There are a lot of different stitches to choose from when you applique felt – buttonhole stitch and running stitch are especially popular. But my very favorite stitch to use is whip stitch.
It’s fast.
It’s easy.
I love the way it looks.
Want to learn how? Here’s a video!
See how easy?
I stitched the whip stitch sample in the video with contrasting thread so you could really see the stitches, but usually I use thread that matches the applique pieces, so mistakes and uneven stitches won’t be very visible. (Sneaky.)
I sell embroidery thread that’s perfectly coordinated to the felt colors I carry. Easy peasy! You can find my felt here, the matching thread here, and a handy printable list of all my felt colors with their coordinating DMC numbers here.
I should note that applique with whip stitch is a little bit different than whip stitching the edges of felt pieces together. I have a separate video showing how to do that here.
Applique with wool felt is one of my very favorite things to do!
It’s all done by hand, so it’s work that’s easy to carry around with me for quick stitching in free moments here and there. And the wool felt and smooth embroidery thread feel so nice in my hands! Plus the colors are so rich and pretty!
Give it a try with this fancy felt coffee sleeve. It uses whip stitch to applique all the felt pieces, and blanket stitch to sew the edges of the sleeve.
I also used whip stitch to applique the polkadots on Rhonda Rhino‘s fabulous dress.
And the fancy decorations on this felt Dala Horse Christmas Ornament.
You can use whip stitch to add decoration to so many different felt projects. I love it!
Happy stitching!
Best,
Wendi
Play with some felt! Try the Oddballs – a fun pattern for silly monsters.
Hi. Is there a technique similar to this that I can use on any fabric without the machine? Could I whipstitch around any fabric to applique it, if I were to fold the edges in so there’s no fraying?
Yes! You can use the freezer paper technique (http://wendigratz.wpengine.com/2013/07/machine-applique-lessons.html) and whipstitch by hand instead of machine stitching around each piece. 🙂
Thankyou so much 😀 I’ve been searching for a technique that doesn’t involve the machine! And I don’t really fancy trying needle-turn.
I’m not a big sewer, but I want to do this…how do you finish off the stitch?
Just thread your thread tail through a few of the stitches on the back – like with the embroidery in this video. https://wendigratz.wpengine.com/2011/08/how-to-tie-off-thread-on-the-back-of-your-embroidery.html
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