Don’t you just love a pom pom? They’re just so cheery and sweet. They’re also super simple to make!
All of the pom pom tutorials I’ve seen call for using yarn. I love me some pretty yarn, but why keep your pom pom making so hedged in, when really you can incorporate all kinds of fun materials into your poms! As long as what you’re using is long and skinny, it’s fair game. Here’s how to make your very own repurposed pom poms!
- skinny fabric scraps, ribbon, ric rac scraps, yarn. I used a whole lot of the homemade ribbon in my stash along with some other odds and ends to give it lots of texture. As long as it’s skinny, flexible, and at least 6″ long, you can use it.
- reclaimed cardboard. I used an old file folder from a roofing company. A beer box or cereal box would work, too.
- 2 round things. One should be around 4-5″ in diameter, the other should be around 2″ in diameter. Jars, coffee tins, lids, etc work great!
- Scissors. One pair for paper, one pair for fabric.
1. To start, you’ll need to make a pom pom maker. If you’re just using yarn, you can use the finger wrapping method, but trust me: this will not work with bulkier materials like fabric scraps. To make your pom pom maker, trace your large round thing onto your cardboard, then trace the small round thing in the center, so you’re left with a donut. Then, do the same thing again to make an identical donut. Cut out your the donuts, and you get this:
2. It’s time to wrap! Put on some good TV or music, and have a sit down, because the wrapping is the most time-consuming part. Put your two cardboard donuts together, then grab a piece of fabric, and start wrapping the fabric around your donut sandwich (mmm…donut sandwich) like so:
3. When you come to the end of one piece of fabric, just grab another piece, let it overlap the first a bit by about an inch, and keep wrapping. Continue until you have a nice, bulky wrapped fabric donut, like this:
4. Now, grab your fabric scissors. You want to very carefully trim all the way around the very outer perimeter of your donut. Take your time, and try not to lift the donut off of the table, if you can avoid it.
5. Once you’ve cut through all of the fabric all the way around, you should be able to gently pry your two pieces of cardboard apart. Take one more piece of fabric (I used a length of twine), and wrap it around all of the fabric, by sliding it in between your two pieces of cardboard, like this:
6. Tie a knot, then carefully pull the cardboard pieces off of your pom pom. It might look a little bit janky, but give it a fluff to perk it up. You can also give it a haricut, trimming off pieces of fabric that are a bit too long.
7. Tie your twine on the other end to make a loop, and you’re ready to hang!
That’s it! I like how it looks when you combine lots of colors and textures, but you can also stick to one colorway or use all fabric or all ric rac to make a pompom that’s exactly your speed.