Level: Beginner - Intermediate

Here's a wonderful way to save your favorite Valentine’s Day card and display it for everyone to enjoy. If you don’t have a special card, use a poem or verse. It's a fast and easy project that's perfect for any Janome serger. With different shapes, fabrics and trims, you have a lovely, personalized gift for any occasion.

Janome Supplies Required:

• Any Janome serger
• Serger needles size 11
• 1 spool Janome Overlock thread J360052 (red)
• All purpose foot

Fabric and Notions Required:

• Posterboard – 6” x 14”
• Rotary cutter
• Scissors for cutting paper and fabric
• ½ yd Valentine print fabric
• 2 spools of red metallic decorative serger thread or Robison Anton serger floss
• Hand sewing needle
• All purpose thread
• Permanent fabric glue
• Scotch tape
• Hemming gauge
• ½” ribbon – cut 14” long

Instructions: Set up your serger for a 3 thread wide overlock stitch with red serger thread in the needle and red metallic decorative serger thread in the two loopers. Use ½” seam allowance. Refer to manual for suggested settings.

1. Cut two strips of fabric 4” x 45”.
2. With right sides together, sew them together to form one long strip 4” x 90”.
3. With wrong sides together, fold in half lengthwise and press.
4. Press short ends under to the wrong side about ½”.
5. On the raw edge, with wrong sides still together, serge down the long side of the strip. You should now have a tube with a decorative edge on one side.
6. Cut the posterboard into two equal pieces that are 6” x 7”.
7. Trace or draw a heart to fit inside the piece of cardboard. Cut out heart shape.
   
8. Use the piece you cut as a template and trace it on the other piece of posterboard. Cut out heart. This one will be the back.
9. Using your hemming gauge, measure in ¾” from the outside edge all around the heart. This will be your frame.
   
   
10. Cut out the center of the heart. Round the sharp points.
11. Cut a slice in the front frame at the side so that you can feed the tube onto it.
    

1. Feed fabric onto the frame. Scrunch the tube so that it looks gathered.
2. Once all the fabric is on the tube, tape the slice back together.
3. Stuff thread tails into tube.
4. Arrange the tube so that it is not at the weak spot of the frame.
5. For the back, cut a piece of fabric approximately 9” x 8” or large enough to cover the back section.
6. Place the posterboard back piece on the wrong side of the fabric.
7. Draw a line around the heart about 1 ½” away from the posterboard. Be sure to follow the curves and points.
8. Trim excess fabric.
9. Fold straight edges to other side of the heart.
10. Glue down the straight edges.
11. Using your hand sewing needle and thread, do a running stitch around the curves. Pull the thread tight to snugly fit the curves. Glue as needed.
12. Take the ribbon and glue the cut ends to the gathered side of the back piece. This will be the hanger for the plaque.
13. Glue front to back. Make sure you turn it over and see that it is lined up properly on both sides. Apply pressure with the palm of your hand or use something heavy to help glue set.