How To Make Charming Heart Gift Tags With Upcycled Sweater Scraps

DIY VALENTINE'S heart gift tags

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and in this tutorial, I’m going to show you how to make these charming heart gift tags using upcycled sweater scraps. I hope you’ve been saving these little fabric gems that you have leftover from your other upcycled sweater project.

 

DIY VALENTINE'S DAY heart gift tags paper bag

It goes to show you that even the smallest pieces of felted wool sweaters can be made into some pretty cute things! Add a string of jute or ribbon and you have a tag that is unique and something that you don’t see every day.

I’m going to show you how to easily cut out a small heart freehand, a few ways you can apply it to a card, and show you how to sew several hearts together to make a HEART GARLAND.

supplies green heart heart gift tags

Heart Gift Tags Items & Materials Needed

  • Paper scissors/paper cutter
  • Fabric scissors
  • Felted sweater scraps/felt pieces
  • Card stock paper
  • Glue stick
  • Paper punch
  • Lightweight jute
  • Sewing machine (optional) for heart garland
cutting out heart gift tags

Instructions for Cutting out Heart Gift Tags

If you want, you can create a small heart pattern with paper. However, I find just eyeballing and cutting is much easier due to the small size of the hearts.

Take a piece of sweater fabric and fold it in half. You’ll only be cutting out the shape of a half heart. Start at the bottom point of the heart. You can make these as wide and as tall as you want. You may want to practice on a folded piece of paper to get the hang of it. It really is quite easy.

Heart Gift Tags Paper Prep

Decide how big you want the tag or card to be and cut out a piece of cardstock to that size. You can make the tag be a folded card or a single-layer tag.

heart gift tags glue

Heart Application

There are a few ways to apply the hearts to the paper. The first one is to just glue it on using a simple glue stick or craft glue.

heart gift tags red heartAnother way is to SEW IT ON. Yep, you can use your sewing machine to sew a simple line down the center of the heart. This gives the card a unique look and allows the sides of the heart to flop a bit, which I find to be really cute and different. TIP: to avoid thread nesting on the underside of the fabric, hold your thread for the first couple of stitches and then let go.

If you want to add a ribbon or tie to the heart gift tags, simply use a paper punch.

Fold the ribbon in half and insert the folded end into the hole. Stick the cut ends into the loop and pull to tighten. Tie the heart gift tag to your gift bag. SO CUTE!

heart gift tags heart garland

How to Make a Heart Garland

Another thing you can do is make a vertical heart garland by sewing several hearts together. You can do this by hand sewing, but using a sewing machine makes it a snap.

heart gift tags threadsStart by pulling out about 5 inches of thread from your machine.

heart gift tags sewing machineTake a fabric heart and start sewing at the upper notch of the heart down to the point of the heart. DO NOT CUT THE THREADS!

heart gift tags sewingTurn the handwheel of your sewing machine toward you to bring the needle in the uppermost position. Lift up the presser foot and pull the sewn heart back until you have the distance between hearts that you want.

heart gift tags garlandSew another heart in the same manner and continue with this process until you have a heart garland the length you desire.

heart gift tags doorknob

These heart garlands are adorable hanging from a doorknob or on the wall.

There you have it; another fun way to use up those small pieces of felted sweaters. These heart gift tags are not only for Valentine’s Day but make cute additions to baby gift wrappings and other gifts.

Be sure to check out my other Valentine crafts and gifts.

DIY Valentine Heart Branches / Love Grows on Trees / Easy Craft Tutorial

DIY Valentine Paint Chip Bookmark / Kid Friendly Craft

Paper Heart Garlands: Made From Recycled Magazines

Heart Lollipops: Made with Upcycled Sweaters & Felt

 

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Jan Howell

Jan Howell

Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.

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Easy DIY Mini Wreath | Made From Upcycled Sweaters

mini Christmas wreath

I hope you’ve been saving your felted wool sweater scraps! This adorable mini wreath is so fun and easy to make. It’s a project that even the little ones can handle.

mini Christmas wreath doorknob

You can hang this mini wreath on the Christmas tree, on a doorknob, or attach one to a wrapped gift. These Christmas wreaths can be made any size! This particular wreath measures about 4 ½ across when finished.

mini Christmas wreath tree

I have a video tutorial for those of you that are visual learners.

Mini Wreath Materials & Items Needed

Sweater scraps of all colors cut into small pieces (size depends on how big or small you want the wreath to be)

mini Christmas wreath rotary cutter

Mini Wreath Instructions:

Cut fabric into small pieces, approximately 1-1 ½ inches for the mini wreath. Don’t worry about making them uniform in size or shape. Just cut them all in the approximate same size. I really like using a rotary cutter and mat, but scissors will do just fine. BE CAREFUL NOT TO GET YOUR FINGERS IF USING A ROTARY CUTTER!

Once you have a bunch of different colors cut out, place them in a bowl or container and find a comfortable seat. This is a fun project to sit around the table with friends and family and chat while making a mni wreath or you can cozy up with your scraps and watch a good movie.

mini Christmas wreath adding scraps

Take a wire and start threading the scraps onto the wire one at a time. There is no need to pre-cut the hole, just poke the end of the wire into the center of the scrap. Keep adding scraps until you have it to the desired size.

mini Christmas wreath twist wire

Once you have all your scraps loaded onto the wire, twist the ends together to make a circle. You can make a loop with the wire to hang it with, or you can clip the wire and add a ribbon to hang it with.

This mini wreath is a fun addition to a wrapped gift or given as a gift itself. A gift and decoration that is unique, charming, and EASY TO MAKE!

sweater scraps bin mini Christmas wreath

It’s pretty simple and straightforward. Gather your sweater scraps and get cutting.

I have a few bins full of sweater scraps. There are so many fun things you can make with even the smallest scraps of upcycled sweaters. Here are some other fun ideas.

Upcycled Sweater Hearts

How To Do Crazy Scrap Quilting USING YOUR Upcycled Sweater Scraps

Felted Wool Sweater Hearts Tutorial

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Jan Howell

Jan Howell

Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.

Read More