Stroll through many antique shops and you’re bound to find a sweet and colorful yo-yo quilt. First made popular in the 1930s, the small, gathered circles that create a yo-yo are super easy to make, and the resulting fabric puff is a fun embellishment for pillows, blankets and more. Make them by hand or use a simple tool. They’re great for using up small scraps, and perfectly portable – make them while sitting on the beach, waiting for the train, anywhere.

Stroll through many antique shops and you’re bound to find a sweet and colorful yo-yo quilt. First made popular in the 1930s, the small, gathered circles that create a yo-yo are super easy to make, and the resulting fabric puff is a fun embellishment for pillows, blankets and more. Make them by hand or use a simple tool. They’re great for using up small scraps, and perfectly portable – make them while sitting on the beach, waiting for the train, anywhere.

In this tutorial, we’ll start by showing you how to make a yo-yo with just fabric, a needle and thread. At the end you’ll find hints on using a purchased yo-yo maker.

If you just can’t wait to have a pile of beautiful yo-yos, visit Donna Lawrance’s Yo-Yo Cottage Quilt . Her yo-yos are featured in the photo above, and she offers a wide variety of sizes and colors at very affordable prices.

Making Your Own Yo-Yo

What You’ll Need

• Scraps of fabric
• Hand sewing needle
• Thread
• A compass or round object to trace
• Fabric pen or chalk
• Cardboard or stiff paper

Cut, Stitch and Gather

1. Decide how large you’d like your finished yo-yo to be. On average, the fabric circle for the yo-yo should be twice as large as the finished yo-yo, plus ½” for the small inside “hem.” If I want my yo-yo to be 3″ in diameter when done, I’ll need to cut a 6½” fabric circle.
2. You can draw this precisely with a compass, or you can use the cheater method (which we utilize here) by finding a mug, plate, bowl or other round household object to serve as the template for your pattern.
3. Sketch the circle onto cardboard or stiff paper.
   
4. Cut out the circle pattern.
5. Using a chalk pencil or fabric marking pen, draw the circle onto your fabric.
   
6. Cut out the circle.
   
7. Cut a piece of thread that is about double the length needed to stitch around the circle. For my 6½” example, it would take about 8-9″ to sew around the circle and leave enough for a tail, so I’ll cut about 18″ of thread.
8. Thread the needle, double the thread, and tie a knot in the ends of the thread (knot the two ends together so you have a double strand).
9. Folding in the edge of the fabric about ¼”, and staying close to the edge of the circle, make a running stitch around the circle. Don’t try to press this little “hem” with your iron. You can use a seam gauge to help you eyeball a starting point of ¼”, then just keep folding in, using your thumb and first finger to hold the “hem” as you stitch.
   
10. Sew, using consistently sized stitches, until you’re back around to where you started. It is very important to keep your stitches as consistent as possible so the yo-yo gathers evenly.
    
11. Gently pull on the ends of the thread to gather the sides of the yo-yo, tie a knot with the ends of the thread and clip the thread tails.
    
12. Flatten the yo-yo to finish.
    
    

Controlling the size of the center hole

You can control the size of the hole in the center of your yo-yo by adjusting the width of the stitches you use. Shorter stitches will result in a looser gather on the yo-yo, leaving a larger hole in the center. This is fine if you are planning to embellish the center of the yo-yo, since the hole will be covered. If you are looking to make a blanket out of yo-yos stitched together, you will probably want a smaller hole in the center. Longer stitches will allow you to pull the gather tighter, resulting in a smaller hole in the center of your yo-yo.

Using a Yo-Yo Maker

You can pick up a yo-yo maker at most fabric and craft stores, or easily source one online. These small plastic devices are incredibly affordable, and make the job of stitching a yo-yo even easier.

The yo-yo maker is comprised of two round plastic discs. Fabric is placed between these discs and held in place by fitting the discs together.

You then create stitches by following the holes in the discs. These holes allow for easy, even placement of stitches around the fabric circle.

A sewing beginner, or someone not used to hand stitching, may find this tool especially helpful to create perfectly spaced stitches. There are quite of few sizes from which to choose, from tiny button yo-yos to giant pom pom yo-yos.