How to make fabric flower hair clips

As a Christmas gift I made a few fabric flower hair clips. There are several variations of these found in the how-to nation of the internet. I made mine slightly different than the ones I looked at, mostly because I use needle and thread in my life more often than glue. My sister asked how I made the one I sent my niece, pictured in the title image. So here is my how-to.

ONE - Cut a fairly long strip of fabric, at least 36" long and about 2" wide. If you are going to make a multi-color flower, then the total length of each fabric you will use should add up to at least 36". At this length, your finished clip will be about 2" in diameter. My neice's measured closer to 2.5" which took at least 50" of fabric.

TWO - Fold the edges in towards the center and iron.

THREE - Now fold the strip in half (but DON'T iron this fold) and tie a knot on one end.

FOUR - Hold the knot securely in one hand while holding the length on fabric in the other. Begin to twist the length of fabric closest to the knot.

FIVE - Begin to wrap the fabric around the knot as you continue to twist the length of fabric. Both the twisting and the wrapping should be fairly loose. The bulk of the knot stays to the backside of the layers.

SIX - Since the wrapping around is loose, secure the layers together with pins as you go.

SEVEN - The length of fabric is done being twisted and pinned OR add on a new strip of fabric by simply leaving the raw edge behind the layers and continuing the twisting and pinning. Note that your finished flower clip will be smaller than the fabric circle is at this point in the process. So if it looks too small, it is only going to get smaller, you might want to add more layers.

EIGHT - (Backside pictured) Tuck the end of the fabric behind the layers and secure by sewing a simple knot between it and the beginning knot. If you used several fabric strips, quickly stitch all the ends together in the center.

NINE - Starting from the center knot, create a long stitch through all the outer layers. Look at the front of the flower as you go to make sure the thread is not going on top of the layers, but through each layer. Pull the thread tight and then make a long stitch back to the center knot. Continue doing this as you turn the circle, all the way around. Pulling tight on the thread will bunch up the layers of fabric and create more of a flower/petal texture. Once you stitched all the way around, tie off the thread back at the center.

TEN - Cut either felt or crafters' leather (since neither will fray) into a circle that is slightly smaller than your finished fabric flower. Choose the clip that you are going to secure to the fabric being sure that it is smaller than your flower (should I have mentioned this sooner?). I purchased a pack of clips at the craft supply store in the jewelry section that are just 1.75" long.

ELEVEN - Secure the clip to the circle with just a few stitches. Be sure to leave the thread knots on the backside of the circle.

TWELVE - Apply a good amount of glue to the backside of the circle and press onto the backside of the fabric flower. Let dry... and you're done.

I might just keep this one for myself!