how to sew a ruffled rosette

Allright folks. I should say at the outset that I feel like this post may be a tad bit late in coming. I know that we've put ruffles on every project you can imagine (on dresses and purses and monograms and name signs and garlands and headbands and even on cards). And we did put together a tutorial for no-sew ruffled rosettes.

But here's the thing- hot glue doesn't hold up in the wash. So if your project involves clothing (and especially baby or kid clothing, which is washed often, very often!), the no-sew ruffles won't work (a bit of good news- they will work for all of those decor projects!).

The solution? A little tutorial for the sewn ruffled rosettes.

To make a ruffled rosette, you'll need:
-fabric circles (two things to take into account when choosing your fabric- lighter weight fabrics make lighter, fluffier rosettes. Also, if you don't want frayed edges on your rosette, use jersey or no-fray chiffon.)
-a needle and thread (invisible thread is my best friend in this venture!)

1. Cut out fabric circles, each a little bit smaller than the last. For a fairly fluffy rosette, I use a stack of five circles.

2. Stack the fabric circles with the largest circle on the bottom of the stack.

3. Pull your needle through the center of all five circles (start at the 'back' of the rosette, or the bottom of the stack).

4. As you bring your needle back down through the stack, pucker each layer and stitch in place.

5. Vary the position of each pucker. For example, if you stitch a pucker near the twelve o'clock position on the top fabric circle, move your needle (and pucker) to three o'clock-ish for the second layer. Continue until you've stitched back down through all five layers, puckering each layer along the way.

6. Pull the thread taut. Repeat that entire process. If you're satisfied with the 'fluffiness' of the ruffle after two rounds of puckering-and-stitching, tie off your thread on the back of the bottom circle and set aside to sew onto some lovely garment later. If you still require more fluffiness, repeat the stitching/puckering once more and then tie off.

7. Sew onto headbands, dresses, onesies to your heart's content! Lovely, ruffle-y, washable goodness!