Get inspired!
The first part of creating these personalized Christmas stockings is possibly the hardest. You want to show your loved ones you pay attention to the unique details that separate them from everyone else, but maybe you're struggling to come up with ideas. The badge and fabric are really what make the stockings personal and add that special touch.
5 considerations for creating badges
Interests: Start by thinking about their interests. What are some of their favorite activities? What is one thing that sums them up? My mom loves daisies and everything pink. Her badge is a daisy, and her inner and hook fabric is pink with flowers on it. A couple of personal touches goes a long way.
Visual inspiration: Once you have an idea of what to draw, look for visual inspiration on Pinterest and Google for different styles. I find it helpful to sometimes include the word 'vector' or 'drawing' inside my search because the graphics are stripped down to the most basic form.
Level of detail and your involvement: While looking for inspiration, take into account how detailed you want the badges to be and your involvement in creating them. They really can take less than a weekend to complete, and it goes much smoother once you have your design in mind. You can create them yourself with pencil and paper, graphic design software, or find something you like and trace it. I wanted mostly minimal shapes with some detail, which is why I chose to use Adobe Illustrator to create the badges.
Fabric marker: Now comes considerations for the fabric marker. This was new territory for me, and I found a little bit of practice goes a long way. The marker tip tugged a bit at the fabric, and I eventually learned to keep the fabric taut to reduce the friction between the marker and the fabric, which gave me crisp lines.
White coloring: One final note before you use the fabric marker. While creating your badge with pencil and paper or graphic design software, remember that the fabric marker ink will appear in the white space, opposite where the black ink appears. You'll notice I drew the fishy outline, yet I colored in everything except the eye and mouth.
5 considerations for choosing fabric styles
Everything under one roof: I found it very convenient and stress-free to shop at a store that specializes in crafts and fabric. Everything was under one roof, and the staff usually has some helpful tips based on projects they've done in the past. These stores also have a wide variety of fabric: different patterns, different weights, different colors, and if you're into it, different textures. This gives you some flexibility when mixing and matching to see what catches your eye.
Tough: For my stockings, I prefer a more traditional-looking stocking with just a bit of flair. I chose red felt for the outer fabric, a fun fat quarter pattern for the inner fabric and hook, and a furry fabric for the cuff. The red felt is thick enough to withstand a bit of weight from small presents, and the fat quarters won't snag onto your presents. They're also another way you can show off your loved ones' personalities. The furry cuff was lightweight and really tied together the whole look.
Fluff: For all fabrics you use, I recommend giving them a couple shakes at the store before committing. This is something I'll do next time, because even though the cuff looks nice, it shed and was a bit messy until after I sewed them to the stocking.
Thin: I chose a hunter green fat quarter for the badge. Since it was a tightknit fabric, it was somewhat easy to apply the fabric marker. I did notice, though, that because the fabric was so thin, the ink bled through after applying the fabric marker. Good idea to keep an old magazine handy to protect your table.
Vision: Last but not least, remind yourself of your vision as you go through the process of selecting the fabric. There are so many options out there, it's easy to get overwhelmed or go in a bunch of directions. Keep your focus and you'll definitely find what you're looking for.
Enjoy!
Any questions or additional thoughts you'd like to add? Email me!