HeartFELT Crafts to Make and Give: 18 Pretty and Practical Felt Projects for Home Decor and More (Banners, Coasters, Houseplants, Garlands)

Nightingale, creator of craft blog the Yellow Birdhouse, teaches readers how to cut, hand sew, and embroider sheets of felt to create home decor in her whimsical debut. She evaluates different types of felt, noting that although acrylic is cheap and easily available at stores, it’s difficult to cut and manipulate. She prefers using 100% wool felt because it’s easy to cut, less prone to fuzz, and comes in a variety of colors. An illustrated review of 10 embroidery stitches outlines how to straight stitch, backstitch, blanket stitch, and more. Each of the adorable projects, inspired by a “colorful tea-party world,” comes with templates that crafters can cut out, attach to felt pieces, and cut around to produce accurate shapes. The easiest project is daisy-shaped coasters, which involves cutting out a flower-shaped felt piece and stitching white petals and a yellow circle on top. Intermediate offerings include a mug cozy, a photo frame, and a trinket dish. For readers seeking a challenge, there is the butterfly zipper pouch, which requires embroidering with a variety of stitches and sewing a zipper. Enthusiastic fiber artists of all levels will want to check this out. (Apr.)