Transform your cherished vintage linens into charming stuffed hearts with this simple and fun DIY tutorial, perfect for adding a touch of love to your home decor.
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Do you have a pile of vintage linens that you don't know what to do with? Or do you have vintage linens that are damaged but you can't bring yourself to discard them? Then this tutorial is perfect for you. I will show you how to take your beloved pillowcases, hankies and other hand embroidered linens and turn them into loved decor.
How to Make Stuffed Hearts from Vintage Linens
It breaks my heart when I find vintage linens that are damaged. I can just picture the woman that hand stitched this hankie and the thought of all of her hard work being thrown away is almost unbearable. So I kept them first in a pile, then in a bin. As my collection of linens has grown almost out of control, I decided to craft some of the linens into little stuffed hearts for Valentine's Day.
Lay out the linen you would like to use on a cutting surface. Use a fabric pen (that disappears when rubbed with a damp cloth) to draw a heart around the embroidered area. I like the hearts to be between 4-6 inches big.
The hearts don't have to look perfect, we are going for a homemade look here!
Use quilted fabric for the back of the heart. I like to use old pillow shams or even old quilts because they are sturdy and can help stabilize the heart. Lay the heart on top of the quilt piece and pin it in place if necessary. We will be leaving the hems raw.
Using white thread in your machine, sew around the edges of the heart, leaving about a 2 inch space unsewn. If I can do this, then you can do this because I am not a seamstress at all. I limp along with instructions I received in 7th grade home ec class. This is an excellent tutorial for sewing basic shapes.
Use sharp fabric scissors to cut the excess quilted fabric away from the heart. As I said above, we will be leaving the hems raw for a rustic look. And because it's way easier.
Shove small pieces of stuffing into the hole you left open. Push the stuffing to the ends and edges of the heart. Make sure there is enough stuffing to keep the heart shape.
Once you have the heart as full as you would like it, smush it underneath the sewing machine needle and stitch the hole closed.
And now you have a charming heart to use as a gift or in home decor that saves the beautiful linens from being tossed out. You can also use vintage pillow cases that are flawed to make hearts as well. I hadn't thought of it before but it would be so cute to use old clothing from a loved one to make memory hearts too.
Last month I made a bunch of stuffed hearts from embroidered linens and pillowcases for my booths. They have been very popular. I think I will be making more shapes in the future.
Making Stuffed Hearts from Vintage Linens is a great way to use items like hankies with holes or stained pillowcases. It brings new life to items that would otherwise be thrown away.
