DIY Hawaiian Felt Flowers {With Free Template}

Aloha!  Backyard entertaining is my summertime passion and there is no better backyard party for the summer than a luau!  Give me a flower lei and some roasted pork and I am a happy girl.  And, if you are attending a backyard luau it’s important to play the part of a Hawaiian beauty (at least in my book), complete with a big beautiful Hawaiian Flower in your hair.  So, I am thrilled to share this Hawaiian felt flowers tutorial and template with you today–it is fun, easy and so pretty.  Whip up a few today for your next luau!

Supplies needed to make your own Hawaiian felt flowers:

• White Felt.
• Felt Flowers Template (printed on regular computer paper).
• Sharp Scissors.
• Clear Tape.
• Acrylic Craft Paint.
• Paint Brush.
• White Embroidery Thread and Needle.
• Pipe Cleaners.
• Hot Glue Gun.
• Hair Clips (optional).

First, print out the felt flowers template HERE on ordinary computer paper.  Once your template is printed it’s time to cut out the pedals of your flower.

Use the template to cut out 5 identical pedals.  To do this, first cut out the template.  Then, cut a piece of white felt slightly bigger than the template.  Next, using clear tape, tape the template directly to the felt.  Finally, using a sharp part of scissors cut around the template.  I have found that tape holds a pattern in place much better than pins and allows you to get an accurate cut essential for projects like these Hawaiian felt flowers.

Once you have all 5 pedals cut, it’s time to add a little color.

This project only requires very simple, easy painting.  I chose to make a yellow flower and a pink flower.  To achieve this look I first spread a base color over much of the pedal (no need to be too perfect or careful with this step).  Then I added a line of a contrasting color in the middle of each pedal.

Allow to dry completely.

Once the pedals are dry it’s time to transform this into a flower.  And, stick with me.  Even if you aren’t a seamstress this is a totally doable project that ANYONE can accomplish!  Really!

Using a needle and embroidery thread, string all of the pedals together.  To do this hold a pedal face up.  Tie a knot in the end of your thread and sew up from the back of the pedal, along the bottom on the left-hand side.  Then, sew back down on the right-hand side still along the bottom.  This will essentially create a long stitch along the bottom of each pedal.  Continue with the same thread until you have stitched through each pedal.

Stitch through the first pedal again.

Then, gently pull the string tight.  This will gather the peals together and your flower will appear.

Flip the flower over and stitch through the back to secure the flower.  Try to avoid stitching through the center, though, as we want that to be open for the next step.

Time to grab those pipe cleaners.  I raided my kid’s craft supplies for my flowers!

Twist together a yellow and an orange pipe cleaner.  Then fold the pipe cleaners in half so the end is not sharp.  Then, thread the pipe cleaners through the center of the flower.  Trim and fold back the end of the pipe cleaners.

Finally, glue the center of the flower to a scrap of white felt.  If you’d like to wear the felt flowers in your hair, hot glue on a bar pin (for a button) or a hair clip.

They are pretty, right?  And I hope you agree, quite easy to make.  I plan on giving these felt flowers away at my next party as favors.  Each lady gets one to wear and take home.

Don’t ya just love it! All the best!

Nancy

Nancy is the play-at-home mom of 3 little ones, ages 3 and under. When she gets a chance she blogs at dosmallthingswithlove.com about the intersection of motherhood and creativity. She has a special passion for embroidery, something she has been doing and experimenting with since she was a girl. A farm girl at heart, she now lives in Minneapolis and enjoys gardening, reading, stitching, traveling and painting. Most any day you can find her with a baby on her hip, barefoot, chasing her kids around the yard and eating beans fresh out of the garden.