Flexi-hoop Tutorial

Many years ago I made many of these ornaments. These days the flexi-hoops are harder to find but I was recently asked how I assembled my flexi-hoop ornaments. So I stitched and assembled one and prepared this tutorial.

Designs from Bundle of Bears by Vermillion Stitchery. Stitched on 22 count hardanger.

Click here to view, print or download a pdf of this tutorial.

First I laid the inside ring over my stitched fabric and shifted it around until I had the design centered the way I want it. (Mostly I tried to keep the space between the outside reaches of the design and the inside of ring fairly similar all the way around.) I used 4 pins to mark the top, bottom and sides of the outside of the ring. Then I use a needle and thread to remark these spots.



I centered the fabric over the ring and placed the flexible hoop over the fabric. I was careful that the four spots marked with the thread were just inside the flexible hoop and that the fabric was not pulled out of square. When I was satisfied I set it aside for a few minutes.



When I took the ring off again the fabric has developed a nice crease and I removed the thread.



Then I assembled the back of the ornament. For this I usually use card stock and some thermolam (or baby fleece) fabric. Often I just use a blank piece of card stock but this time I chose to use the inside of a greeting card. (See this blog page for some other possibilities I discovered in my greeting card stash.) I centered the inside ring over the card stock and traced around the ring.



I cut out the card stock circle and used it as a pattern to cut out the white fleece.



I used a glue stick to adhere the fleece to the back of my card stock circle. I then made a stack consisting of the ring, the card stock, the fleece and the stitched fabric. At this point I checked to make sure that the top of the card stock verse "agreed" with the top of the stitched design.



Then I fixed everything in place with a wide white elastic. (I save the elastics from broccoli and cut them into two narrower elastics.) I never seem to have enough fingers at this stage of the process but eventually the fabric was flat and centered and the elastic was too.



Next I used sharp scissors to cut the fabric snug against back edge of the ring.



To keep the edges from fraying, and the elastic band from shifting, I covered the elastic with a round of masking tape. (Though the ornaments I made 14 years ago have not shown any signs of damage I will recommend that you use an acid free tape.) I lined one edge of the tape against the front edge of the elastic and wrapped it around. Then I cut the tape close against the back edge of the ring and pressed it into the contour of the ring.



Finally I was ready to install the flexi-hoop over the rest of the ornament. To keep things lined up and snug I always install it from the front. I start with the top of the hoop and ease it down both side until it is all in place. At this point I usually dig into my ribbon box for something to garnish the hanger.



This is the back view.



Click here to view, print or download a pdf of this tutorial.


Pinwheel 2010