin. Place the next piece of bunting 5cm along from the first piece, again with the top edge of the bunting in the middle of the binding and fold over the binding and pin. Repeat with the rest of the bunting pieces. Finish by leaving 60cm of binding at the other end after pinning final piece of bunting. Sewing the binding: Now to machine sew along the binding. To begin with, fold the raw edge of the binding inwards before folding down the top edge then pin, this will seal the raw edge. Repeat this processes at the other end. Now, sew the whole length of the binding, sewing close to the edge. Finally, fasten off any loose ends: Ready to be hung up and filled! © By Lesley Foster at Hook, Stitch, Sew for The Craft Cotton Company 2016 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #christmas

Nothing looks better at Christmas than a row of stockings lined up along a fireplace, eagerly waiting to be filled with goodies, and it's even better when you get to discover what’s been hidden in them on Christmas Day. I ran out of time for this make last year so I’m making sure I get it made with plenty of time to spare, as my current stockings are starting to look a little bit threadbare! I was very lucky to receive some of The Craft Cotton Co. fabric for this make - the Stripes and Stars Fat Quarters. I love the colours of this Fat Quarter set; the greens and reds are just perfect for Christmas. I opted to do a striped patchwork effect for the stocking, with quilted detailing on the patchwork joins. I also opted to do a roll over top for the stocking as I like the effect it creates and I think it’s nice to see a little of the lining, especially when the fabric looks so nice! You will need: Pencil Paper Pins Ruler Needle and thread Sewing machine The Craft Cotton Company's Stars and Stripes fat quarter set, green plain -dyed polycotton and Heritage wadding First, make the stocking template: Make a stocking template the size you would like – the bigger you make it the more presents you can squeeze into it! Cut two templates of this stocking - keep one template whole to do the lining, wadding, and wadding lining fabric, and with the other template, cut it into strips, mine were 4cm wide. Make sure that you number these pieces; otherwise it can get a bit confusing putting them all back together! Now cut out the fabrics: Cut out the lining fabric, wadding, and wadding lining fabric using the whole stocking template. Now using the same whole stocking template, cut out the main stocking fabric (make sure you leave a 5mm seam allowance when cutting out). The layout of fabrics I chose for the strips is shown below: Now to sew the strips together. Do this by placing two pieces right sides together and sewing down the seam. Once you have sewn them all together you should have one striped piece for the front and another for the back. Adding the quilting detail: Layer one piece of wadding, one piece of the lining fabric, and on piece of the striped outer stocking fabric pieces as shown: Sew the detail you would like (as shown in the picture below). I chose to sew along the stripe joins for this and alternated between a straight stitch and a pre-set stitch on my machine that looked like a line of snowflakes. Now to make the hanger: Pick one of the fabrics to make the hanger and cut a strip of 24cm x 6cm - I chose to use the green snowflake. Next, fold the strip in half length-ways with right sides facing and sew along the bottom and up the side leaving the top unsewn. Now just turn it the right way out and you have your hanging strip. Before sewing the front and back together, fold the strip in half to make the loop and pin to the back piece with the ends of the loop hanging 1cm over the edge of the back piece. I chose to place this 10cm down from the top edge to give enough space when the top edge is turned back over. Now sew the front and back together: Pin the front and back pieces together with right sides together - the loop will be on the inside. Now sew the whole way around but leaving the top edge unsewn. Turn the right way round. Finally, making the lining: Take the front and back lining pieces and place them right sides together - sew around this leaving the top edge unsewn. Leave the two pieces right sides facing together. This lining can now be inserted into the stocking. To attach to the stocking, fold the top of the stocking inward by 1cm and fold 1cm of the stocking lining outwards and slip stitch the two edges together. Roll the top back over and you now have your stocking! © By Lesley Foster at Hook, Stitch, Sew for The Craft Cotton Company 2015 #freesewingtutorials #craftcottonco #patchwork #christmas