How To Make a Vintage Style Heart Garland

This keepsake heart garland is easy to make and perfect for Valentine's Day! I think it would make a sweet addition to a nursery or child's room as well. Read on to see what you need and how to put it all together. 

Materials

-Sewing machine, thread, and pins.

-Heart Template (you can download it for free from my shop here.)

-Fabric friendly marking tool (I used a Frixion erasable pen).

-Pinking shears (I used these scalloped ones)

-1/4 yard fabric for the hearts (I used this canvas red ticking stripe fabric).

-6 1/2 feet cotton cord.

-Scrap quilt batting: you will need (10) 4 1/2" squares. I used wool batting to get a puffy look. 

-6 yards ribbon (I used this velvet ribbon). You can use any width of ribbon that you would like; I used 1 1/2" width. 

 

Step 1

Cut the fabric into (2) 4 1/2" width of fabric strips, then subcut (20) 4 1/2" squares. 

Step 2

Use the heart template to trace a heart onto (10) of the fabric squares. 

 

Step 3

Make (10) quilt sandwiches by layering one unmarked square wrong side up, then batting square, then heart marked square right side up. Secure together by basting, pinning, or using binding clips. Your quilt sandwiches should look like this:

Step 4

Sew each quilt sandwich together by sewing ON the drawn heart line. Use a straight stitch (I used a stitch length of 2.5 mm). You might choose to use a walking foot, but I did not. If you haven't sewn curves before, just sew slowly and raise the presser foot to pivot the quilt as needed. I found that the easiest way to sew the hearts was to start on one side of the "v", sew down towards the point of the "v", then all the way around the rest of the heart. 

Step 5

Using pinking shears, cut around each stitched heart, leaving about 1/4" seam allowance. 

Step 6

The hearts will be sewn onto the cotton cord, so mark the back of each one to prepare. Make two marks, one on each side of the heart, about 1 inch down from the top of the heart. Make the marks on the stitch lines on each side of the heart as shown:

Step 7

Take your 6 1/2 foot cotton cord and make a simple loop on one end. Mark 4 1/2" away from the loop. This is where the first heart will be sewn. 3 inches beyond this mark, make (19) more marks, each 3 inches apart. You can think of this as marking 10 "pairs" of marks; each pair is where a heart will be sewn.

If your cord has a "flat" side like the one I used, make sure that your marks are all on the same flat side of the cord- otherwise, you will end up with twisted garland. 

Step 8

Sew the hearts onto the cord, one at a time. Place the heart right side down so that the marks you made are visible. Place the cord on top, lining up the marks on the cord with the marks on the heart. This is where you will stitch; you should aim to stitch on the same line of stitching that already exists, so it won't be visibly obvious from the front. Use a short straight stitch (I used a stitch length of 2.0 mm). Backstitch at the beginning and end of your stitches. 

Step 9

Once all of the hearts are sewn on, measure 4 1/2" from the last heart and make your second loop here to end the garland. 

Step 10

Cut (9) 24" lengths of ribbon. Tie a ribbon onto the cord between each heart. If you are tying bows, I found that the easiest way to reduce bulk in the knot of the bow was to skip the first step you would normally take when tying your shoes; just place the ribbon under the cord, wrong side up, then make one loop and tie the bow as normal. Adjust the bow to your liking. You might need to adjust the knot of each bow to face the front of the garland in order to keep the hearts facing forward once it's hung. 

Hang and enjoy! I would love to see what you make; feel free to tag me on social media @ritualquiltcompany or send me an email at Amy@ritualquiltcompany. 

 

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