Playing with Yo Yo’s
June 1st, 2013. Filed under: Reruns, Sewing on Saturday.
First posted March 21, 2009
Yes, I like to play with those kind of yo yos too, but I’m not talking about that little round wooden toy on a string. I’m talking about fabric yo yos. Yo Yos are fabric circles gathered to form little rosettes. I first worked with yo yos as a kid when I made yo yo clown dolls. I’m still playing with them. I made simple yo yo Christmas ornaments a couple years ago. I just strung them together and added a big jingle bell at the bottom and a loop at the top.
Yo yos have grown up since I first learned how to make them. They’re even simpler to make if you buy yo yo cutters. You can get them in various sizes of round, hearts and flowers. You can even buy quick yo yo makers for the round ones. Lazy Girl Designs has a good tutorial on using the yo yo maker to make perfect little yo yos every time. You can even make square yo yos, but you have to do it the old fashioned way entirely by hand. Penny Sanford has a tutorial and pattern for making the heart shaped ones. You can go here to learn how to make the traditional yo yo by hand. This video gives you details on sewing them together.
Update I’ve found the ladder stitch makes a neater joining.
You can make large projects such as a quilt or smaller ones such as garlands. The quilts have been around for awhile. This was a popular style of quilt making in the U.S. from the 1920-40s. The tiny circles of fabric, gathered up at the edges and sewn together to create a three-dimensional effect, were popular because women could carry these little circles with them and make yo yos whenever they had a few minutes.
What have you made with yo yos? Any more ideas for us?