Tiny pincushion tutorial | How About Orange

June 14, 2007

Tiny pincushion tutorial

My friend Megumi (click the link and there she is, on the left, looking gorgeous) mailed me three of these adorable little pincushions for my birthday. I was so delighted with them that I asked her if I could post instructions for making some here. She agreed. Maybe she makes them differently (and definitely with better craftsmanship!), but here's what I ended up doing.

You'll need:
• A bottle cap from a 2-liter pop bottle, or something with a larger diameter if you like, depending on what size cushion you want. It should be about 1/2" to 3/4" deep.
• Pretty fabric
• Coordinating felt
• Coordinating ribbon that's wide enough to hide the sides of your cap
• Stuffing, batting or cotton balls (I stole some stuffing out of a pillow on my couch)
• Needle and thread
• Scissors
• Glue (I used craft glue and a hot glue gun.)

1. Cut a felt circle the same diameter as your cap and glue it on (I used gel craft glue).
2. Cut your pretty fabric into a circle. For the 2-liter bottle cap size, make a circle that's about 3 1/2" in diameter. Add a little more for a bigger cap. It's not too fussy.
3. Stitch in and out around the circle to gather it, making a bowl shape.

4. Put as much stuffing into it as you can possibly fit, and tie off your thread. If some stuffing sticks out, no problem.
5. Put some hot glue around the inside edges of your cap and nestle your little stuffed pillow into it, smooshing it down tightly.

6. Glue decorative ribbon around the cap to hide the ugly sides. Done.

45 comments:

holly* said...

those are absolutely adorable. great birthday suprise for you!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh! I am so excited! I saw these when you first posted a picture awhile back and really wanted to make them...of course I couldn't figure out how...
Thanks for the tutorial!

Anonymous said...

How cute!!

Anonymous said...

Love the tutorial! I posted about it over at whipup.

Anonymous said...

Your tiny pin cushions are ADORABLE! I want to use your idea to make a really tiny pin cushion, include a tiny rubber band of some sort to create a pin cushion ring that I can wear on one of my fingers; or maybe a not-so-tiny pin cushion that you can wear around your wrist ... hmmm! now you are giving me great ideas! You are such an inspiration! Love to you and yours.

pollyhyper said...

I love these! What a great idea!

On behalf of myself, my dog, two vets, and the good people at Petcare pet insurance, I offer unsolicited advice, which I am sure you all already know - as did I, but sometimes it slips right by us:
keep pin cushions far away from pets at all times. A few weeks ago, I stopped what I was working on for 20 minutes to make dinner, sat the cushion on the table, and spent the night in the puppy ER. We're all ok now, and I'm 500% more careful now than I was before!

Cally said...

so cute! but i'm craving sweets just now, i might eat them, they look so yummy. perfect for travelling.

Edie said...

Here's another tutorial - I've been wanting to make some; saved a bunch of bottle caps (a year ago!).
http://www.flickr.com/photos/verybigjen/sets/72057594099768007/

and some inspiration -
http://www.flickr.com/photos/verybigjen/tags/crafts/

both from verybigjen

shaz said...

sooo cool! i don't even have a need for pin cushions but I kinda want to try to make one now. hehe

heather said...

I love these. I have made them using babyfood jars and then you have a place to put extra pins or to take it with you without them falling everywhere. Thank you for the tutorial, I had forgotten how much I loved making these. I love all of your tutorials.

picperfic said...

ooheee! love this...going to make one this minute! Thank you xx

Archana Srinivas Pottery said...

I've been blog-hopping and came across your lovely blog.

Definitely bookmarking it ;-)

estie + haskell said...

I love your blog. I would love to put it on my google homepage, but my computer skills lack skill! The tiny pin cushions are definitely on my to do list.

charlotte said...

love this! but might suggest you put a heavy washer or nut from the hardware in the bottom before adding the stuffed top. that will keep it weighted and steady on the table. thanks again for the inspirations!

Jessica Jones said...

Charlotte, you're a genius. That's a great idea.

Gypsy Purple said...

This is so adorable---thanks for a great blog!!!

Anonymous said...

you make it look so simple! they're adorable.

jess said...

Thankyou so much for showing how to make these, they're super cute!

jinnie said...

Thank you for the tutorial (you can view my first one here), and just wanted to say I really enjoy reading your blog!

Laura said...

I just love the pin cushion. Your blog is great too, an inspiration for me to keep improving mine. Thanks for the tutorial.

Katie Cannon said...

I just wanted to thank you for this great how-to. I have added a link to your blog from mine.
http://manylayersofkate.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Nice to see someone linked me! try my main collection for both all my pincushions and my tutorials. Mine varies in that I cover the entire cap, just hide it away.

http://flickr.com/photos/verybigjen/collections/72157594588116047/

Alissa said...

holy easy and TOTALLY cute!

Heide said...

So cute, I can't wait to try one myself!

mama k said...

So cute!! I love when I see a tutorial and I actually have all the supplies on hand!

KansasA said...

I didn't realize how many pin cushion tutorials were out there! Mine is very similar to yours but I attach an elastic so you can wear it on your finger. Yours is much quicker and with Christmas almost here I think I'm going to make some :) Thanks for the great tutorial!
Here's mine:
http://kansasa.blogspot.com/2007/11/quick-easy-pin-cushion.html

Jessica Jones said...

Your finger elastic is a great addition!

Sweetness and Light said...

This is delightful, I can't wait to make one for my dd 11, thank you so much, your site is lovely!!

Anonymous said...

hey i just made TWO of these! so easy and quick!

william said...

You could come up with so many variations of your pincushion. It is amazing. The wool one is really neat.
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williamgeorge
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Me, You and Magoo said...

what a great idea, just found the tutorial from a link on flickr, I will be trying these out in the new year :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing - lovely!

xxxxxxx

Nadia said...

I just made two of these, too! I made one that is a ring (that elastic-- a great idea!) and one that goes on the wrist.
For the wrist one, I just found a wide piece of fabric (at least almost as wide as the bottle cap) as long as fits around your wrist. Then I put a button on one end and button hole on the other, and I hot glued the bottle cap in the center of the piece of fabric. Then just put it around your wrist, and button the button!

karen said...

These are adorable I am going to try it with tiny villages!

Nancy @ Live love laugh said...

So adorable....cute gifts for the girlfriends! First time her by way of Everything Etsy!
~Nancy

♥ Carine Calé ♥ said...

Thank You very much, your tutorial is lovely!!!
Best Regards,
Carine

Crystal S said...

Love it!! I just made one and it is so cute!! Thanks so much!

Alycia said...

these pincushions are just absolutely adorable!! i love your blog too!

A Little Bit of Everything! said...

Absolutely adorable! Deff will have to try this out.

Anonymous said...

Hi, cute adorable, I did one like that lazily without covering the cap just used some foam for the cushion. but after seeing this I quickly modified mine. Thanks for the idea. take care

Anonymous said...

I had a go at these myself. Thanks for the inspiration!

http://littlemisspip.wordpress.com/2010/11/21/lazy-sunday-project/

Dany said...

Really simple and beautiful! I love it! I did one for me!

Allison said...

I've had this tutorial bookmarked for ages (years, to be honest) and finally got around to making one. So cute!! I love how it turned out. You can see it here.

The one thing I might add next time is something in the lid to give it a bit of weight.

Zima said...

Thank you for the tutorial! And thank your friend as well. :)

I always find cute and useful things/tips/tutorials in your blog.

jane fontoura said...

Adorei a idéia e o colorido.Parabéns.