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pattern & project: school merit badges

Back-to-School Merit Badges


I was never in Girl Scouts or AWANA (although I had a short run as a Pioneer Girl), so earning patches or badges was never really a part of my life. But I love the idea of them. It probably has to do with them being small and cute and something to collect!

Well, I've created some school-themed merit badge designs to embroider and make into little patches or badges! These are the kind of thing that you could stitch up ahead of time and present when the time comes. Rather than being something that inspires a child to do something, I like to think of them as a way to remember fun and important things that happen along the way.

Back-to-School Merit Badges

The pattern includes an apple (Meeting your Teacher!), book (Learning to Read!), star (Super Star Student!), bandage (School Nurse Visit!), hall pass (Hall Monitor!), + and - (Mastering Addition & Subtraction!), x and ÷ (Mastering Multiplication and Division!), cursive lettering (Learning Cursive!), 100 (100 Days!), A+ (Great Grades!), and K-5 for starting (or finishing) each grade.

Those are just ideas for how to use them...get creative with your mini awards!

To make the badges, you will need:

Fabric
Embroidery floss
Water-soluble pen or a pencil
Felt
Pins
Scissors
Safety Pins or sew-on pinbacks
Merit Badge PDF

Back-to-School Merit Badges

Trace the patterns you are stitching onto fabric, and include the circle to make cutting easier. Stitch the designs however you like, but don't stitch the circle.

Back-to-School Merit Badges

Pin the fabric to felt, and cut around the circle.

Back-to-School Merit Badges

If you're going to make your badges into pins, now is the time to sew the safety pin or pinback in place on the back of the felt circle.

Back-to-School Merit Badges

With the embroidered fabric and felt pinned together once again, stitch around the edge. I used 3 strands of floss and a wide whip stitch, keeping the stitches fairly close. It took two 24-inch pieces to make it around. You could also use a row of running stitch or blanket stitch around the edge.

Back-to-School Merit Badges
Back-to-School Merit Badges

When your stitching is all done, your badge is ready to present!

Back-to-School Merit Badges

I've been wanting to make merit badges for a while, and there are more planned. Be on the lookout for some Christmas designs, plus some for household tasks and more!

8 comments:

  1. I think I want to go back to school.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Mollie! Love your stinky cute badges! I too was never a girl scout, I did 4-5 which gets ribbons, but no badges. Although I think these days you just get ribbons with stickers on them - lame.

    I'd love to have you share your blog post on our new blog hop! We are looking for high quality, quirky, crafty bloggers like yourself to contribute.

    I hope you'll stop by:

    http://foyupdate.blogspot.com/2012/08/eat-make-grow-thursday-blog-hop-5.html

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yay Mollie!! Thanks for another amazing craft and freebie! I really can't wait to make some of these for my kids! I think they'll work wonderful for us. It's our first year doing home school and I was looking for a fun way to give them little awards. This will be it!! Thanks again!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yay! Happy first year of home school!

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  5. Thank you so much for this post. I want to let you know that I posted a link to your blog in Creative Busy Bee Craft Inspirations, under the Page 1 post on Aug. 31, 2012. Thanks again.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love, love, love these! Thank you for the printable template and the GREAT, SIMPLE, SPARKLY idea! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you for sharing these patterns with us!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have just made a reward chart for my kids using this idea!
    Thank you!
    http://www.charmaboutyou.com/2012/11/kids-good-reward-chart.html

    ReplyDelete

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