Tea and Cookies~

I saw fabric  fortune cookies years ago and always wanted to try my hand at them. The other day I remembered how cute they were and looked online for a pattern. There are not many patterns or directions available, but Martha Stewart's' version popped up, and her site actually has a short tutorial. I experimented with a variety of materials and methods, starting with Fun Foam. Cut a 4 inch circle from the Fun Foam. Martha instructs you to use a piece of wire inside. Place a 3.5" piece of wire down the center of the circle. Fold the circle in half (wire sitting in the fold, straight), then bend wire in 'U' shape, bring corners toward each other. Insert a printed 'fortune'. It was cute, easy and quick to make!

Next I tried felt as Martha directs. She says to glue ribbon over the wire, to conceal it, but this was difficult to do and is not really neccessary. The nice thing about foam and felt is that no hemming or finishing is neccessary, and you need only cut one round per cookie! Fun Foam or felt would be nice if you don't mind the texture and look of each, and you want to make a bunch of cookies fast. Next, I got out my fabric scraps  and cut two 4" circles, placed them right sides together and sewed around the edges. I did not leave an opening to turn because I did not want to have to close the gap later. I used an old quilting technique of separating the layers and snipping a cut/slit in the center of one side.

After I cut the slit, I turned the cookie circle and pressed it. The floral wire I was using was green and heavy, so I decided to try white pipe cleaner. Lay it on the circle, fold fabric over like making a taco, wire is sitting along the fold and is straight inside. Then bend the wire into a "U" shape, bringing the fabric points/corners toward each other. A peak will form on one side of the cookie. At this point, you can use a small dab of hot glue at the curve of the "U" to keep it secure, if desired.  

The red and cream cookies were made with felt. The gingham, red stripe and tan cookies are fabric. I discovered that you can dispense with using wire if you use a bit of hot glue inside the cookie before folding.  This takes practice and is a bit more tricky than the wire method. This project, in felt or foam, would be a great thing for Scout Troops to make! Yesterday, at Big Lots, I saw adorable Chinese style food-to-go containers ~~ wouldn't these look adorable in one of those?  "Bake" up a batch for your Valentine and have fun writing you own 'fortunes' or love notes~