Sew spring flowers with us.

The beginning of spring is one of our favourite times of year: the weather is getting warmer, the days are getting longer and leaves and flowers are popping up everywhere, springing (literally) into life!

One of the most iconic images associated with the start of spring is the beautiful tulip and although the tulip is only in bloom for a few short weeks, in this tutorial you can sew your own bunch of tulips in only a couple of hours which will last all year round and will be the perfect floral addition to brighten up any sewing space!

This is also the perfect scrap busting project. As a sewing pattern company we are always looking for ways to use up any scraps of fabric. Wherever possible we use odd bits of fabric in toiles for our new designs but there are always those few left over which are just too small. These flowers are ideal for all these offcuts as each flower uses a small rectangle of fabric only.  

Tulip kits are now available to buy in our shop, or you will need the supplies listed below. 

To make a bunch of tulips you will need the following:

• paper, ruler and a pencil to draw your templates
• 30cm of fabric for the stems and leaves 
• 5 or 7 pieces of fabric for the flowers measuring 12cm x 7cm
• 5 or 7 small wooden sticks for the stems measuring approximately 5mm (or smaller) in diameter and between 20-30cm in length
• wadding
• a needle and thread
• a straw to turn your stems through

Tips:

You could use a paper straw instead of a wooden stick for the stem, however we prefer the structure and stability a wooden stick provides, especially if displaying the tulips in a vase.

For the flowers and stems we have used a green cotton fabric and whilst we do recommend that you use a cotton fabric, you do not need to limit yourself to a traditional green. Here you can be as creative as you want! 

Neither do you need to restrict yourself to 5 or 7 flowers, however an odd number is generally more aesthetically pleasing.

For extra sustainability use recycled wadding. The wadding we use has been made out of recycled plastic bottles.

We have included step by step instructions on how to make your tulips below, and we will shortly be uploading a video tutorial where you can sew along with us!

Templates for the stems, leaves and flowers

1. Firstly you will need to make a template for your stems. To do this, draw a rectangle on a piece of paper which measures 4cm x the length of whatever you are using for your stem plus 1cm. So for example, our wooden sticks are 25cm so our template is 4cm x 26cm. Cut out your template and then cut this out in the fabric you are using for your stems, one each for the number of flowers you would like to make.

2. Draw another rectangle on a piece of paper which measures 7cm x 16cm. Fold this in half so the long edges are together and draw a leaf shape as shown in the photo. Cut out your template and then cut this out in your fabric, for the number of flowers you would like to make. You will need two of these for each flower. 

3. For the flower you will need to draw a rectangle on a piece of paper which measures 12cm x 7cm. Fold this in half so the long edges are together and draw a tulip shape as shown in the photo. Cut out your template and then cut this out in your fabric for the number of flowers you would like to make. You will need two of these for each flower.

Making the stems

4. Take one stem piece and fold in half right sides together so the long edges are together and press. Sew along one short edge using a 1cm seam allowance, stopping at the halfway point as shown in the photo, then backstitch a couple of stitches and sew over these again to reinforce the stitches. Place your needle down into the fabric, lift the presser foot and pivot the fabric 90 degrees so the length of the stem is directly in front of you. Place your presser foot back down and continue to sew the length of the stem. Trim away the seam allowance to about half (or just under) to remove the excess seam.

5. You will now need to turn the stem to the right side. To do this insert the straw into the stem making sure you push the straw all the way to the sewn end. Then using a knitting needle or wooden skewer, push this into the sewn end of the stem until it comes out the other end of the straw. As soon as you see the fabric start to emerge from the straw, pull this out and the remainder of the stem will follow and will now be right side out. Insert your wooden stick (or straw) into your stem. 

Tip: You will need something narrower than the straw in order to turn the stem through. Another item we have used is one of the sticks from a reed diffuser - this will also give a lovely smell to the stem!

6. Take the two leaf pieces and place right sides together. Make a mark 1cm from the bottom straight edge on each side as shown in the photo. Then starting from one mark, sew the leaves together using a 0.5cm seam allowance.

As you get closer to the top most point of the leaf and approximately 0.5cm away from the tip, place your needle down into the fabric, lift the presser foot and pivot the leaf. Place the presser foot down and continue sewing the remainder of the leaf until the second mark. 

Tip: If you sew too close to the tip you may risk not having enough room when you pivot and start sewing down the other side (you may sew off of the fabric or catch the fabric edge) so its perfectly fine to stop and pivot when you are 1cm (or even slightly more) from the tip. This will give you plenty of room to sew the second side of the leaf and you can trim away any excess seam allowance as you did with the stem. You do not need to worry about accuracy like when you are sewing an item of clothing and a slight asymmetry will even add to the organic, natural feel of a leaf!

Fold back the bottom 1cm (this is the unsewn part below the two marks you made at the beginning of this step) on each side of the leaf so the wrong sides are together and press. 

Then turn the leaf through to the right side and use a point turner to push out the seams, especially at the tip of the leaf. Give the leaf a good press and make sure the bottom folded edges are now on the inside of the leaf.

7. Repeat step 6 for the flower.

8. Insert the wadding into the flower making sure to completely fill the flower stopping just short of the folded edges.

Tip: Insert a small amount of wadding into the flower first making sure you push this right into the tip of the flower. If you insert too much wadding to begin with, it will be too bulky to reach the tip.

9. Now using a needle and thread sew a running stitch around the entire folded edge of the flower inserting your needle into the actual fold (make sure you knot your thread first). Then pull on the thread to gather the bottom of the flower. Do not remove the needle and thread until the end of step 10.

10. Insert the open end of the stem into the flower (it should be easy to push the stem through the wadding) until it reaches about halfway into the flower then pull the thread tight until the bottom of the flower completely closes around the stem. Using the needle and thread still attached to the flower, sew the gathered part of the flower to the stem. 

11.  Wrap the leaf around the stem so the tip of the leaf is just overlapping the bottom of the flower. 

12. Using the needle and thread, sew the bottom of the leaf to the stem.

Congratulations. You have just sewn (rather than sown!) your own bunch of tulips!