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"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery"
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"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery"
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Once you know the basics, you can decorate future favors any number of ways before stitching them together: cross stitch or embroidery (hand or machine), stenciling or painting, applique or trim, or whatever your specialty is!
Start with an 11" X 10" piece of fabric. Cotton works well; but whatever you use, make sure it's sturdy enough to stand up to hanging on a belt and taking a beating (both figuratively and literally).
Prewash your fabric the same way you plan on washing the favor in the future. This will prevent it from shrinking after it's been created.
Fold the fabric in half with the right (pretty) side of the fabric INSIDE. Fold it lengthwise so that you have 2 long (11") sides and 2 short (5") sides.
Pin the template to the fabric, aligning the bottom and right hand side of the paper with the cut edges of the fabric.
Knot your sewing thread and sew the open (non-folded) long side with a running stitch, every few stitches use a backstitch to keep the thread from pulling and puckering your fabric.
Knot the thread at the end of that long side and cut the thread.
Turn the favor inside out, so that the right (pretty) side of the fabric is on the outside.
Use blunt ended scissors, a ruler, a knitting needle, or other long and somewhat pointed item to square the corners of the favor by pushing them out from the inside of the favor.
At the top of the favor fold the raw edges into the inside of the favor - about 1/4 to 1/2 inch down. This will create four layers of fabric at the top of the favor.
Fold and pin the top of the favor down far enough to allow the recipients belt to fit through that fold.
Knot your sewing thread and sew the top down to the main body of the favor by sewing (with a whip stitch or a running stitch) through the four layers of the top and ONLY one layer of the favor. This keeps the stitch from showing on the front of the favor.
Knot the thread at the end, run the threaded needle INTO the inside of the favor, bring the thread out further down the favor and clip the thread. This will hide the end of the thread.
Running/Straight stitch: CozyBlueHandmade.com/blogs/blog/straight-stitch
Back stitch: SublimeStitching.com/pages/how-to-back-stitch
Whip stitch: TheRuffledPurse.com/how-to-whip-stitch-by-hand