Cupcake in a Teacup Pincushion (recycled/upcycled/repurposed!)

This instructable provides directions to use recycled wool felt with a neat vintage container (soup bowl or teacup) to create a nice weighty pincushion. Just in time for mother's day, a tutorial that uses recycled, upcycled, and repurposed materials!

I made the teacup pincushion below for a swap, and it was so fun and cute I decided to write a short tutorial on how to make it. It would be a great gift for mother's day, or a for a friend with a cute sewing basket as well! (I made the pincushion in the custard cup for myself.)

You can see more tutorials and crafty things on my blog http://antelucandaisy.blogspot.com

First you need to get your materials together.

* Wool Felt- I used some wool blend sweaters I bought at a yard sale. Washed with hot water and rinsed with cold water and then a high agitation or "Heavy Stain" cycle they form a great felt.

*Glue- I purchased Aleene's Tacky Glue

*Container- Teacups, soup cups, custard bowls, etc. They are easier to work with if the sides are reasonably parallel. The Custarc Cup shown below was purchased at the thrift store and was adorable!

*Acrylic Ruler and Rotary Cutter

Cut the felted sweaters into strips the approximate depth of your container. Mine was 2.5 inches deep, and I cut the strips on a slight angle from 2.75 down to just under 2.5 inches.

Roll the felt like a cinnamon bun, and add pieces as necessary. I used two different colored sweaters so I had color variation.

When you get to the approximate size of your container, pull the last row of felt tight and pin to hold together temporarily.

Begin adding glue to the container that is going to hold your pincushion, and then drizzle glue up the sides to ensure it stays.

There was no good way to photograph this step.

Take the pin out and hold the rolled felt in your hand. Insert into container and let dry!

Trim the layers of felt (if necessary).

Once dry (approximately 24 hours)- add Pins!