From the archives: How to... make felt poppies

Remembrance Sunday is fast approaching, and one of the best ways to show your support for those who sacrificed their lives is to wear a poppy.

This article was first published on Arts Award Voice on 29 June 2014.


We’ve marked the 100 years since the beginning of world war one here on Voice with our Art and War theme this month. One of the resounding associations with reflection on war is the poppy which is worn by many as a sign of remembrance each year. Here I’ll show you how I made my own poppy!

You’ll need:

1 sheet of red felt

1 black button

1 sheet of card

Black Ribbon

Small black beads to decorate

Needle and thread (I used black)

Scissors

Pencil


1)      Draw and cut a template ‘petal shape’ from your card. You will be using 5 of these for the base of your poppy so consider this when deciding on the size. I made mine 5.5cm from top to bottom. The shape is similar to a rounded heart and to make it symmetrical you can fold down the centre line then cut.

2)      Draw around your template 5 times onto the red felt and cut out the petals.

3)      Cut a second smaller petal template (or trim your first one down). I made mine 4.5cm. Cut 5 petals from your felt

4)      Repeat step 3 making a final, smaller petal – cut 3 of these from the felt (I made mine 3.5cm)

5)      Draw around a circle onto your felt (I used a large button) and cut out  to create a base to sew all your petals around.

6)      Begin by stitching the largest petals to the base. Place the point of one to the centre of the circle and make a single small stitch to hold in place. Repeat will the other 4, evenly spacing them and placing each point at the circle centre.

7)      The petals should sit in an “over under-over-under” pattern. Use a second small stitch, passing through your base circle and the two overlapping petals, to secure in place.

8)      Next add loops of ribbon. Fold a short length of ribbon in half and pinned, ensuring it’s slightly longer when folded than the length from the centre of the poppy to its outmost point. I used 5 of these – one for each overlap.

9)      Then stitch each of the ribbons to the centre of my poppy, so the two ends are at the centre. Once stitched remove the pins.

10)   Now add your next level of petals as in step 6. (It is not as important to use the securing stitch from step 7 here – I didn’t)

11)   Take each of your final 3 petals and embellish with beads. I used just 3 black beads on each of mine, to keep my poppy simple, but you could style yours however you want; you could even embellish lower levels of petals if you wanted.

12)   Once you are happy with your beading stitch your petals on as before. These probably won’t overlap like the other layers but still be sure to spread them evenly.

13)   Sew your button to the centre of your poppy.

14)   FINISHED! If you like you can add a safety pin to the back you can make your poppy wearable!

Top tips

Always start stitching from the back to keep the front of your poppy tidy

The felt gets thicker, and harder to pull your needle through, the more layers you have. I used the plastic bit between the handles of the scissors to grip my needle and pull it through, but if you’re going to do this be very careful not to cut yourself!

Don’t be scared to customise your poppy – I have only given a rough guide to how I made mine, but you could, for example, use more layers of felt, different types of ribbon, and more embellishments.

Most importantly have fun! I made my poppy with one of my best arty friends (who is far better at sewing than myself!) why don’t you work with some friends too!


Author

Mollie Tuttle

Mollie Tuttle Youth Network

Arts Award Youth Network Alumni, I have achieved my bronze and silver arts awards focusing on backstage and techincal theatre. I'm currently studying Stage Management and Technical Theatre at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and working towards my gold arts award (...it's a slow and steady process... :P ).

I basically live in the theatre but I also have a passion for visual arts.

Twitter: @molsandturtles

Recent posts by this author

View more posts by Mollie Tuttle

1 Comments

  • Bee Snellen

    On 7 November 2018, 15:16 Bee Snellen Voice Team commented:

    Never thought about making my own. Great idea!

Post A Comment

You must be signed in to post a comment. Click here to sign in now

You might also like

La fille mal gardée: The most opulent of fairytales...right in the heart of Birmingham

La fille mal gardée: The most opulent of fairytales...right in the heart of Birmingham

by Ellie Blackwell

Read now