Pure Ella

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Sewing a Sweet Bunny – tutorial

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Being a mom is just the best thing in the world. My mommy duties include taking care of Miss Gabriella: making meals, baking together, planning playdates, cuddling, singing in the car, dancing in the kitchen, jumping on the bed, teaching reading and writing, playing games and making up stuff to do… this list is truly endless. And if you’re a mama, then you know what I mean. Let’s give ourselves a high five for being awesome! ;)

One of my favourite activities that I introduced my girl to, is crafting. When she was little we did all sort of things from paper, fabric, beans and grains, and tons more. Now, at 5 she really knows what she  wants and we plan something fun that could keep both of us happy.

Last year, just around this time of the year, we planned to make a sweet little bunny for Easter…

… the inspiration came from visiting a local craft store and spotting this cute bunny fabric print. It was *aww…* at first sight! We had to take the bunny fabric home not even knowing what we would do with it.

The plushy idea came quickly to mind as for a long time I fantasized about making some sweet little treasure for my girl (while she was still little). (Cause gosh knows how quickly they grow up and would say… ‘but mom, I don’t want a purple bunny’, gasp!)

Our crafting day was just perfect : messy and fun. Here’s a simple little guide for Sewing a Sweet Bunny – a tutorial.

  1. Find the fabrics you need. You can have all one colour or have the back a different fabric. I inverted the ears so that the bunny print is on the front of the ears. For size reference I used a bunny stuffie my daughter already had. My fabric tip, is to go with a quality fabric, like organic cotton or linen – as it’s nice when handmade things are true quality things. (that was my personal mistake, I went with a terrycloth because it was the colour I wanted and it was all I had – but it’s not high-quality as it would have been if it was sewn with linen fabric.
  2. Trace the shape onto a scrap piece of paper. I really focused on one side, then I folded the paper and cut the other side to match the symmetry.
  3. Cut the ears and hands separately. To keep the pattern simple, I connected the legs together to the body. (less sewing ;)) Cut this pattern out.
  4. I placed the fabric front-to-front.
  5. Now double up your fabric, and trace around the shapes.
  6. Cut both pieces of fabric at the same time.
  7. Place your pieces and see if you like the shape, you can trim certain areas out if you like at this stage. (the bunny print is on the back side)
  8. Now be sure to piece your fabrics fronts in, and hand stitch all the way around or use a sewing machine. (I did this while watching a movie one night so I preferred to hand stitch as I liked combining those tasks ;) (stitching at a sewing machine will surely be much faster ;))
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As a side note, I am not showing this in my photos, but:
#1. be sure you stitch your hands separately (leaving holes where they would meet the body), then stuff them with cotton stuffing and place them inside the bunny as you stitch around.
#2. sew little eyes and fun things on to the face. I hand stitched in a little triangle for the nose. The the eyes are little buttons – which I’m so happy about because after we did this, the Lalaloopsy dolls exploded and now buttons are a big deal! ;)
#3. if you want to add a little ballerina skirt, you will need a long strip of a lace remnant (mine was from trimming drapes), about 1 1/2′ x 3″ high should do it. I gathered up one side and pulled the needle through to create a gathered look.

Of course, this little sewing project is not very kid friendly. So to include my daughter more, I used the paper pattern we used to cut the fabric from, hole-punched holes all the way around – and created a fun lacing activity for kids. This was a great plan – and fun for both of us at the same time. I tied a purple yarn (we were into purples back them ;)) and tied one end to a safety pin. That helped her little hands weave the pin in through the holes better. Fun!

Mother-daughter time spent together
– is the seedling of a lifelong  friendship in bloom.
~ Ella

Yes, a whole year went by… and this little bunny is still loved and treasured and cared for and hugged every night… makes me feel so happy to give my child this special gift.

I think anything made by a mom or grandma or aunt or other creative souls in the family is a very special gift in itself. It doesn’t have to be perfect – it’s perfect because it’s handmade with love.

So, with Easter coming up so soon, I thought I should share this little gift of joy with you all. Eater surely isn’t a gift-giving holiday, but bunnies are so darn cute that it’s nice to have them year round. This type of sewing is also very easy and most animals could be pulled off easily… just find a simple toy that inspires you or google could help you with that – there’s tons of inspirations out there too.

Have fun making something special. xo Ella