How to Make Necktie Valentines

Diane Gilleland, contributor

45 users recommend

Two neckties and 10 minutes are all you need to make this cute heart, which makes a perfect V-Day pin.

Diane Gilleland

Necktie hearts are also perfect embellishments for handmade cards.

Diane Gilleland

These little hearts are practically begging to be appliquéd, too. Here, they dress up my favorite necktie bag, by Devore Jones Designs.

Diane Gilleland

Two neckties and 10 minutes are all you need to make this cute heart, which makes a perfect V-Day pin.

Photo: Diane Gilleland

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Sometimes, you need a way to say "Happy Valentine's Day" in a tailored way, and thrift-store neckties provide a great solution. This project goes together in minutes, and you can use your necktie hearts in lots of ways.

What you'll need:

• Two coordinating neckties
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Fusible web (see below)
• Hand-sewing needle and coordinating thread
• Iron
• Glue (optional)
• Pin back (optional)
• Blank card (optional)

A note on fusible web: If you're not familiar with this wonder material, it's essentially a kind of glue-mesh that you place between layers of fabric. Apply a hot iron, and the layers are fused together. For this project, I'm using double-stick Steam-A-Seam.

Place the neckties together in a heart-shaped configuration.

Begin by trimming the neckties. Decide which one will be the most prominent part of your finished heart, and cut it 5 inches from the narrow end. Since neckties vary so much, you'll need to trim the second tie visually. Lay the cut tie over the second tie as shown. Adjust them so the top of the heart shape looks cute.

One tie should be 5 inches. The other should be very short, nesting behind the longer tie.

Then, trim that second tie so it's short enough to tuck behind the first tie, as shown. Once the ties are cut, remove any labels and padding from them both.

Hem the longer tie.

Turn under 1/2 inch at the cut end of the longer tie. Hand- or machine-sew this hem in place. (I usually hand-sew because the seam is so short and this stitching will be completely hidden in the finished heart.)

Apply fusible web to the back of the longer tie.

Now to fuse these two pieces together. Cut a small rectangle of fusible web-it should be small enough that no fusible web will stick out beyond the ties. Peel off one side of the paper backing and place the fusible web on the back of the longer tie, following the placement you see here. Then, peel off the second paper backing.

Place the shorter tie over the fusible web, adjusting the placement so the ties form a heart shape.

Place the shorter piece of tie on top of the fusible web, also with the back side facing up, as shown. Make sure that the cut edge of the short tie is 1/8 inch away from the edge of the long tie, as you see here. Double-check the placement of the ties from the front at this point-make sure they're positioned so they form a nice-looking heart.

The great thing about this double-stick fusible web is that it gently sticks the ties together, but you can easily reposition them at this stage. Once you iron them, however, they're permanent, so make sure you like the look before you iron!

Use a hot iron to fuse the two pieces together.

Follow the package directions on the fusible web to fuse the two ties together.

Place fusible web over the shorter tie.

Cut a second piece of fusible web, and place it over the shorter tie, as shown.

Fold the long tie over the fusible web, and press with a hot iron.

Fold the long tie over the short one to complete the heart. Fuse this fold in place.

Hand-stitch the folded edges of the finished heart together.

As a last step, I like to hand-stitch around the edges of the longer tie to bind the folds together, using a slip stitch. If you're sewing-phobic, you can skip this step.

Glue on a pin back or glue to a card-or anything else you can think of!

From this point, the sky's the limit. You can glue on a pin back, as shown here, or glue your heart to a blank card, or use it for an appliqué. What other uses can you come up with?

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Comments (12)

Nodan writes: You are creative. You can recycle a lots the old necktie in this way.
Posted: 3:02 am on January 31st

janettalk writes: It is a wonderful idea. And I do like the notion of somehow using on blue jean pocket. Hmmm. I'll have to give this some serious thought. Thank you for sharing.

Posted: 8:27 pm on February 29th

Carolebarrel writes: Make into a pocket for jeans (large end of tie)? Or sew one on the back pockets of a pair of jeans, add a few hearts to a pillow, quilt, summer purse or tote, mirror or picture frame surround, sewn or webfuse one onto a directors chair seat/back, as fundraiser for womens' heart disease cure, glued around a lampshade or, in a little girl's room, on the edge of a bookshelf in a row to spiff up a colorless room. Help, I am running out of ideas..........

Posted: 4:05 pm on February 10th

Maggie2020 writes: I made these for my daughter's bridal shower from old ties. Please take a favor as Megan and Robin "tie the knot". Everyone loved them.
The groom asked me to make them for the groomsmen in yellow and silver for the wedding. Found the ties at a dollar store. Awesome. Thanks for the inspiration.
Posted: 8:45 am on April 2nd

Mom_Rose writes: As soon as I saw the neckties I was thinking of my Dad who passed 6 years ago. I have some of his neckties with which I have been looking for a perfect project to use them in. This is so clever.....thank you.
Posted: 1:44 pm on February 1st

beinred writes: My boyfriend is so getting one of these.
Posted: 3:23 pm on February 2nd

craftyfingers writes: So clever, I love ties and this is a new take on what to do with them. Thanks for sharing this idea with us.
Posted: 7:50 pm on January 31st

joycethreads writes: THIS IS THE CUTEST - I'M SHARING THIS WITH OUR SEWING GUILD - THANKS FOR SUCH A SIMPLE & TIMELY PROJECT
Posted: 6:37 pm on January 31st

DailyArtMuse writes: I wonder if you can add some kind of fiber-fill before you sew it up to make it a 'puffy' heart? Cool idea for ties - possibly the ONLY way one should wear them!
Posted: 12:33 pm on January 31st

Sister_Diane writes: morningglories, that is a lovely idea!
Posted: 10:26 am on January 31st

morningglories writes: Better yet, think of creating from the ties of dear one no longer here. I have to find my Dad's old ties. this is a way to have them with you---
Posted: 9:15 am on January 31st

gracie_girl writes: Cute idea. I've never seen anything like that before!
Posted: 1:22 am on January 31st

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