Quick Stitch - Harris Tweed Rose Brooch

Being passionate about Harris Tweed, I like make sure that I find a use for every scrap of this luxurious cloth.  This 'quick stitch' project fits the bill perfectly and is very in keeping with my summer passion for flora.  Used to decorate clothes, bags, or anything with need for flora decoration, these rose brooches can be made in pretty much any tweed/loosely woven fabric.

Start off with cutting 5 circles of tweed: 1 large circle at 3.5" in diameter, 1 medium circle at 3" in diameter and 3 small circles at 2.5" in diameter.  Have a look round your kitchen for circular things to use as templates.

The first task is to 'lettuce' the outside of all the circle pieces to neaten the edges from fraying and to create a ripple effect.  This is much easier to do than it sounds, as you basically zigzag stitch the edge and stretch the fabric slightly as you do so.  Test out on a bit of scrap fabric first to work out the amount of stretch - the sample piece needs to be cut diagonally across the weave.

Next take one your small 'lettuced' pieces and fold in half, slightly off centre.

Now fold again into a quarter segment, so that the smaller half fold is inside.  Thread a needle with double thread and stitch a couple of hand stitches on the folded side, about a third of the way up from the point - this creates a centre rosette.  Repeat with the other 2 small pieces.

To start putting together, take your medium circle and centre on top of your large circle - yes the pieces are supposed to be wavy!  Find the centre point and stitch a couple of stitches with double thread to hold in place.

The rose is completed by stitching the created rosettes into the centre point.  All that's needed is a couple of small stitches at point of the rosette.

When all 3 rosettes have been stitched in place, they will look like this when pressed flat.  Don't worry they will soon bounce up!

Finally to stitch a brooch back in place if you require.

And if you have a lovely Harris Tweed label then even better to glue in place on top of the brooch fitting.

This is such a lovely quick stitch project and I have much enjoyed sharing with other Somerset stitchers this summer.  All the fabric for my brooches came from my Somerset supplier Handmaiden UK who sells 'craft bundles' that are perfect for this project.

Most importantly enjoy your creation and share with others.  Harris Tweed is lovingly woven in homes throughout the Outer Hebrides and deserves to be cherished.