Recently, I began making Easter Gifts for the children in my life.  I started to visit sites that showed me how to make the most beautiful softies.  I made some gorgeous owls inspired by some owls I saw on the Hammer and Thread Blog and another blog called Toad’s Treasures.

I wanted to make a soft dog for my nephew, who is crazy about dogs.  Looking online, I didn’t find any dog softies I liked.  So I decided to make my own dog.

 

 

So the birth of a new blog begins.  I was so inspired by what others were doing.  I thought… I want to share my creations too.

How to make a blog dog…

Materials

pencil

sheet of sandpaper

1 chopstick

sharp fabric scissors

paper scissors

sewing machine

pins

needles

thread to match fabrics and sew eyes (black DMC thread)

ironed fabrics… I chose 4 quilters’ flannels left over from a quilt I made and some black cotton fabric for his nose

hobby fill stuffing

pattern (see below)

 

 

 

After you have worked out which fabrics you will use for blog dog’s body, head, legs, paws, tail, ears (inner and outer) and his nose you are ready to start.

Place your sandpaper down and begin to trace your pattern with a lead pencil onto the back of the fabric.  You will find that the sandpaper will hold the fabric and stop it from moving.

 

 

 

Next I cut out the pieces.  Remember that the line you traced is the sewing line, not the cutting line.  So I cut about 1/4″ away from the sewing line.

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to make blog dog’s legs have different coloured paws you will need to join two pieces of fabric before you trace your pattern.  I then line the paw line up with the sewing line as shown.

 

 

 

 

 

Take the front head piece with the dart.

Fold it in half and sew (using a small stitch) from outside edge into point of dart.

Next clip seam in close to sewing line.

 

 

 

 

Sew your blog dog’s legs together.  I only used a different fabric for the paw on one side of his leg.  You will need to make 4 legs.

 

 

 

 

 

Once you have sewn all four legs.

Clip them in close, but be careful.  I like to clip close, but watch that your fabric is strong enough and won’t fray.

I turn with a chopstick, but do use caution. I have poked through more that one arm or leg in my time 🙁

Smooth the shape of the turned item and make sure you don’t have points instead of curves.

Fill legs with stuffing.  Leave 1/2″ less stuffed at the top, to make attaching easier.

 

Pin individual heads to bodies.  The dart head is the trickiest.  Line the middle of the body piece up with the dart and start there.  Then pin one way and then the other.

When pinning.  I put the pin through and line up both drawn sewing lines.

 

 

 

 

Sewing this head and body seam together is tricky.  Go slow and if it looks like it will pucker, then leaving the needle down, lift the foot to ease the tension/fabric to return to sitting flat.

If it doesn’t work… there is always the trusty old quick unpick.

 

 

 

 

Iron the seam up towards the head on the front and towards the body on the back.  This will help with later constuction.

 

 

 

 

 

Clipping the curves is very important.  It will change the shape of the curve if you don’t…  not for the better.

Folding the area you want to clip and cut away from the stitching.  This is a safest way to clip and put notches in a curve.  This is one of my Mum’s tips 🙂

 

 

 

 

Now for an easier step.

With a pencil mark on eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

I used a satin stitch and 3 strands of embrodiery floss.  Black will match my blog dog’s nose.

To stop your stitching showing through your fabric.  Finish off and start each eye individually, on the back, with a knot.

 

 

 

 

Pin on each leg and and sew to the front of the body only.  I sew as close to the edge as possible.  This sewing is only a basting stitch to hold legs in the location you want them.

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see from the picture.  I shorted the “arm” legs alittle.  And I put them on a slight diagonal.  When you have basted them, you can see if you like the angle they are on.  Again, there is always the quick unpick if you are not happy.

 

 

 

 

 

This is how the basted legs will appear.  Fold them up like so, before you pin the back and front together.

At times the legs will get in your way, but  just manipulate them to suit your need.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another tricky bit.

When pinning the back and front halves together, you want to line up both sewing lines as much as possible.

I start at the neck.

I make sure that one seam (front) goes up and the other (back) goes down, then I butt them together.

This is a term used in patchworking.  It means that you bring the two together, by bringing the bulk of their seams up hard against each other.  Don’t worry if you don’t get it.  Just make sure the neck seams match each other.

I leave an opening on the right side, under the “arm” leg.  It needs to be big enough to pull legs through, so I suggest 1 1/2 – 2″.

Sew slowly… lift the foot (with your needle down) if you need to to flaten legs alittle when you approach them.  Focus on getting a nice shape by following the lines closely.

Again more clipping.  Be careful not to cut your sewing.

At the neck you need to cut in to make it work.  I cut in parallel to the neck seam.

 

 

 

 

 

Nearly there.  Turn blog dog through the opening you left under his right “arm”leg.

I like to pull one leg through at a time.

Then use your chopstick to smooth out his corners.

It is now, that you will see what kind of job you did with clipping.  If he doesn’t sit right, turn him back and clip some more.

 

 

Now he needs a nose.

Place the nose pattern piece on the fabric and cut around it.  This is just like you did with all your other pattern pieces.

 

 

 

 

With a knot at the start, stitch around the outside and draw up the fabric to gather it in.

Iron the nose to hold the shape.

Now slip the cardboard out.

 

 

 

(Photo is of the back, so you can’t see the sewing line.)

Sew ears together leaving an inch to turn them through.  I cut two ears out and then lay them face down on the other coloured fabric, right side up.  and stitch them on. Then cut them out.

 

Hand stitch up the hole you turned the ears through, using a ladder stitch.

 

 

Using an invisible stitch or an applique stitch, sew on nose. When you are almost around, add a little stuffing under nose, to give it some dimension.

Now stitch on blog dog’s ears.  I pinned them in place and then stitched around twice.  I sewed around the curve and then across the fold.

Now sew up the side of blog dog using a ladder stitch.

 

 

 

Sew the tail and clip it carefully.

Then turn it with a chopstick.

I don’t stuff my ears or tail as I like them flat.  It is an option to stuff them if you desire to.  You can always try, and then pull the stuffing out if you don’t like the look.

Poke in the end of his tail and hand stitch it closed.

 

 

 

Then sew on his tail.  I opened mine out and lined up the seams in the middle, so that it curved upwards.  I sewed it on tight, as my nephew might carry him by it.

 

I hope you have enjoyed my first ever tutorial.  I certainly have.  Special mentions go to my family, who gave me a little grace to get it finished in a weekend, and my mum… my sewing guru.

 

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