DIY Farmhouse Valentine Heart Rag Wreath

Hello Everyone!

As you all know, we have made quite a few different rag wreaths, a fall rag wreath, a patriotic rag wreath, and a candy cane rag wreath. But we never made a rag wreath by ripping the fabric. 

We love making rag wreaths for every season and holiday.  So today's tutorial is how to make a Farmhouse Heart Rag Wreath using the rip method. 

What is a rag wreath?

If you are not familiar with a rag wreath, it's a simple and can be a frugal way to add some color and texture to your front door or indoor holiday decor.  The rag wreath decorating idea possibilities are endless.

It's the process of cutting fabric strips and then tying the strips onto a frame. It's frugal if you use leftover scrap fabric, old sheets, tablecloths or curtains, t-shirts, denim or any fabric you have on hand. 

Rag wreaths are easy and fun but they do take a while to make.  So get comfy and work on the wreath while watching television, a movie, listening to music or a podcast.

We, also, have an awesome collection of more than 30 free DIY handmade wreaths tutorials for any occasion here.  We have something for every skill level, so hurry and check these out!  You won’t be disappointed!

If you love this farmhouse valentine's heart rag wreath as much as we do, then watch the DIY video tutorial or keep reading for a step-by-step photo tutorial to learn how to make it.

heart rag wreath INSTRUCTIONS :

STEP 1: CHOOSING Fabric and accents

Let's talk about fabric and decor accents.

Rag wreaths are a wonderful way to use up fabric and hobby materials.

The red fabric in this wreath has been in my stash for years.  Not finding a useful purpose for it and unfortunately, not being fond of the pattern for use in a quilt anymore, it was still in my fabric stash.  I just couldn't toss it out!

So this year when deciding to make a Valentine's Day, this red fabric came to mind.  This red pattern would look fine cut into strips.  I wanted to add a textural element to the heart wreath.  Voila! I incorporated lace (from my stash) into the project. This rag wreath is easy to customize with other colors and prints just by choosing different fabrics.

Other rag wreath textural element ideas besides lace are ribbon, yarn, string pearls, burlap, twine, raffia, to name a few things.  The textural elements can be mixed.  Use whatever is available in your crafting stash. 

STEP 2: Tearing and cutting instructions

To begin the wreath the fabric needs to be ripped and the lace cut into strips. From the Fabric
For this wreath, I experimented with a couple of sizes and found that strips that were 1 ½ inches wide by 9 inches long worked best for me.

To make 9-inch-long fabric strips that are 1 ½ inch wide, let's use the snip and rip method.  With a scissor make a small cut every 1 ½ inches along one edge of the fabric.

Then rip the fabric by holding one side of the fabric in place with one hand and pulling the other side with the other hand.  The fabric will rip straight.

After ripping the  1 ½” strips, cut them into  9” long pieces.

The easiest way is to fold the strip in half, fold it in half again.  You have four layers of fabric.

With a scissor, cut the folded end.

With a ruler cut the four layers 9" long.

You now have four strips 1 1/2" x 9" long.  Keep ripping and cutting until you have lots of strips. Then set them aside.

From the Lace
The lace should be cut into 7-inch-long pieces.  Again cut a lot.

STEP 3: adding fabric and lace strips onto heart frame

For this project, a 12-inch wire heart wreath frame was purchased from Joann Fabric.  These heart wreaths can be found at other craft stores or even at dollar stores.

The typical wire wreath has four wires.  Note, the heart wreath frame only has three wires.   When adding the fabric to the wreath, it will be wrapped around two wires.  When adding the lace, it will be wrapped only around one wire.

Let’s begin adding fabric and lace strips to the wreath! Grab a fabric strip and fold the strip in half lengthwise.

Wrap it around an outer and middle wire, from back to front, tie a double knot in the front.  Make sure to place the knot in the front.

Repeat this double knot process on the other outer wire and middle wire. Fold the fabric in half lengthwise, wrap it around two wires.

Every once in a while, I tied a piece of lace around a single wire with a knot. Repeat this double knot process on the other outer wire and middle wire.  Alternate your knots back and forth between the three wires. Adding lace accent as you go along.

When the rag wreath is finished it will look something like this from the back:

Here is a closeup look of the back:

And something like this from the front:

STEP 4: add lace hanger to heart rag wreath

To hang the wreath, cut a piece of lace about 14" long and tie it around a wire.

Don't be concerned about the fabric fraying.  The fraying of the fabric and the lace adds to the “farmhouse charm” of the wreath.

I hope you enjoyed this video and photo tutorial and make a valentine rag wreath for yourself or as a gift.  

Something I love about fabric rag wreaths is they are so easy to store when not in use.  When ready to use it again, just fluff the fabrics and ta-da it is ready to hang on the door or in your home.

Once you make one rag wreath, I'm sure you'll be hooked (as I am) and make more for other holidays and to give as gifts.

Happy Crafting!

here are some other DIY valentine's Day wreaths

Valentine Loop Yarn Heart Wreath

Valentine’s Day Candy Heart Wreath