How to make fabric flower brooch

Make a fabric flower brooch for spring! These little blooms are a doddle to make so make a few and pin to lapels, accessories handbags and embellish spring footwear.

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fabric flower broach on white

Gemma Nemer

Published: August 9, 2021 at 9:09 am

Dip into your fabric stash (or scraps) and stitch a spring fabric flower brooch with textile artist Gemma Nemer. It's a fab stash buster project that turns sewing offcuts into something beautiful. These little blooms are a doddle to make, and since each petal is hand-stitched with treasured fabric, you’ll want to accessorize everything! Add your fabric flower brooch to lapels, spring footwear, or even your new tote ( you can learn how to make a tote bag with our free tote bag pattern). Gemma's made her fabric flower brooch with floral fabrics that are fit for spring and summer but why not make some festive and autumnal versions? Get your Christmas fabrics and Autumnal colours out and make yourself some fabric flower brooches for every season. You'll need to raid your button stash in order to find the perfect middle for your fabric flower brooch. Plain buttons, gems and even knotted up embroidery thread work well. If you can't find a button that suits your fabric brooch never fear. We show you how to make your own buttons right here on Gathered. Simply find some buttons and cover them in matching fabric - no extra spending needed! This fabric flower brooch really is the best stash buster project.

If you're new to the world of hand stitching we have a guide to all the embroidery stitches you'll need as well as a complete guide to sewing for beginners. Have a read of those articles before you start your fabric flower brooch and you'll be set to start sewing.

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You’ll need:

• Fabric • Needle and thread • Button • Glue gun • Brooch back • Small piece of felt

How to make a fabric flower brooch

You will need:

Fabric
Needle
Thread
Button

Step 1

How to make fabric flower brooch

Use a jam jar lid or draw a 7cm (2¾”) card circle as a template. Draw around it five times on your five different fabric pieces and neatly cut them out.

Step 2

How to make fabric flower brooch

Take one of the circles and fold neatly into a quarter. Repeat with the rest of your circles. Now you have five petal quarters. Thread your needle and cotton about 50cm (20″) long, doubled over with a big knot (a different colour has been used here so you can see it).

Step 3

Using a running stitch, sew along the rough, curved edge of your petal quarter. You should only need around 10 stitches per petal quarter. Repeat with all five petal quarters. All your petal quarters will now be strung on your length of cotton.

How to make fabric flower brooch

Gather your petal quarters from both ends so they are as close together as they can be, with long ties at both ends.

Step 4

How to make fabric flower brooch

Then simply tie both ends together with a double knot and trim the ends. Be careful not to tie your ends too tightly or they will snap. When you have tied your flower together, equally space out the petals. You will have a small hole in the centre of your flower – don’t worry at this stage, it will be covered later.

Step 5

How to make fabric flower brooch

Now cut a 4cm (15/8 “) and a 2cm (¾”) paper circle. Draw around them on the felt piece and cut out. Stitch your brooch back onto the largest felt circle. It’s best to choose which way up your flower is going to go before adding the back.

Step 6

How to make fabric flower brooch step

Stitch or glue your button to the flower. Next, glue the smaller felt circle over the open brooch pin to cover the stitching. Finally, glue your large felt circle backing to the back of the flower. Try using a glue gun for this. For different effects, you can try experimenting with flat petals or pointy petals.

How to make fabric flower brooch

And that’s it! Fabric flower brooch complete. For more fun sewing projects make sure you check out our free rabbit sewing pattern and our 9 pinafore dress sewing patterns. They’re both super simple and very cute.

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Textile Artist

Gemma lives inside her little studio, The Button Tin. With basic tools, she stitches fabric artworks and installations, enjoying the rush of gathering and finding lost objects and turning them into pieces of art. She often uses words – song lyrics, memories and poems – hand embroidered in her wearable and interior pieces, and is passionate about preserving traditional skills. You can find her textile creations over https://www.thebuttontin.com/ and @thebuttontin on Instagram