How to hand sew a felt wallet

Welcome! This blog post features a step by step tutorial with photos to hand sew a customizable felt wallet. This is a great activity for a beginner who has little/no experience with sewing. 

Is hand sewing really a life skill we need to learn nowadays? You can buy everything… there are sewing machines…. there is even no-sew iron on tape to avoid the need for needle and thread…

I was asking myself that exact question when I serendipitously stumbled upon this news article by Sean Coughlan titled, “Surgery students ‘losing dexterity to stitch patients.”For me, it justified that YES… sewing skills are still relevant. While we may not all become doctors who need to stitch up patients, all humans can benefit from building their fine motor skills and dexterity to handle many of life’s “tiny” tasks. My grandmother used to hand sew the most creative outfits for my mom’s Barbies. It seemed that many more people a half a century ago were well versed in sewing methods and knew the basic of threading a needle and sewing a button. That’s definitely not the norm anymore.

Let’s change that! This lesson is perfect for beginners looking to practice their hand at this important skill. *PRIOR TO BEGINNING: It is helpful to practice threading a needle, tying a knot, creating a basic running stitch, and how to tie off the thread with a knot. For beginners, practice these foundational sewing skills on a scrap piece of felt or fabric. It takes practice sprinkled with lots of patience.*

* Hey educators! Coming soon!…a ready-for-class instructional lesson that will be available for purchase.* 

What materials are needed for this project?

• Assorted felt colors
• Varying colors of embroidery thread
• Fabric scissors
• Sewing needles (preferably with large eye to the needle to make for easier threading)
• Straight pins and pin cushions (this one is super cute if you are in the market for some!)
• A variety of assorted buttons
• Pencil or fabric marker for drawing on felt if needed
• Additional options include beads, sew on googley eyes, puffy paint, fabric markers, etc.

STEP 1:

Cut the large back piece (dark blue) and the small front piece of felt (light blue). If you wish to change the shape or round out the corners, use straight pins to hold the two pieces together. Use fabric scissors to cut into a customizable shape.

The sizes can be customized the sizes used here is:

-Large back piece in dark blue- 6″ x 9″

-Small front piece in light blue- 5″ x 6″

STEP 2:

Customize your wallet by using fabric scissors to cut a variety of felt pieces. Strive for at least 5 added felt pieces to add individual touches to your wallet. Then, choose a button to match your design.

*TIP!* It is encouraged to brainstorm and sketch your design on paper before beginning!

STEP 3:

Use a straight pin to hold added details onto the small, front piece. Use a running stitch to sew the outer edges of felt to the front piece. Strive for even stitching and spacing between stitches. Ensure all knots are on the non-visible back side, as seen in this image here.

STEP 4:

Next, use straight pins to attach the small, front piece to the large, back piece.

STEP 5:

Usea whipstitch/overstitch (as seen in the image here) or running stitch to sew the three sides together.

It is very important that stitches are close together. Large gaps will make the overall structure of the wallet weak, at risk for tears, and may not hold objects in it efficiently.

STEP 5:

Pinch the fabric where the button lines up with the piece that folds over. Make a small vertical or horizontal cut that is large enough for the button to go through. It is always best to cut this smaller than you think! You can always cut more if needed.

STEP 6:

Next, sew additional felt pieces onto the large, back piece that will fold over onto the small, front piece. Ensure that knots are on the non-visible side.

STEP 7:

Finalize with any additional details (such as the teeth seen here).

Voila… you have a customized felt wallet that is hand sewn!

My middle school (6-8th grade) art class recently completed this project. It took us about 5 (45) minute class periods. I required my art students to get an approved brainstorm sketch prior to beginning. I loved how each wallet really showed the personality of the artist! Artists were really engaged on the project, and were excited about their finished results. They quickly saw how important it was to focus on craftsmanship and technical skill, as this was very evident in the finished products.