Healed Heart Tutorial and GIVEAWAY!

For years I have loved the simple shape of the heart and back when I was single it seems that much of my creative subject matter revolved around angry women and broken hearts (very telling about my love life back then!) I've come a long way since those days and when I met my husband my heartache of the past seemed to heal. To this day, I am amazed at how resilient our hearts are- we experience loss, pain and a myriad of life challenges and through care, faith, time and healing our hearts somehow keep loving.

These days being married and little more stable in the love department, I have often tried to visualize what my heart might look like today- colorful? put back together? messy? patched up? spots of shine? Our hearts can be wounded, beat up, broken and lost but amazingly they can be put back together, healed, more beautiful and stronger than before. This simple project is my tribute to the imperfections that come with love and matters of the heart.

Start with your favorite fabric, hand painted fabric or even paper. Choose colors that represent your heart.

Cut out a heart (a piece for the front and a back)

Use hand sewing and/or the sewing machine and colorful thread to begin the process of adding layers, color and texture to your heart that represent your own experiences-

Use found objects, string, twine or even wire on the surface,

use the surface to journal and write your story

use bright or metallic thread to represent shine

use colorful beads and sequins for sparkle.

When you are satisfied with the surface of your heart, sew up the edges and leave an opening for stuffing- stuff and sew closed.

if you like, continue to add to your heart

by wrapping with wire, twine and more thread.

optional- add wings!

I will be giving away all 5 of these hearts to 5 readers!

Here are the rules-

Leave me a comment with 1 word that describes your heart

check back Thursday when I will draw 5 names!