Three Ways to Finish a Hoop Project

I love putting my small projects in wooden hoops.  It started out when I inherited a bunch of hoops from a family member and didn't know what to do with them.  You can only sew so many projects at once and it isn't really recommended that you keep them in the hoops when you aren't working on them.

Then I realized that I loved the charm of the hoop as a frame and started designing projects specifically for hoops.  Then came the decision of how to finish the project for hanging because you have an exposed back and loos fabric on the edges. 

So here are three easy ways to finish your hoop project.

The first method is to use hot glue.  Simply glue around the edge with hot glue onto the wood and then fold the fabric over to glue it down.  Work in small increments so that the glue doesn't cool before you can stick the fabric to it.

The second option is to take a piece of thread and do large running stitches around the hoop.  Then pull the thread to gather those stitches and fold the fabric over.  You can see that it doesn't hold quite as well, but it does at least get the fabric to the back. So from the front, you don't see the fabric at all. 

The third option is to cover the back.  Cut a circle of wool that is the same size as the inner ring of the hoop.  Blanket stitch around the edge to hold the wool circle on the back to the wool from the front.  This option will cover and hide the back so you don't see any of the stitches on the back.

Because of this covering I will have to hang this from the tightening mechanism, or I'll have to put a string to hang it. Since this was an ornament I didn't want the back to be visible and using a ribbon on the screw is a perfect finishing option for this project.

Typically with wall hangings they're always just gonna hang against a wall. So I am okay with the back stitches being visible because no one will ever see them (unless they are taking down your wall hangings).  I typically prefer to leave my back open because I like to hang my projects on the inner ring.

So there you have it, three ways to finish your hoop project: gathering it and pulling it tight, hot glue (which honestly is my favorite), or creating a backing and stitching it down.

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