This has been a busy (understatement) week, as Book Fair week always is, but I feel like I've done fairly well. I've had an answer for every meal, including treats for tea time, the laundry was done, and I remembered to buy cat litter. I've been sewing (6 dice bags, 4 fairy skirts, and a costume cape), and I've gone to bed before 10:30 each night this week.
So. Here I am with a couple of hours before the final melee of the fair begins, and instead of napping, or cleaning, or being sensible, I am putting together a tutorial for stuffed mushrooms. (The fabric kind, not the edible ones.) Why? It's my treat at the end of the week. Yes, I am that kind of fiber geek.
This tutorial is more about methodology than a precise pattern.
I trace and cut out a circle in the fabric I want to use for the top of my mushroom. This circle doesn't need to be perfect. Here I'm using wool flannel that I've felted (or fulled) in my washing machine. You can use just about anything, but be mindful of your fabrics tendency to fray. I heartily recommend light to medium weight home felted sweaters, since this type of felt has more stretch than commercial felt, but will not fray.
Find the center of the circle and mark it on the wrong side.
Working on the wrong side, sew wedges into your circle. You can be precise and mark quadrants (quarters or eighths or whatever floats your boat), or just start sewing. These seams are what make the shape of your mushroom. The more seams you put in, the narrower your shape will be. Play. Have fun! Mushrooms aren't perfectly shaped. Funky is good in this project.
Here I wanted a rather flat mushroom top, so I made 4 shallow tucks.
Here it is right side out.
Lay your top on the fabric for the bottom of the mushroom. Put right sides to right sides. Pin around the edges, and then sew along the edge. Be sure to leave an opening along one side. Your seam allowance should reflect your fabric. I generally use a scant 1/4", unless I know my fabric will fray. Trim the underside fabric to size.
Turn your mushroom top right side out using that opening you left when sewing around the edge. Stuff with stuffing of your choice. I used fiberfill for this one. Do not overstuff. You want your mushroom to be full, but squishy.
You have a choice now. It is time to hand stitch the opening. You can either use little stitches to invisibly whip stitch the opening shut, or you can use larger stitches and go all the way around for a more rustic look. This is also a last chance to finesse the shape of your mushroom. As you stitch around the top you can tuck in bits that you don't like.
Now for the stem. For this mushroom I used two pipe cleaners bent double and twisted together. You can use more or less depending on the shape of your mushroom top. Take the fabric meant for covering the stem, cut a strip 2" longer than your pipe cleaners and about 3" wide. Fold in half with right sides together. Now, sew a seam that will make a channel just wide enough for your pipe cleaners. I start wide, test the size with my pipe cleaners, and then make it narrower if necessary.
Once you have the proper dimension, trim the extra fabric, and turn the tube right side out. Then feed your pipe cleaners into the tube. The bent end will slide more smoothly than the rough ends. You will have one inch of fabric hanging loose from either end of the pipe cleaner.
Choose one end, trim the extra to about 1/2", fold this over and use a needle and thread to stitch it down. Now, choose the spot in the bottom of your 'shroom for the stem. Using a sharp scissors cut a small slit at your chosen spot. This cut should be small, you want to have to work to get the finished end of your stem into the hole. It will be a tight fit. Push the stem in at least 1". Now you will need a needle and thread to anchor the stem in the mushroom.
After knotting your thread and anchoring it in your mushroom, start sewing on the stem. Take a small bite of mushroom top, push the needle through the stem (between the pipe cleaner wires), and then take a small bite of fabric on the other side. Continue to sew, going back and forth through the stem, taking small stitches on either side.
Now, roll up the extra fabric on the bottom of your stem, and neatly stitch it shut. Voila! You have a mushroom!
Now I made a mossy rock to nestle my mushroom into.
I made my rock similarly to my mushroom top.
I started with a flat piece of fabric cut in an amoeba shape, and sewed in a couple of shaping darts on the wrong side.
Then, I put a running stitch around the edge of the amoeba using strong double stranded thread.
Then cinch the drawstrings until you have a little lumpy purse. Carefully push stuffing into all of the corners and niches of the rock you are making. I wanted my rock to look organic and asymmetric, and those lumpy shapes take longer to fill lout.
Now you have a rock!
But the bottom still looks like this, and you need a weight to stabilize your composition. I used flat rocks in the bottom of mine, but for a flatter bottom you could weigh down a recycled jar lid. Whatever you use, you'll want to slide it in as you sew on the bottom.
I cut a larger than needed bit of fabric for the bottom, again using a felted fabric will mean you can leave the edges raw without worrying about raveling.
I hand stitched the patch on the bottom, cutting off the excess fabric as I went. Then I slid my stone in the pocked, finished the stitching, and tested my rock for balance.
The mushroom is added to the rock via the same method as you attached the stem to the cap. Make as small of a slit as possible, wedge the stem in, and stitch it on. Then bend and twist the wire stem of your mushroom until it is at the rakish angle you most desire, and you are good to go.
Now, if anyone makes a mushroom following my tutorial, would you please email me a photo so I can see it? That would be so very kind.