We adore it when a crafting activity finishes with presents children can create… these charming little felt heart ornament projects are exactly that – transform them into keychains or zip pulls for school bags and you have a sweet gift to share with a family member or friend. Crafting is a huge passion here at Red Ted Art HQ, so projects that become practical items or presents for friends are particularly popular (especially with The Englishman… hehehe, fewer things to store!). I also love these small felt heart projects because they offer a wonderful introduction to sewing for children. They use the easiest sewing technique – the running stitch – and each key ring requires only a small amount of stitching! Ideal. (You can find lots more fantastic Beginner Sewing Projects here). They are ALSO included in our Christmas Ornaments DIY post because they look beautiful on the Christmas Tree!
What adorable Felt Heart Ornametns and presents!
These felt heart ornaments are also perfect as key rings!
Creating your Felt Heart Ornament Craft
Felt Heart Ornament – Supplies:
- felt in assorted colours (find some here US/ UK)
- a heart-shaped cookie cutter (or make a paper pattern) (find some here US/ UK)
- embroidery floss (find some here US/ UK)
- ribbon for attaching to the key ring,
- a key ring,
- needle,
- scissors,
- filling,
- lavender (optional) (find some here US/ UK)
1) Trace around your cookie cutter to outline the heart. For the inner heart, we followed the cookie cutter shape EXACTLY. For the outer heart, we used the same template but cut around it with a 2mm gap.
The children chose their own heart and thread colours.
You will require ONE inner heart and TWO outer hearts.
2) Set your ribbon where you want it. You can apply a small dab of glue to reinforce and hold the ribbon in place, although the stitching SHOULD be sufficient.
3) With a basic running stitch, stitch around 3/4 of the edge. This stitch is made by moving the needle “up and down” through the fabric:
Red Ted Sewing – I held the corner to help keep it firm.
The children stitched theirs during swimming lessons – one sibling was in the pool while the other sewed. Since we were at lessons, the simplest arrangement was for them to sit on my lap as they worked. Both were very determined to sew independently. I only needed to remind Red Ted to “come in from the top”, not “come in from the bottom”.
With Pip Squeak, I guided her by saying “point the needle between my fingers”, which helped her place the stitches correctly.
4) Once you have sewn 3/4 of the way around, fill you heart with whatever materials are available. We used leftover wool snippets from a Pom Pom project, along with spare felt pieces… and we added a little lavender too. Simply gorgeous.
I assisted them with the filling. Red Ted completed his heart, and I only knotted the thread for him. Pip Squeak became uninterested once it was stuffed, so I completed hers.
Red Ted’s completed heart by the pool (captured on a smartphone, so apologies for the slightly low photo quality!)
5) Continue the running stitch until you reach the end. Fasten the thread and snip it.
6) Attach it to a key ring and you’re finished – ideal for keys and book bags… or even as a charming Christmas Ornament! Don’t they look BEAUTIFUL together?!
I believe these felt heart ornaments are lovely presents for Mother’s Day, Christmas or Granny… and children’s close friends might enjoy one for their birthday or simply “just because” as a small sign of friendship. Explore more sewing projects for children, such as these Easy fabric floweror juggling chooks!
Browse all our Sewing Projects for Kids here:
You might also enjoy ourChristmas Ornament Book. It gathers 30 of our favourite ornaments in one collection. Arranged by age, each craft appears on a single page, creating an ideal printable worksheet. It is wonderful having them all collected in one place too!
Only $7.99
Order yours today and treasure it forever!