DIY NECKTIE FABRIC BOUTONNIERE
Repurpose vintage and thrift-shop silk neckties to make elegant wearable rosettes. These extremely versatile pieces can be worn as lady’s brooches or gentleman’s boutonnieres. They would make a great tribute piece to a father or grandfather. Or dress up a pair of shoes by attaching shoe-clip hardware to the back of two matching rosettes or hot glue the rosettes directly onto the shoes.
You Will Need:
- Patterned silk necktie
- Seam ripper
- Iron
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Sewing needle
- Thread
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- 11∕8-in/2.8-cm button cover form
- Pin-back hardware
- Felt or leather scraps
Step 1
Remove the seams of a necktie with a seam ripper and press out all folds with an iron. Be sure to set your iron on the silk temperature setting.
Step 2
Trim a length of necktie fabric into a 3-in-/7.5-cm-wide by 12-in-/30.5-cm-long strip and press in half lengthwise with an iron.
Step 3
Thread a needle with a long length of thread, knotting the two ends together. Stitch loosely along the raw edge of the folded fabric strip. Cinch the fabric along the thread to ruffle into a 3-in-/7.5-cmdiameter rosette. Tie the knotted end and needle end of the thread together into a secure knot. Fold back the ends of the fabric strip and stitch or hot glue them together.
Step 4
Cover the button cover form with neck-tie fabric using the manufacturer’s directions, removing any button shank prior to assembling.
Step 5
Using the hot glue gun, glue the ruffled fabric rosette to the back of the button.
Step 6
Attach pin-back hardware and felt or scrap leather to the back of the rosette to complete.
Step 7
This project is excerpted with permission from the book Rosette Art: Instructions and Papers for Beautiful Rosettes to Share, Wear, and Display
by Cathe Holden and published by Chronicle Books.
