What dad wouldn’t love a felty

family portrait? Use photographs

and felt to make pictures

of his loved ones.

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W h a t Y o u D o

1 Copy and cut out the templates in the back of the book. Cut out the image open-ing in the center of the frame template. using the templates, the craft knife, and the straightedge, cut one easel back from the poster board. Cut two 5 x 6-inch (12.7 x 15.2 cm) rectangles from the poster-board, but don’t cut out the image opening in the center of either rectangle yet.

2 Lightly coat one 5 x 6-inch (12.7 x 15.2 cm) poster board rectangle with spray adhesive, and center the board on the back of the gray felt, smoothing gently to remove any wrinkles. Cut the excess felt from around the poster board, using a craft knife and straightedge, but still don’t cut out the image-opening area yet.

Tip: Always use a very sharp blade and straightedge to cut felt, pressing down and advancing slowly. If you pull the knife too quickly, the felt will stretch and give you misshapen, fuzzy cuts. Protect your project from knife slips and nicks by placing the straightedge onto the project and cutting toward the scrap edge, not the project.

3 Lay the frame template on top of the felt panel you created in the last step, and use the fabric pen with disappearing ink to draw the image opening and the diagonal lines at each corner onto the felt. (Note: Make sure you use a fabric pen with ink that will disappear from your felt completely without having to use water.) the easiest way to get the woodgrain pattern onto the frame is to just draw it freehand onto the felt with the disappearing ink fabric pen, referring to the template or photograph. all wood is unique, so don’t stress about making the grain markings perfect.

Father’s DayFather’s Day

D e s I g n e r : s u z I e M I l l I o n s

W h a t Y o u N e e D

(to make one)Templates

Basic sewing kit

Craft knife

Straightedge

Poster board

Spray adhesive

Gray felt, about 7 x 8 inches (17.8 x 20.3 cm), for the frame

Fabric pen with disappearing ink (see note in step 3)

White thread

Felt for the background

Photo

Photocopier

Clear sheet protector, cut into 3 x 3-inch (7.6 x 7.6 cm) squares

Fine point permanent marker

Felt scraps in assorted colors, for hair, eyes, clothes, etc.

Toothpicks

Transparent tape

Double-sided tape

Bone folder

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4 use the white thread to free-motion stitch the woodgrain pattern right through both the felt and the poster board. trim all loose threads as you work. For a sharp turn, stop stitching with the needle below the felt and posterboard, lift the pressure foot, rotate the fabric, lower the foot, and begin stitching again. Sew the diagonal lines in each corner after you’ve stitched the woodgrain.

5 Now you can use the craft knife and straightedge to cut out the image opening in the center of the felt panel.

6 Cut a 3 x 4-inch (7.6 x 10.2 cm) piece of felt for the portrait’s background—experiment to find a color that contrasts well with the hair color of your person or pet. to begin making your felt family member, use the portrait templates provided, customizing them as needed to capture a likeness, or make your own by tracing a photo you’ve enlarged or reduced to fit the frame opening. use the squares of sheet protector material and a fine point marker to trace the hair, facial features, clothing, etc., to make templates. Simplify—crisp, basic shapes make these portraits fun.

7 trace around the templates on the various felt scraps, and then cut out the pieces. Start by cutting the face, ears, shoulders, and neck. as you work, assemble the pieces on the background felt, but don’t glue yet. trim and ad-just pieces as needed. Keep the frame front handy so you can lay it over your portrait as you progress to see what will show through the image opening. You can use a paper punch if you have one to make perfectly round pieces (great for eyes). add wire, beads, embroidery floss, and other trims to make additional details.

8 using white craft glue, assemble the portrait, gluing the bottom layer to the background, and then working your way up, gluing each layer to the layer below it. For very small pieces, pour glue on scrap paper and use a toothpick to apply the glue to the felt. use clean toothpicks to position small pieces of felt.

9 attach the felt portraits to the back of the stitched frames with the transparent tape, pressing firmly. apply the double-sided tape to all four edges of one side of the blank piece of 5 x 6 inch (12.7 x 15.2 cm) poster board you set aside earlier, and press the piece firmly to the back of the stitched frame.

10 use a bone folder to score along the dotted line of the easel back and crease. apply double-sided tape to the full length of the easel back, align the bottom edge with the center of the bottom edge of the frame back, and press the easel firmly in place.

image opening

easel back

fold back

T e M P l A T e sactual size

adult and child heads, ears, necks and shoulders