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What To Sew With Felt [75+ Interesting Ideas!]

Are you feeling like I was last holidays? I really wanted to give my loved ones some cool gifts but I was on a tight budget.  

I thought about it for a bit and decided to make some things with felt, since I know how to sew and I did have the cash to buy some cheap craft felt!

Have you ever thought of sewing with felt?  

Even if you don’t know how to sew very well or you do have a sewing machine but feel impostor syndrome every time you go to Pinterest to look for and see all these amazing creations, then this article is for you!  

Felt is budget friendly, colorful and feels great to touch so kids love it!  It doesn’t fray and if you’re not confident with a needle and thread, you can even glue your creations together. 

A felt project can be as easy and quick or as complicated as you like, depending on the project you choose.

In this post I’ll show you what to sew with felt to impress your loved ones the next time you want to give a gift that comes from the heart.

Affiliate Link Disclosure: The links on this page may be affiliate links, from which I earn a small commission if you click on them, at no extra cost to you. Hope you find the information here useful. Thanks!

What To Sew With Felt (75+ ideas)

What To Sew With Felt 

What should you sew with felt? Backpack decorations, coasters, holiday decorations, toys, the list goes on!  Read on to find out 76 felt projects to sew.  

1.Backpack Decorations

Felt backpack decorations can take a boring kids backpack and turn it into something extremely cool.  Your and your kids’ imagination is the limit when it comes to what to make.  

Does your kid love Cats or monsters?  How about adapting that tutorial to create a minion or dogs etc – you could add eyes, ears, legs or whatever you want! 

Here’s an option for older kids who want to add a few stand-alone designs.

A family member and our sewing teacher making backpack decorations and learning to sew by hand!

2.Basket

No pattern needed for this simple but extremely useful felt basket! 

Just draw a square and a few other lines straight onto the felt, cut out and sew or glue the 4 corners together and voila!  You could make small ones for jewelry, medium ones for bric-a-brac or larger ones for toys or anything else you need to put away. It couldn’t be simpler!

Just make sure that the felt you buy is at least 2 mm thick to ensure the basket is sturdy enough to hold its shape.

Here are a few other tutorials for making different types of felt baskets with straps:

3.Birthday Crown

Who doesn’t love a good crown?  Here are some options that both kids and adults will love.  These are a great alternative to throwaway birthday crowns that can be used again and again for kids (or adults) dress up games etc.

You’ll just need the measurements of your crown wearer’s head and a few other tools.  If the crown’s a surprise gift, here’s a size chart for heads to help you guestimate your person’s head size.

4.Birthday Cake

You can go as simple or as luxurious as you want with a felt birthday cake, depending on the type of felt (and filling) you use.

You can even use good old kitchen sponges to make colorful cake layers! Or the best quality wool felt to make a cake good enough for a queen. Here is a mini birthday cake and my favorite cake.

5.Bookmarks

If you’re like me and hate dogearing your books’ pages, then this is the perfect felt item to make for yourself or a useful gift for the readers in your life.

A felt bookmark is also a great option to teach someone in your life how to hand sew or use up felt scraps. My favorite ones for teaching kids and using up scraps are these “corner” bookmarks.

Here are some other really simple felt bookmark tutorials:

6.Bandaids For Doctor’s Set

A great gift for a kid who already has a doctor’s set.

Here’s a guide on making small bandages and a tutorial on making larger ones for your kid’s favorite teddy bear.

7.Bobby Pin Butterflies

Felt bobby pin butterflies are perfect for the little lady in your life. I know my niece would love them!  Here is a no-sew version if you don’t feel like sewing.

Here’s a quick video tutorial on how to make a glittery butterfly brooch.

8.Bracelets

Felt bracelets are a great no-sew option.  Here is a kids’ version. Here’s a more sophisticated braided adult’s version.

9.Brooches

Making a brooch from felt gives you a lot of options to be creative. Leaves, flowers and all sorts of novelties – how about this cute cat? 

10.Bunting

You could make traditional bunting but if you’re feeling creative, how about trying to make some tassel bunting?

11.Cake Topper

Do you want a cake topper that will last longer than a few days?  Then a felt cake topper could be the perfect solution.  Here are some cute flower toppers, a bright rainbow topper.  Or how about sewing a felt heart as a cake topper? 

12.Candleholders

If you have a lot of felt scraps lying around, this could be the project for you!  You will need some small glass jars or candle holders to complete this project. 

13.Christmas Ornaments

Speaking of candles, how about a felt candle ornament?  This takes me back to one of my favorite nursery stories.

14.Christmas Tree Decorations

When the holidays come around why not spend time creating memories and felt decorations?  You can use them for your tree for years to come and create some beautiful thoughtful gifts for your friends and daily at the same time!  You could even invite them around to take part.

This elegant red and white Christmas bunting is perfect for a gift. If you’d like a bit more color then check out these easy felt Christmas ornaments. This abstract Christmas tree spiral decoration has got to be one of my favorite felt pieces of this whole post. 

If that wasn’t enough to get you started, here is a list of 25 kid-friendly Christmas decorations.

15.Coasters

Here is a brilliant tutorial for making a variety of simple coasters, great if you have a sewing machine, but you could sew the designs by hand too.

This video tutorial has my heart though, I can never go past palm fronds…  If you prefer a written tutorial, this one is also straight forward with great photos.

16.Campfire With Marshmallow S’mores

DIY Felt Foodie has a comprehensive step by step video tutorial on making a very cool DIY felt s’mores. For the full campfire with marshmallow smores, see this post by Lia.

17.Coffee Cup Holder

A coffee cup holder is another great project if you have felt scraps lying around.  Save your starbucks cardboard coffee cup holder to use as a free pattern.  Here’s a really nice tutorial that also goes into how to do some pretty hand stitching.

18.Crowns

This lovely felt crown tutorial could be used for kids and/or adults depending on how you decorate it.  If you want to be blown away and inspired check out this video tutorial for a stunning felt crown for adults, although I’m sure kids would love it too.

For an adorable toddlers crown, here’s a simple but elegant no sew crown.

19.Dinosaur Tails

Here is a really popular tutorial on how to make a felt dinosaur tail. It also includes a free pattern. Here’s another cute option.  This is such a brilliant option for kid’s dress up.

20.Dress Up Costumes

Speaking of dressing up, here are some more fabulous options: a cowboy vest, a no sew felt candy costume, taco costume, or my favorite, a gnome costume!

21.Dolls’ Clothes And Accessories

You can make this as simple or as complicated as you like. Here is a simple tutorial for a no-sew set of dolls’ clothes. Here’s a more complicated dolls clothes and accessories playset – get ready to blow a kid’s mind with this set. Here’s a slightly more simple but still amazing playset.

22.Door Stop

Here is a fantastic and simple felt doorstop filled with a brick!  If you have a lightweight door, you could also fill it with dried beans or rice.  The other great thing about this idea is that you can hang it from the door handle when it’s not in use!

Here’s a Spongebob door stopper for your child’s room. They will love it!  It will also give you some hand sewing practice!  If animals are more your of or kid’s thing, check out this cute elephant and cat.

23.Doughnuts

This cute video tutorial comes with a free pattern. Here’s a written tutorial to go with it. Here’s a tutorial for glittery doughnuts that look good enough to eat!

24.Earring Organizer For Travel

This is a brilliant felt gift for the traveler in your life!  I never know where to put my earrings when I travel and this earring organizer will solve that problem.

25.Easter Decorations 

This brilliant post has you covered for felt easter decorations.  It includes specially themed easter bunting, easter bunny finger puppets and even a bunny mask. It even includes a great Easter project for kids – felt Easter eggs with very cute decoration ideas. There are also a lot of free patterns in this post.

For even more options see this post. I love the carrot ornaments and mobile.

26.Envelope

Of course, you could use a felt envelope for lots of things, but it’s an especially great idea for Valentines, to store a special something inside.  Here’s a no-sew envelope tutorial and here’s another written tutorial for some handstitched envelopes along with some cute felt decorated cards.

27.Fairy Wand

These fairy wands are a great way to use up felt scraps. I especially love that Lia uses a twig for the stick, it’s very cute. For a more structured wand, this post offers a great alternative.  This tutorial gives you lots of colorful options for fruit, food and animal felt boards. Here’s another to help your kids learn their alphabet.

28.Felt Boards

You have so, so many themes when it comes to making a felt board.  You could create games, play scenes, math or writing boards to practice for school.

29.Flowers

This post contains a free pattern to create your own no-sew roll-up felt flowers for different occasions.  This video tutorial takes you through step by step on how to create even more sophisticated roll-up flowers. In fact the creator has a whole youtube channel dedicated to this!

This post includes 5 different options, including a flower wreath.

30.Felt Magnets For The Fridge 

I’m obsessed with this video tutorial on felt cupcake fridge magnets.  The beads as sprinkles take them to the next level! This felt owl magnet is also very cute and colorful.

31.Finger Puppets

Felt finger puppets have come up a few times in this post and that’s because they’re so satisfying to make with felt.  Here are a few more ideas to add to the collocation. Here you can find lions, pandas, pigs, ducks and my favorite penguins – they remind me of some peejays I had when I was a kid that said “Cold feet, warm heart” <3.

For something extra special, try these woodland puppets, the bead eyes and little faces make them so lifelike and the colors they’ve used are just stunning.

32.Foam Cup Snowman

These aren’t very sustainable but they’re definitely one of the best felt sewing projects for beginners. In a pinch they’d be great for Christmas decorations or a winter kids’ party.  Here’s a cute no-sew version. Wiki-how also has a nice clear tutorial on how to put them together.

For a slightly more eco-friendly version here’s a felted wool foam snowman.

33.Felt Food

To get started Apartment Therapy and The Spruce offer really comprehensive guides on making felt food.  This video tutorial also offers very clear directions on getting started making things like pasta, sandwiches and eggs.

34.Games

This Felt Bean Bag Horseshoe Yard Game is beautiful. For something more simple, try this Tic Tac Toe game or Go Fish

35.Garlands

Yes, bunting is great but have you seen felt garlands? It takes decorating for Christmas or a festive event up a level.  It looks so beautiful and is really not that hard – you probably made something similar as a kid.

36.Gift Card Carriers

How often have you given a gift card and not loved its packaging? Or received one yourself and promptly lost it!?  I have done this several times.  Creating a carrier for them is a great way to keep gift cards visible and memorable so you don’t lose them.

These ones made with a cricut are unique and look store-bought. These Christmas ones are more rustic and give you the chance to use your sewing machines or practice some hand-stitching techniques.

37.Gift Bags

You could make a beautiful or cute felt gift bag for every occasion.  This post comes with a free pattern that you could adapt for different holidays.  It even comes with an excellent video tutorial.

38.Glasses Case

If you’re like me and are continuously taking your glasses off and scratching them, then this is a great little project to take on to protect your expensive glasses.  I like this idea for seeing glasses and this one for sunglasses – they are especially great for aviators but you could adapt the pattern to your own sunnies.

39.Hearts

A heart for every occasion!  Here’s a cute little heart pocket tutorial.  Another one for heart decorations/ornaments – great for valentines for the Christmas tree and here’s a cute heart garland that I would be tempted to use at Christmas time too, in place of tinsel on the Christmas tree.

40.Halloween Decorations

You have so many options for making halloween decorations from felt!  Here are some really cute felt Halloween bags and some more Halloween ornaments.

41.Keychain

I’m obsessed with this adorable avocado keychain.  This post is also amazing – it has eggs, strawberries and pizza!

42.Leaf Wreath

This cool tutorial takes you through every step including making the wreath frame.  If you already have a frame that you want to reuse, then I highly recommend this tutorial.  For another option, here’s a white one with unique leaf shapes.

43.Letters

For stuffed felt letters, check this out. This is a great way for kids to learn to spell their names.  Here’s a video if you prefer.

44.Magnetic Felt Shapes

You could of course add magnets to many of the suggestions in this post, including the letters I just mentioned. Another option is to make a fully magnetic board and then create different types of shapes, numbers etc.

I have to say though I think my favorite idea is this amazing magnetic felt fish game. Such a fun idea for kids! 

45.Masks

These felt masks would feel at home at a ball.  Be an owl, a swan, or make your own creation based on these ideas.

46.Needle Case

This is the perfect, detailed tutorial on how to create a cute felt needle-case.

47.Organizer

There are so many felt organizers to choose from.  I love this elegant wall solution, especially in the gray but you could also make a more colorful version for kids.

You could also make a tiny storage cube for a small space such as a nightstand or bathroom bench.

48.Pencil Holder

I’ve got you covered whether you’ve got just a couple of pencils or a whole lot of color pencils for your art.  Here’s a smaller holder and a standing pencil holder for your desk. 

49.Pencil Pouch 

Yes of course you can buy a pencil pouch for your kids at Target but if your fingers are itching to make something cute, sustainable and sturdy, then a felt pencil pouch could be perfect.

Just like the felt backpack, you can personalize your pouch for your child.  My favorite is this cat pouch but it could easily be turned into a cute doggy pouch or a monster pouch – if you choose a big zip, this becomes the monster’s mouth.  Your kid will love that detail!

This project is a little more complicated than some of the others as you’ll have to sew in a zipper.  You can do this with a sewing machine or by hand.

If your kids are hard on their things, then I recommend using a more durable, thick felt for the pouch itself.  The decorations, such as the cat’s ears can be made using a lightweight felt.  Lia recommends using at least 3mm felt.

You can also make a very cool adult pencil pouch and check out some more options below:

50.Pencil Toppers

There are so many cute options for felt pencil toppers!  Here are some cute animals and some monsters, although they look more like octopuses to me :).

51.Phone Case

If you want a cute and protective case for your phone look no further than this tutorial. For something a bit more complicated but so beautiful, try this owl phone case.

52.Pillow Cover

Here’s a nice video on creating a felt pillow cover. I also found this cute tutorial to create a “mini pillow”.

53.Pin Cushion

I love this idea.  I’ve made plenty of pin cushions in my life and I think this may be my favorite way due to the colors you can use and also the feel of them.  Here are my favorite options: a flower, a cactus and a sewing machine design.

Close up sewing accessories on light background

54.Pinecone Animals

To learn how to sew felt animals, pinecone animals are a good place to start. Especially for different holidays including Christmas and Easter, or just to add to the homemade toy collection.  Here are some foxes, penguins, owls, mice and bears.

55.Pinwheels

These pinwheels take me straight back to my childhood, except these are much more environmentally friendly than the plastic ones I used to play with! Here’s a nice video tutorial too.

56.Play Food

Muffins, fruit, vegetables, sandwiches and pasta. So many options to choose from!

57.Playmat

You could create a cityscape, a woodland, or my fav, this park. Your imagination is the limit here. 

58.Puppets

I mentioned finger puppets earlier in this post, but you can also make simple hand puppets.  Here is a slightly more complicated 3d option with movable animal mouths. For a project you can really get your teeth into, try this muppet inspired puppet.

59.Quiet Book

You can get so creative making quiet books. Here’s a great video tutorial that takes you through step by step. If you’re stuck for ideas, start with this post which offers lots of options.

60.Safety Pin Holder

You can go plain or novelty for this one. Here is a cute Frankenstein one and a more dainty one.

61.Saint Patrick’s Day Decorations

What could be more perfect than to celebrate St Patrick’s Day than this cute little felt four leaf clover or some shamrocks.

62.Scarf

You could go for an easy felt scarf with some tweaks at the ends or a more ornate felt fringe scarf.

63.Sleep Mask

This mask with eyes is so cute. Here’s a cute owl option for kids or adults.

64.Slippers

To make a good pair of felt slippers. You’ll need to buy the more expensive wool felt or even have a go sewing with felted wool.  Here are instructions for wool felt slippers and a great video showing how to make them from felted wool – so beautiful.

65.Soft Toys

You have your choice of so many options for making soft felt toys.  How about an elephant, monster, giraffe or even a house, bird or mushroom?

66.Storyboards

Similar to the felt play mats we saw before, boards are perfect for playtime but this time you can keep them off the floor and out of the way, on the wall.  Here is a cute scene with lots of options. This video also takes you through all the details on how to put your own together.

67.Heirloom Stuffies

As you can imagine, these heirloom stuffies should be made with the highest quality felt you can afford, to make sure they last as long as possible.   Here’s a round up of a lot of options.  My favorite ones include this skunk and red fox.

Also, read on in the FAQs about how to wash felt fabric to ensure this project lasts a lifetime.

68.Superhero Mask

These are so cool!  You can go as close to the real deal as you want with this tutorial or something more subtle with this video.

69.Succulents

If you find the right colors you can make super realistic felt succulents! Check out these videos…  Here are 4 different options and here are another 3 options. If you prefer a written post, check this out.

70.Thanksgiving Ornaments

I think this is one of the coolest felt projects I’ve seen: a cute turkey for Thanksgiving.

71.Tea Bags 

This tutorial comes complete with felt tea bags AND a tea tin with labels. So cute. Here’s a simpler tutorial and a very ornate set that is just so beautiful and made with more expensive wool felt. 

72.Tissue Holder

Looking for a tissue holder for kids?  Look no further than this cute frog one! For a simpler but still cute version, see here.

73.Tooth Fairy Bags

I’m obsessed with these rainbow coloured tooth fairy bags. This actual “tooth fairy” bag is also adorable. These muslin bags with felt designs are so beautiful too.

74.T-Shirt Applique

Yes you could iron on a design but you could also create a unique felt design on your or the kid in your life’s t-shirt. I vote for these simple but stunning no-sew felt animal designs. 

For a great tutorial on how to make your felt fusible and also how to care for it, see here. For a simple but impactful camera design, see this tutorial.

75.Toys For Kids

Making felt toys for kids is so satisfying.  Here are some beautiful ideas: fairy pocket fairies (stunning), fairy wings and a stump fairy house.

76.Zipper Pouch

Zipper pouches are a great felt sewing project for advanced beginners, as you can practice your hand sewing and also have a go at putting a zip in.  In fact, it’s one of the first hand sewing projects I attempted.

Felt is great for this project as you don’t need to worry about seam finishings or lining.

For something a bit more complicated have a go at this gorgeous watermelon zipper pouch

What Tools Do I Need To Sew With Felt?

  • Needles – embroidery for hand sewing, larger sized needles help too
  • Fabric, craft scissors, or a cutting mat and rotary cutter – don’t let anyone use them to cut paper!!  Fabric only 🙂
  • Sewing machine – if you don’t have a sewing machine you can hand sew
  • Sewing patterns – you could make your own or look for one online
  • Pins
  • Hot glue – especially if you don’t want to sew
  • A marker – to draw on details like whiskers
  • Extras such as buttons, zips, stuffing – depending on your project 
  • Cricut machine – this is optional but if you have one, use it.

FAQs On What To Sew With Felt 

What Is Felt Used For In Sewing?

Felt in sewing is used to create gifts, home decor, holiday decorations. It’s a great fabric for kids and beginner sewists as it’s firm and comes in a lot of colors.   In the olden days, people used felt to make rugs, shoes, clothing, and even tents!

Can You Iron Felt Material?

YES, you can iron felt. Be sure to start at low temperatures then increase it. Avoid using steam which might cause the colored dye to seep out of the fabric.

Tips For Sewing With Felt 

Some tips for sewing with felt on a sewing machine are to use 70/10 or 80/12 needles for regular felt. Use 90/14 needles for 2 layers or thicker felt. Use ordinary polyester thread on a sewing machine and embroidery thread for hand sewing. For wool felt, use cotton thread.

Should I Wash Felt Before Sewing It?

YES, You should wash your felt before sewing it, to avoid it shrinking once you’ve made a felt item (IF you’ll need to wash it after you’ve made it). Prewash by hand in a bowl or sink of cooled soapy water.  Fully immerse the felt and rinse until the water runs clear.

How Do You Wash Felt In A Washing Machine?

If you can, it’s best to avoid washing felt in a washing machine, but if you must, make sure you wash it on a delicate cycle. Ideally, the wool or delicate cycle. Ensure that you use only cool water and low or no spin.

Does Felt Need to be Hemmed?

NO! My favorite thing about it, is that felt doesn’t need to be hemmed! You don’t even need to sew pieces together if you don’t want to, you can use glue.  

Does Felt Fray When Cut?

Felt’s cut edges won’t fray!  Just another thing to love about felt.  This is because felt isn’t woven, it’s a non-woven fabric made from compressed and matted fibers. 

Does Felt Have a Right Side?

Felt has no right side or wrong side! If you look closely at the “holes” in the fabric of both sides, on one side you will see that the holes appear neat and smooth. That’s the right side but honestly, don’t worry about it!  Happy stress free sewing! 

Is it Better to Glue or Sew Felt?

Sometimes it’s faster and better to glue felt, like if you’re in a hurry to get something done. However sewing felt means it will last longer and be stronger.  It will also help if you have to wash it. Make sure you use a fabric or craft glue that dries transparent.

Felt Sewing Patterns

You can find felt sewing patterns on Amazon and Etsy.  Some bloggers even offer free patterns.

What To Sew With Felt: Wrap Up

Sewing with felt can be as easy or as challenging as you want it to be, depending on the project type of felt, and the techniques.

If you’ve wanted to learn to sew on a sewing machine, hand sew or insert a zip, why not start with a felt project as a first step?  You’ll remove the need to worry about pinning and hemming and just get onto the fun stuff – designing and creating!

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