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Looking for a new decoration to make your Thanksgiving table pop? Hillary from @wee_wonderfuls has the perfect tutorial! This cheerful squirrel in an acorn hat will add a smile to any fall celebration, and it's a breeze to make! Gather up your supplies, and in just a couple of quick hours you'll have the cutest little creature to share a table with!
Wool felt is perfect for making pocket sized stuffed animal friends. This time of year the most active animal friends in my yard are the squirrels. I’d rather they spent more time making themselves silly acorn hats than digging up my bulbs, so this friend is wishful thinking.
Stuffed firmly, like soft sculpture, your new squirrel friend will look great on a shelf as part of your fall decor, or squirrel him away in your pocket while you go out crunching in the leaves.
Skill level: Intermediate
Time: 2 hours
Additional Supplies:
PDF template (click to download)
Directions:
1. Cut the pattern pieces from the felt colors listed.
2. Using three strands of DMC 976, decorate the acorn hat by embroidering little “V”s on one side of each of the three Acorn Hat (A) pieces.
3. Assemble the hat using three strands of DMC 938. With wrong sides together, sew two of the hat pieces together along one edge. Sew the third piece to the open sides of the first two pieces, again with wrong sides together. Finger press the seams open flat.
4. To sew the squirrel, use three strands of DMC 434. The squirrel’s head is made of three pieces, two Head Sides (B) and the Head Gusset (C). The first step is to sew the two side pieces together along the front edge.
5. Next, sew the Head Gusset (C) to the two head sides. Pin the gusset along one of the open rounded sides of the head with the point at the nose. Sew along the edge, nose to neck. Next pin the other side of the gusset and sew in place.
6. Press the seams open flat with your fingers and then stuff the head firmly until it has no give and is a nice round shape.
7. Lay the Front (E) over the Back (D) lining up the curved arm/leg edge. Sew together along that edge stopping at the bottom as shown. Knot off and cut floss.
8. Repeat on the other side, lining up the edges which will bump out the space for the body. Again, stop at the base but don’t tie a knot or cut the floss. Fold up the base/bottom flap and continue sewing around it. Tie a knot and cut floss.
9. Finger press the seams open and firmly stuff as you did the head.
10. Pin the head to the body and sew together. Fold under the edge of each piece about ⅛” and use a ladder stitch to join the pieces.
11. Pin the acorn hat to the top of the head, pulling down snuggly, and sew in place around bottom edge with DMC 938.
12. Embroider the face using three strands of DMC 310. Start with the nose and mouth. Knot the floss and bring the needle in between the seams at the point of the nose, gently pulling ther knot to the inside. Bring the needle up where you’d like the nose and embroider the nose and mouth.
From there bring the needle out where you’d like the eyes. I use pinheads to mark where I’d like the eyes and then remove them when I embroider. When you’re finished with the embroidery, pull the needle and thread through the back of the head and clip close to the surface. Squish the head around a bit to pull the thread back into the stuffed head so it’s not visible.
13. If you’d like a little glint in the eye, finish off with a stitch of two strands of DMC 976 across the eyes.
14. Cut the three Tail (F) pieces into fringe along each long edge.
15. Layer the pieces with Toast in between the two Pumpkin pieces. Pin together at ends and twist the tail into a nice fluffy one.
16. Pin to the bottom of back of squirrel and sew in place with a few tacking stitches.
17. Loop the tail up and pin the other end to the back of the Squirrel’s head. Sew in place. Lastly, pin a middle section to the Squirrel and sew in place. You can sew as much of the tail down as you’d like and play with the placement to get the desired shape.
Congratulations! You've made your stuffed squirrel!
Thanks to Hillary for designing and writing this tutorial! You can follow her on Instagram @wee_wonderfuls or visit her website. Stay tuned for more tutorials from the Benzie Design Maker Team!