DIY Felt butterfly brooch

I know some people think that butterflies are kind of cheesy. Things that pink-loving little girls have in their room, but I really can't help but love them. Maybe there's still a pink-loving little girl somewhere inside me. Anyways, when I was dreaming up a new DIY project for MOOD magazine, this butterlfy brooch flew in to my mind.

Now I'm finally able to share this sweet little project with you. These pictures where actually taken back in March which is why they have sort of a wintery feel. But, hey, it's almost winter again, so it doesn't really matter.

 Here's what you need:

• 10 cm of thick felt in your color of choice
• Embellishments for the wings (rhinestones, embroidery thread, etc.)
• Craft wire and two 3mm beads
• 2 rhinestones: one 3cm-long oval and one 2cm-wide round stone
• Brooch pin
• Paper and pencil
• Scissors
• Strong adhesive or a glue gun

 Step 1
You can see all the important measurements in the photo above.
First, draft a template for the wings onto paper using the measurements given. Cut the template out and use it to cut out 4 wings.
Second, cut out 1 oval piece of felt with the measurements given. I know the photo shows 2, but I later discovered you only need one.

 Step 2
Time to embellish those wings. As you can see, I used embroidery thread to sew some colorful lines to the outer edge of the wings, and then added some iron-on rhinestones. You can let your imagination run wild and create the butterfly of your dreams here, so get creative!

 Step 3
Cut two 10cm-long strips of craft wire. Put the wire through the small 3mm bead and fold the wire in half. Holding the wire ends in one hand start twisting the bead until you get an evenly and strongly twisted antler/antennae for the butterfly. Repeat with the other strip of wire and bead.

 Step 4
Now you can put it all together. First, glue the antlers to one end of the oval felt piece. Then, start glueing the wings to the backing. Glue the upper wings first, and then add the lower ones so that they overlap the upper wings by about 1-1.5cm.

 Step 5
Once the wings are glued, glue the big rhinestones on top. Let dry before moving on to the next step.

 Step 6
Glue the brooch pin to the back of the butterfly. If you want a completely flat brooch, then you're done. If you'd like a more 3D wings effect, check out the last step.

 Step 7
To add a 3D effect to the wings, bend them and then steam from the backside of the wings with an iron. The wings are easily molded with steam, so you can determine how much you want the wings to stay up.

I love this fun little felt insect. She's cute! I think this would make a great gift for anyone who's into brooches, or insects for that matter. Also, easily customizable with different embellishments and colors. An easy DIY gift idea right there (hmmkhmm, Christmas is really not that far off).

Happy creating!

xo. Hanna

This tutorial first appeared in the April 2014 issue of MOOD magazine. Finished project photos by Rein Saar.