Embroidery Hoop Tent Cards

These dinky cards form their own easels.

Small cards often get lost in the shuffle - but these cuties won't because they set up into their own display stands (each card measures 8cm/3-1/4" high by 6.5cm/2-5/8" wide). 

The card focal is a mini embroidery hoop decorated with a Tonic Studios Petal Pairs floral decoration. It's fun to embellish the Petal Pairs with simple embroidery stitches.

The Petal Pairs are decorated with Lazy Daisy and French Knot stitches.

Vellum makes lovely petals or leaves.

The cards pack flat. To assemble, slot together the semi-circular base tabs.

Lazy Daisy: interlock the Petal Pairs. Stitch through the pierced holes.

I chose craft thread for the embroidery because it has a nice twisted texture - but you might prefer stranded embroidery cotton/floss. The holes were punched in the Petal Pair flower with a 1/16" circle punch - but you can pierce them with a tapestry needle if you place a kneaded eraser underneath to catch the needle tip.

Work the Lazy Daisy first, then stitch a French Knot in a contrasting colour in the flower centre. (You can Google stitch diagrams or look in any embroidery book.) Pull the thread gently for the French Knot - since you are using the same hole you don't want to unravel the twisted spiral.  You can secure the French Knot by coming back up through the hole and stitching through the spiral centre - then knot on the wrong side of the flower.

Stitch holes for a single-layer flower.

 The card itself is a cinch to make. Here's the template:

The "embroidery hoop" is a circle of gold paper topped with a smaller circle of cream. Fold the loop in half - glue the bottom together. Glue the loop behind the circle, at centre top to complete the embroidery hoop.  The flower is attached to the hoop with a glue dot.


I added mock photo corners to the card front. These are just right triangles of gold paper with decorative notches cut into them.


Attach the embroidery hoop to the card front with craft thread passed through the hoop loop and the holes in the card front. Tie into a bow.

I like to make up the embroidery hoops with a mini gold safety-pin passed through the loop. The safety pin looks a bit like the hardware at the top of a real embroidery hoop.


These dinky cards are ideal as party place cards. They'd look really classy with a name penned in calligraphy at the bottom. Or, you could big up the embroidery hoop and use it for a card focal on a larger card. Then, you can craft a bigger floral arrangement.