I am happy to finally have the chance to make another post. Today, I have a cute little plush for you. It’s a project my students have been requesting for a while, and is an adorable axolotl plush.
It’s a pretty simple plush and doesn’t require a lot of fabric. The trickiest part is cutting out the pieces, as some of the pattern pieces include seam allowance, while others don’t. However, those that don’t are much easier to sew before cutting, so I opted to use the differing pattern pieces.
It’s fun to make multiple plushies in different colors. I love the contrasting front as well as the itty bitty arms and legs.
The tail is also nice. Not only is it cute, but it also helps the plush stand up.
I hope you have as much fun making this project as I did.
Happy Sewing!
Supplies:
Recommended Fabric: Fleece or Minky (Example project made from fleece). I used the Mainstays brand in hot pink, light pink, mint, turquoise, and white. 10 x 28.5 inches Main Color Fabric 4.5 x 10 inches White Fabric or 2nd Accent Color 5 x 17 inches Accent Color Fabric Coordinating Thread Two 16 mm Safety Eyes Embroidery Floss (eyebrows) Polyfil
A friend asked me to make an alien plush for her daughter, and I had so much fun with it that I decided to share the project.
I started by making the larger fur aliens and then decided to add the smaller fleece option, which takes less fabric and is easier to construct.
The antenna and large eyes give these plushies a lot of personality.
Regular-Sized Plush
The large aliens are made with a swirl faux fur fabric (also called rose minky) for the body and regular minky for the accents. They measure approximately 20 inches tall and have finished (sewn) legs.
Small Sized Plush
The small aliens are made with fleece for both the body and the accents and have unfinished (unsewn) legs. The small size measures approximately 15 inches tall when finished. This is 75% scale of the regular-sized plush. This plush feels considerably lighter and smaller because of the reduced size and because the unfinished legs eliminate a lot of bulk.
Finished v Unfinished Legs
You have two legs finish choices when you make the alien, finished or unfinished. The small fleece aliens have unfinished legs. This means that they are not sewn. The fabric is simply cut into strips, the edges are left raw, and they are sewn directly to the plush. This shortens the construction time by quite a bit and reduces the difficulty of the project.
The regular-sized faux fur aliens have finished legs. The finished legs are sewn individually prior to attaching them to the plush. I chose to finish the legs on the faux fur to minimize shedding and to make them stronger. The finished legs take more time and more fabric.
UNFINISHED LEGSFINISHED LEGS
Accents
The eyes and antenna of the aliens bring out their fun personalities. The eyes are sewn into balls with minky or fleece fabric and then decorated with buttons. There are two options for making the antenna, the first which is shown on the small fleece plush, is simply to bend a pipe cleaner and hot glue pom poms to the ends. The other is to cover the antenna with fabric, which is shown on the larger fur aliens. You make a fabric tube, insert wire or pipe cleaners, and then sew pom poms to the end. The single pipe cleaner option is definitely faster and easier, and I prefer that look best, but the covered option is much stronger and helps the antenna stand out.
Supplies:
Refer to the Cut Layout included with the free pattern for fabric quantities
With Valentine’s Day coming up I was inspired by a cute new idea! A Lovely Little Llama Valentine!
This little llama has a blanket with two pockets that can deliver valentines for the big day 🙂
Not only would this llama be adorable for Valentine’s Day, but any holiday! Change the colors to green and red and you have Christmas. Dress it up for birthdays, Easter, or even Halloween. Changing the colors, accessories, and fabrics will completely change the feel of the project.
The pocket pouch is definitely my favorite part of the project, aside from the overall cuteness, of course! You can place notes, treats, and gifts in the little pockets.
The pattern is available in two sizes. The small size measures approximately 9 inches tall without the ears, and the large measures approximately 11.5 inches tall.
It is constructed with swirl fur which is great to work with and is super fluffy! It just calls out for cuddles 🙂
This project is fairly simple, but the fur does add a bit of difficulty. I would say it is about a 4/10 in terms of difficulty. You need to be comfortable using small seam allowances and sewing curves. Experience with fur or plush fabrics is also helpful.
When I made the sloth plush project I always intended for there to be accessories to go with it. So, here is the first!
This is a tiny little backpack that is just adorable on the sloth project!
It could easily be adapted for other dolls and stuffed animals by adjusting the elastic straps.
You can choose to make the backpack out of a single layer of fabric (like my denim example), or you can make it with lining (pink example). There are also two different options for the lower straps. Loops that go around each leg, or a single strap that goes around the belly.
Overall, I was really happy with how this one turned out. I hope you enjoy it as well!
Supplies:
4.5 x 18 inches of Main Fabric
4.5 x 18 inches of Interfacing (optional – I used Pellon SF101)
The sloth plush has been one of my posted free projects for quite some time, but I thought it was time to make a video!
I absolutely LOVE this project! It is so cuddly, which just makes me happy! It does take a bit of time, especially if you choose to work with fur, so the instructions for this project will be in two parts.
Supplies:
7 x 48 inches Faux Fur or Fleece for body and legs
4.5 x 18 inches of fleece for the face and claws
Scrap felt for face details
Two 16mm Safety Eyes (You could also use felt circles or buttons if you prefer)
This simple bear plush is great for beginning sewers and service projects! My first year sewing students made these bears for a children’s hospital. They were a big hit for both those making the bears and those receiving them. They are quick to make and even my new sewers were successful! They are also a lot of fun 🙂
This bear can be made with or without accessories, and it is adorable either way! The dress may be a bit of a challenge for beginning sewers as it involves gathering.
The body of the bear can be made with cotton, flannel, or fleece. Felt is great for the details. I used fleece for the I love You sweatshirt and flannel for the little dress. I also used 8mm safety eyes, buttons are also a great option. Embroidery floss was used for the eyebrows.
It is really fun to personalize your bear. Decorate as you prefer! Be creative and make it all your own. Since much of the decoration is simply felt shapes, this is really easy to do.
I hope you enjoy making this project as much as I did.
One of my favorite projects that I made this year was a sloth plush! My students absolutely love making plushies, and as I am sure you have noticed sloths are HUGE right now.
I tried several different designs for the plush before coming up with this one.
I really like that you can hang the plush if you want to.
You can also leave it simple or add accessories.
Sewing with fur is a bit of a challenge, but they are so cuddly!
This project difficulty is about a 4/10 if working with fleece, and a 5/10 if working with fur. The project is time consuming since there are a lot of piece, and you have to add a seam allowance to some of the pieces. But the whole project could be completed by hand if you didn’t want to use a machine.
The Pig Plush pattern and instructions are finally ready!
They are cute and cuddly! With awesome little tails.
The pattern comes with two different sizes so you can choose the size that best suits you.
The smaller plush stands 5 – 6 inches tall and the larger 7- 8 inches. The size varies a bit depending on the stretch of your fabric and how much you fill your plush.
The Panda was so much fun, that I really would like to make more plushies in a similar style. Last night I sketched a few different versions. I think the fox is my favorite 🙂 If I can get a good deal on some fleece at JoAnn this weekend (Hooray for Black Friday!) I think I will try to make another. Which do you like best?
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