How to sew a simple rainbow backpack pull

Dare I say it, but school is upon us. It’s on the horizon and, as a matter of fact, today we are headed to get haircuts for school pictures + registration tomorrow. And what better way to prepare kiddos for school than to deck out their brand new, sparkling backpacks with FLAIR!?! 🙂 Today, I am sharing this adorably cute softie rainbow backpack pull….it’s a part of the #sewasoftie initiative, with Trixie from Coloured Buttons, which is encouraging kids and adults to learn to sew (which is TOTALLY a mission I can get behind)! This backpack pull project uses felt, 3 simple hand-sewing stitches and lots of color! 🙂

SUPPLIES:

• Felt in various colors measuring approx 4″ x 4″
• Embroidery thread in coordinating colors
• Yarn + pom maker for pom clouds
• a handful of poly-fil stuffing
• Keychain key rings (I got these bronze ones from Amazon)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cut out shapes
   Cut out your rainbow shapes, which would include 3 rainbow stripes and one backing. The rainbow measures about 4″ x 4″.

2. Make the front of the rainbow
Thread your needle with embroidery floss and tie a knot at the end. Using a running stitch, begin attaching your smallest rainbow stripe to the middle rainbow stripe. Then, with the same running stitch, attach your middle stripe to the outer rainbow stripe. Once you are done stitching all 3 rainbow stripes, tie or secure the end of your embroidery floss.

3. Attach front to back + stuff with fill
With another piece of embroidery floss, use the blanket stitch to attach the front rainbow stripes to the backing. To do a blanket stitch, tie a knot in your floss and secure the end between the front and back (the inside of the rainbow). Come up with the tread through the front, then loop around the outside through the top again (this time through both layers). With your needle, stitch down through both layers, but before you pull the stitch all the way through, loop the needle through the floss between where the floss is coming around the outside. Keep repeating the blanket stitch, stopping to stuff the rainbow with poly-fill, before closing it up!

4. Attach poms + keychain ring
Attach your poms to the front side of the rainbow (I was able to use the part of the pom that I tied it with to attach and tie tightly to the rainbow). Then attach your keychain ring to the center of the back of the rainbow using a whip stitch!

This really is a SIMPLE project that would be so cute to give away to new friends on the first day of school! OR you could drop them at friends doors with a cute note as everyone is getting ready to go back to school! 🙂