How to Make a Clover Out of Plastic Canvas

Make a clover from plastic canvas.

Make a clover out of plastic canvas for a quick and easy St. Patrick's Day decoration or a symbol of good luck any day. With a few simple materials, you can create an attractive clover with three or four leaves.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Plastic canvas
• Scissor
• Yarn needle
• Dark green yarn
• Medium green yarn
• Hot glue gun or craft glue (optional)

1. Cut three clover-leaf shapes from the plastic canvas sheet. A clover leaf is basically a fat teardrop shape with a short point on one side and a round other side. You can make a four-leaf clover for good luck by cutting out four leaf shapes from the plastic canvas. If you decide to make a four-leaf clover, make each leaf slightly narrower so they do not overlap as closely. Be sure to create a smooth outer edge without small nubs of plastic.

2. Thread a length of the darker green yarn onto your yarn needle. The length should be long so you do not have to add more too often as you work, but not so long that it becomes tangled or frayed as you go. Begin at the point end of a clover leaf and push the needle and thread up through the plastic canvas hole. Do not knot the thread onto the plastic canvas, but instead leave a 3-inch tail that will be woven in at the end.

3. Push the needle up through the plastic canvas hole and then back down through the hole to the top right of that hole. You will make small, diagonal stitches to fill in the entire plastic canvas piece. With the dark green yarn, stitch a neat, even ring around the outside edge of each clover leaf. For a 3-inch leaf, the dark green ring should be about 3/4 inch wide. Repeat for all the clover leaves you plan to make. Weave in the ends of the yarn on the backside of the clover leaves so they will not be seen on the finished project.

4. Cut a piece of the plastic canvas to make a stem for your clover. It should be wider at the bottom and taper slightly toward the top where the leaves will be attached. Cover the stem entirely with dark green yarn stitches. Finish the edge of the plastic canvas clover stem by stitching over the edge. Push the needle up through the bottom of the plastic canvas, wrap it over the edge of the stem and then push it back up the next hole in the line. This will create a neat, green edge.

5. Thread the medium green yarn on the needle the same way you did with the darker yarn. Using the same stitching method as before, fill in the inner portions of each clover leaf. Weave the ends into the back of each leaf to hide them neatly. You should now have three or four finished clover leafs and a stem made out of plastic canvas.

6. Complete the clover craft project by attaching the leaves to the clover stem. This can be done by stitching it with your yarn needle and yarn or using clear-drying craft glue or a hot glue gun. The clover leaves should either sit directly next to each other or overlap slightly. If they overlap, as in the case of four-leaf clovers, it is more secure to stitch the pieces together at the center rather than glue them.

Tips & Warnings

• For a more finished back, glue on cut-out pieces of green felt to hide the stitching.