Home generalSewing soft toys - Free instructions to make yourself

Sewing soft toys - Free instructions to make yourself

  • Material and preparation
  • Sewing instructions - stuffed animals
    • Sew unicorn
    • Sewing elephant
    • Sew dinosaurs
  • Quick guide for stuffed animals

Not too long ago I showed you how to make a cute Easter Bunny as a decoration. These little animals are perfect as a gift for small children and in the same turn for the remainder of use. Of course, you can also buy fabrics for your stuffed animal projects.

In my guide today I show you how to design, sew and design your stuffed animals in the future. For that I reduce everything to the simplest variant. I made a unicorn, a dinosaur and an elephant. Join me from the draft to the final touch! Incidentally, copying is not only allowed, but expressly desired!

Difficulty level 1-2 / 5
(this manual is also suitable for beginners depending on the subject selection)

Material costs 1/5
(depending on choice of fabric and size of leftovers up to about 20 euros)

Time expenditure 2/5
(depending on experience and accuracy about 1 h per stuffed animal including drawing and hand stitching)

Material and preparation

The material selection

Your little stuffed toy will stay particularly shapely with a little firmer woven fabric. If necessary, I would reinforce stretch fabrics with ironing inserts, but it works without them, then they are a little rounder. As already mentioned in the introduction, you can usefully continue to process your scraps from all other projects.
For the filling I use specially produced filling material from a local supplier. You can also use padding.

The pattern

You are welcome to use my sketches as patterns or to draw ones yourself. I used a character block in A3 format. Think beforehand which stuffed animal you would like to implement and just draw on it with a pencil. You can erase and redraw the parts that you do not like so much. Meanwhile, there are also fineliner in many beautiful colors, which can also erase. A little extra game, which is not necessary, but can increase the fun factor when sketching.

I have drawn my unicorn and the dinosaur freehand and then brought it into shape with my curve rulers. For the elephant, I have used a circle (plate, large bowl or the like) as a basic shape and then worked out the individual limbs.

Tip: If you're not sure how to design your stuffed animal, check out some pictures on the internet for inspiration. In particular, silhouettes or paper cutting are suitable, since it is mainly about the outlines.

Sewing instructions - stuffed animals

Sew unicorn

Draw your unicorn on paper. In the next step, cut out the basic shape of your drawing, mark the points where other pieces of fabric are to be applied, and then cut them out.

Now follows some improvisation. For the mane of my unicorn I would like to sew rainbow fringes. First I measure the length of the marked mane, take a piece of fabric with stripes in rainbow colors and fold it once. Then I adjust the lower edge and round off the corners. Finally, I cut just next to each other again and again from bottom to top, so that above a strip with about 7 mm height is left (my seam allowance).

The ponytail I create the same, except that I fold the fabric here twice and have a total of four layers.

For the horn, I take the back of a fabric, which is reinforced with gray-silver ironing fleece. Under stretch the fleece gives way and becomes thinner, then in the desired case only the small, shimmering glue dots should be visible. I think that would be very unicorn magic! The horn is cut in two layers.

I remove the pattern and put both layers together for the time being with a pin.

Tip: Remember to add seam allowances everywhere when cutting!

Now I use a trick marker to transfer the body of the unicorn to high-quality linen fabric, which I also cut into two layers with seam allowance.

I put a body detail with the right (ie the "nice") side up in front of me, on it mane and ponytail, then the other body section with the right side down. I attach the parts with several layers particularly well. But before sewing I have to tinker with the horn. For this I put the two pieces of fabric with the outside (in my case with the fleece side) and sew together. Then I shorten the seam allowances sideways and especially at the top and turn it. Then I put it in the space provided between the two body parts of my unicorn.

I sew around with seam allowance and leave a turn-around opening. After turning, one eye can be stitched manually (or two if you want). I'll show it here at this point. I find it easier to embroider eyes after filling. Fill your stuffed animal and close the turn-around opening with a ladder seam.

I have already described this special seam in detail in my spelled pillow tutorial. Remember to choose the yarn in a matching color.

Sewing elephant

As with the unicorn, first draw on paper and then transfer your design to the fabric. The elephant is also cut in two layers. If necessary, secure the two fabric layers with a few pins, so that they do not slip during cutting. Also cut the ears. The ears are first sewn together and turned over. I did not feed my elephant's ears because I want them to hang down and not stick out.

Put your ears back between the two layers of body parts. Sew around all the time, but save a turnaround. Turn the elephant, fill it and close the turning hole with a ladder seam.

Since my ears stick out too far due to the choice of fabric, I sewed them by hand on one side of the body. I embroidered my eyes - as I did with the unicorn. This time, however, after filling.

Sew dinosaurs

Just as with the two other stuffed animals, you also draw your pattern for the dinosaur on paper and transfer this to the fabric of your choice. For the spikes on the back, you can either follow exactly the curve according to the sketch or (in stretchable fabrics) sew a straight strip of fabric with different sized spikes.

I find it particularly nice when the spikes at the beginning (top of the head) and towards the end (at the tail) are slightly smaller than the spikes in the middle.

Leave a strip of about 7mm at the bottom, this is your seam allowance. Cut away anything you no longer need through the serrated seam and apply the serrations. Since I use Alpenfleece, which slips easily inside by the Velcro, which I lie on each other, I secure myself the pins after turning with pins.

Lay the row of teeth between the two halves of the body as with the other two stuffed animals and put all layers firmly in place. Sew around once and save a turning opening.

Tip: For many stuffed animals, the breast is the ideal place for a turning opening. If you are looking for a spot that is as straight as possible and where no other parts are to be used, make it easier for you to close the turning opening.

Turn the dinosaur, fill it and close the turnaround again with a ladder seam. And already my three stuffed animals are already finished! And as cool as my son finds the dinosaur, this time I decided to donate it to charity.

Have fun with the imitation!

Quick guide for stuffed animals

1. Think and research
2. Draw and design draft, straighten lines, simplify
3. Trim all pieces of paper (mark other parts)
4. Transfer pattern to desired material (s)
5. Cut the incision with sutures!
6. Prepare items such as horns, ears, mane, ponytail, pip row
7. If necessary, fill individual parts
8. Place individual parts at the markings between the body parts and pin.
9. Sewing (turning opening!)
10. Turn, fill, close with ladder seam.
11. Embroider eye (s) and other details as desired.

The twisted pirate

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