"A dream is a wish your heart makes." ~ from Cinderella
In November, a client asked me to make several very special heart ornaments for her family.
Her sister designed a gorgeous wedding dress for herself and wore it on her wedding day. She then shared the dress with my client who also wore it for her wedding. Years later…the same dress was reconstructed for her daughter. This took on even more sentimental meaning as the original owner of the dress had recently lost a battle with cancer.
My client brought the remnants of the dress to the studio and I made heart ornaments that she gave to family members as surprise Christmas gifts.
The ornaments were a beautiful tribute to her sister and a wonderful way to cherish the “the dress” for years to come.
Do you have a wedding dress hiding in a box somewhere? My dress is in storage in our garage attic…just taking up space. And now, inspired by this magical story…I’m thinking about taking it out of storage and upcycling it!
Whether you use an old wedding dress, vintage lace, or antique crochet pieces, I hope these photos will inspire you to bust out your sewing machine and spread the love!
February is a good month to make lace hearts!
I have an abundance of lavender so I made heart sachets with linen and vintage lace…
…and buttons.
Supplies
Linen or satin for foundation pieces
Lace for decoration
Ribbon if you want to make a hanger
Stuffing of your choice: poly fill, poly pellets, or lavender
Paper heart pattern in a size that fits your lace
Scissors, needle, and thread
Instructions
Create a paper heart shaped pattern and cut out two pieces of foundation fabric
2. Carefully cut your lace into pieces that are larger than you heart pattern. You will want the edges to be sewn into the seam allowance so they do not unravel.
3. Sandwich the lace between two foundation hearts Note: if you want to make ornaments, place a loop of ribbon in the sandwich before sewing.
4. Sew around the heart shape with a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Leave an opening on the straight section of the heart.
5. Trim the lace to match the heart shape
6. Snip the curves of the heart
7. Turn the heart right sides out
8. Stuff the heart with lavender (or your choice of filling)
9. Stitch the opening closed.
10. Add a vintage button
Share the love!
Make several of these hearts and give them as hostess/host gifts, valentine gifts, or use them for “give away” table decorations for your next party!
I’m curious…Have you heard of creative ways to upcycle wedding dresses? Do you still have your wedding dress or perhaps your mother’s wedding dress? Leave a comment below!