Another Muff Cover--A Mini Tutorial!

I have a muff base, so of course, I needed more than one muff cover! Some of my favorite period muffs are those with miniatures. I didn't think I'd be able to have one though, as I don't draw, paint, or anything remotely like that.

Enter Spoonflower and public domain artwork :)


It was really quite simple--I found a painting I liked, in this case, The Wool Winder by Greuze, cropped it into an oval in Photoshop Elements, and uploaded it to Spoonflower. I chose a centered design, and just hit the smaller button until I liked the measurements--about 3 1/4 by 2 1/2 inches. Then, all that was left was to order a cotton/silk blend swatch. An 8x8 swatch is more than enough fabric--note the size of the design--and only $5.


And here's the swatch. The cotton silk is a nice, satiny fabric.


I cut the "miniature" out and clipped the edges so they could be tucked under.


Then pinned it on, and sewed into place with a whipstitch. Unlike my last muff, I sewed the trim on first this time.

I then made a frame and bow of some sequins I had on hand (yes, modern, but I had them on hand, and they are flat, not cupped. They should be round, but I was impatient and didn't want to spend a fortune on real metal spangles for this project).

I then finished the cover as in my last muff. I did make this one two inches shorter though, so it fits better. Important with no trim on the ends!

And now, of course, I need another. I uploaded a mezzotint to Spoonflower today during lunch at work. I didn't even crop it this time (silly impatient me) and will just cut it into an oval when it gets here. This will be a grey silk satin muff with a pearl frame and a green embroidered vine around that.


I think I might be addicted to muff covers. They're quick and so pretty!