SUNFLOWER BROOCHES

I made these brooches, using the same shapes that I used to make the paper sunflowers. It was, of course, on a much smaller scale and I found that 8 petals of each size worked best.  Instead of paper, I raided my fabric stash and instead of gluing and stapling, I deployed hand and machine stitching.

Although it doesn't show up much in this photograph, they all have green leafy backs which hides the stitching and the fact that I slashed through the base felt circles to stuff the velvet centres from behind.  All the petals and centres were cut from a variety of textiles and left with raw edges, as I don't mind the fraying.  Different coloured felts could be used if a sharper finish is required.  Beads and/or embroidery could be added to the centres. As the fabric I selected had spots, I didn't opt for that option.  I also fabricated a small cushion out of vintage sacking to display them on and made some special tags.