I made this!! Rag Pom Pom!!

Now I promise I am not being sponsored by Clover, but, I must urge people to buy one of their amazing pom pom makers! They are such a clever design that makes pom pom making so easy and professional. They come in lots of different sizes from tiny 20mm to big huge ones - and even heart shaped! I bought mine on eBay, but you can get them from lots of different craft supply shops too. Here's what they look like . . .

To make a pom pom you just wrap your wool, embroidery thread, fabric etc around each pair of semi circle arms (which hinge out of the centre) - there are two pairs of arms by the way - make sure you wrap your chosen material around the two together. One you have filled up the two semi circles you push back to the centre, making sure everything is together securely then using a sharp pair of scissors or snips cut all the way around. Loop a ribbon or strong thread in between the two discs - give them a wiggle to make sure the they reach the centre then knot very securely!!

To release the pom pom I find it easier to open the hinged arms on each side then pull the whole thing in half (the two discs are held together with a pin in the centre). Give your pom pom a fluff, trim off any straggly bits with a pair of scissors to tidy up and hey presto - a pom pom!!

Here I have shown a pom pom made from very roughly cut scraps of leftover fabric. Some of these strips were only a few inches long but that doesn't matter - they just need to be long enough to wrap around the arm once. So this is a fantastic way to use up all your leftover scraps of fabric. What do you all think?