How to Create your own Craftivist Felt Badge

We’re getting all geared up for WOW Hull from 10-12 March, which will showcase a whole bunch of talks, debates, music, film, comedy and activism that celebrates women and girls and takes a frank look at what stops them from achieving their potential.

Revolutionary Makers, a project running as part of WOW Hull, aims to help create this conversation by asking you to get involved by creating your own pieces of ‘craftivism’. Our lead artist Alinah Azadeh will be creating a large scale-installation at Hull City Hall as part of WOW Hull and your designs will be gifted to whoever comes to claim them at the end of the festival.

Through a set of three workshops, Alinah will be getting crafty with the community by showing example pieces that inspire and supplying take-away guidelines they can share with others.

Here is just one example of how you can play your part in WOW Hull through Alinah’s guide to ‘How to Make a Craftivist Felt Badge’.

You will need:

Felt fabric in several colours, scissors, thread, sewing needle, pins, tracing paper, pen.

Optional: Embroidery aida (14 count), embroidery thread and needle.

1. Sketch out your idea.

2. Draw an outline on tracing paper and pin to the paper to the base felt fabric.

3. Mark the shape out on the felt and cut out the base shape.

4. Cut out next two layers of fabric and position on top of base shape.

5. Cut out the embroidery aida shape if using one and position to get the size right. Then put all layers except the first two to one side.

6. Embroider your words onto the aida and start sewing the main layers of the badge together with a big cross stitch in the middle. You will then need to stitch the badge clasp onto the back. 

7. Start to stitch the edges of the layered shapes onto the layer below to secure them.

8. You can embellish with gold or other types of thread

9. Once all layers are stitched and your clasp is sewn onto the back, it’s ready to go!