What could be nicer than receiving a piece of handmade jewelry, particularly if it made especially for you, like a heart brooch? From little girls to grandmas, most women love jewellery whether it is given to them as a present or bought to accessorize a special outfit. And heart jewellery seems to have a special attraction for both girls and ladies.
Below are two examples of how to make a heart brooch which are simple enough for even children to make.
A. Fabric Heart Brooch
First of all, what you need (all these items can be bought from a craft store):
- Piece of fabric large enough to cut two heart shapes – felt is ideal but you can use any fabric
- Permanent fabric glue such as Crafter’s Pick Fabric Glue
- Permanent gem fixing glue
- Pack of pin backs (you can use the rest to make other brooches)
- Fiberfill for stuffing
- Sequins, gems or glitter to decorate
Next, what to do:
- Cut out 2 heart shapes of equal size from the felt or fabric
- Follow the instructions on the fabric glue and glue the edges of the two heart shapes together leaving a small opening to allow you to stuff the heart
- Leave the glue to dry before stuffing
- Stuff the heart to the thickness you want – don’t overstuff – and then glue the opening together and allow to dry
- Glue the pin back onto the middle of the heart using the gem fixing glue and allow to dry
- Decorate the heart with gems, sequins or glitter glue
You can buy sheets of sticky back felt from craft stores which you could use for this project and would be ideal for younger children to use as it wouldn’t need padding.
B. Dough Heart Brooch
Another great way to make a heart brooch is to make it out of clay or dough. You can either buy some modelling clay from a craft shop – make sure that it is the sort that will either “air dry” or can be dried in the oven – or make some dough using the recipe below.
First, what you need:
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 cup salt
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 teaspoon oil
- food coloring
- 1 package of pin backs (available at any craft store)
- Sequins, gems or glitter to decorate, or watercolor or tempera paint and small paintbrushes
And what to do:
- Put the flour, salt, cream of tartar, and oil into a pan and add the water a little at a time to make sure there are no lumps. Add the food coloring a few drops at a time to achieve the color you want
- Stir over a medium heat until the dough begins to stick together and come away from the side of the pan
- Remove from the pan and knead until it is smooth
- When the mixture is cool store it in an airtight container or a sealable plastic sandwich bag – the dough will keep for a at least a week
- To make the brooch make a heart shape out of the dough then set aside to air dry. This should take about 2 hours ideally leave it overnight to dry fully before decorating
- Press the pin back into the heart before the dough is fully dry
- When the heart is fully dry decorate with either sequins, gems or glitter or with paint
Because there will be dough left over you will have enough to make a heart brooch for Mom, Grandma and even for yourself. Or you can use your imagination and make a flower, a butterfly or any other design brooch to give as a present.
So have fun making this heart jewelry – either a fabric heart brooch or dough brooch – and I’m sure whoever receives this as a present will know it was made with love.