Hens' fabric picture

Here's a naive-style picture on the theme of Hens in the henhouse, a theme that's both rustic and perfect for Easter. The picture is made by glueing on fabric and felt, together with a little embroidery. It's framed by a patchwork fabric picture frame that matches perfectly.

Materials required include a simple rectangle of fabric (here in a beige and white striped design, with the stripes being useful to help you embroider on words), some scraps of fabric and some second-hand felt in shades of red, white and yellow. (Click on the pattern to view it in a larger format, then print it out).

Cut out the different designs: 3 hens from a piece of fabric, the basket and the big hen from the piece of thin yellow felt, the wings, comb, roof and the bottom part of the hen house from the thin red felt, the head and the 3 eggs from the thick white felt.

Then cut out the smaller designs that aren't on the pattern because they are too small: the large hen's feet, the basket handle, the bit of cloth hanging from the basket, the 3 hens' combs...

In order to avoid making any glue stains, it's best to use an adhesive for fabrics in spray form rather than a liquid fabric adhesive (for safety, spray in a well-ventilated room). Arrange the different design details as you like and glue them on once you've found the look you like.

for aesthetic, rather than practical reasons, most of the glued-on pieces of fabric are also embroidered with small stitches or small crosses, using 1 or 2 strands of yellow, red or gray embroidery thread.
The unembroidered pieces are given a 3D effect: the red wings, the white head, the piece of cloth and the eggs.
The large hen's legs are embroidered using the tambour or chain stitch (which creates a better raised effect), the eyes are made of black French knots.

Words can be added, making the most of the lines in the design: first, write them on paper to see how much space they'll take up, then reproduce them by freehand in pencil. The joined-up words are embroidered using the crewel or stem stitch.

Set the patchwork fabric picture on its front, so that its back is uppermost. Fix the embroidered piece of material to the back of the picture using pins (which go into the wood easily) and turn the whole picture over carefully to make sure that all the parts of the design are in the right place within the frame and the stripes on the piece of fabric are level). As soon as you are satisfied the design is in the correct position, apply glue to the edges of the picture frame, set the piece of fabric in place and hold it in place with pins. Keep it well stretched during the drying stage, which will be very rapid. Your picture is now ready! If you're making a fabric picture like this one, or one that takes its inspiration from this design, feel free to send us your photographs (using the link to the form below)... Do you know Eglantine already? She's an Easter hen made from felt in a large frame format...