WARM WISHES

It's the most wonderful time of year to hunker down and experiment with cozy fabric, felt, trim, yarn, and more. No sewing required!

- MARIA V. CHARBONNEAUX

GARLAND VARIETY

Add geometric interest to your fireplace mantel, far left and left, by layering garlands made from felt-and-fabric honeycombs and fabric-wrapped beads.

MATERIALS

☐ 1/4 yard of fabric

☐ Hot-glue gun and glue sticks

☐ Safety pin

☐ 6 feet of golden twine

☐ Needle Wooden beads (ours are 20-millimeterdiameter with a 10-millimeter hole)

☐ Bamboo skewer

☐ Heavyweight fusible web

☐ Assorted quilting fabrics

☐ 9x12-inch wool felt sheets: assorted colors

☐ Cardstock

☐ Cord

WRAPPED BEADS GARLAND

Cut 1/4 yard of fabric in half to create two 4 1/2×36-inch strips. With right sides together, hot-glue strips together ½ inch from one short edge; let dry.

Unfold and finger-press seam open to create one long strip. To make a fabric tube, fold the strip in half lengthwise with right sides together and hot-glue long edges together; let dry. Clip a safety pin to one end. Use the pin to turn tube right side out.

Thread needle with golden twine. Feed a bead into the fabric tube, dab hot glue in bead hole and, using a bamboo skewer, tuck the fabric end into the hole. Thread the needle through the bead, leaving a 6-inch twine tail. Poke the needle out through the fabric close to the other side of the bead; wrap twine tightly around the tube three times to cinch the fabric. Slip the needle through the looped twine to create a knot.

Repeat with beads to the end of the tube, leaving a twine tail. Tuck and glue fabric end into last bead hole. Tie each twine end into a hanging loop.

HONEYCOMB GARLAND

Following fusible-web instructions, use an iron to fuse quilting fabric to felt sheets.