DIY: Simple Sock Bunny

Here is a project I am currently doing with some of my students at my art teaching job. If six-year-olds can do it, you can too! It's simple, cheap and it should take two hours or less depending on how fast you can whip-stitch. No sewing machine or pre-existing skills needed!

 Sock bunny pieces ready for sewing!

 Finished bunny!

Materials/tools:

• 1 knee-high sock, clean and colourful is best! (Buy a pair and you can make two bunnies!)
• Embroidery floss (Simple thread will work but the embroidery floss is best to add colour and for nice, strong seams)
• 1 large sewing needle
• Sewing pins (optional but it will be a bit more of a hassle without them)
• Cotton stuffing
• Sewing scissors (regular scissors will work too it will just make cutting a bit more difficult)
• 2 buttons for eyes (optional)
• 1 pom pom and a hot glue gun (optional)

Instructions:

1. Cut a 2-3 inch strip of the sock from the top (opening), this will become the arms.
2. Imagine that the heel of the sock is going to become the face, lay the sock flat so that the face is facing upwards, cut up from the toe towards the heel stopping just under an inch from the heel.
3. To make legs cut from opposite side stopping about 3 inches from heel.
4. Time to start sewing! Pick a piece of embroidery floss twice as long as you think you'll need, thread it through the needle and bring the two ends of the thread together and tie them in a knot, this way the thread will be extra strong and you don't have to worry about it coming off the needle. Whip stitch the ears closed along the edges where you cut.
5. Stuff the bunny's ears and half his body.
6. Using the same method as for the ears start sewing the legs shut leaving an opening about an inch long at the bunny's "crotch." Finish stuffing the bunny's body and legs and sew up the opening at his crotch.
7. Take the strip you cut for the arms and cut it in half length wise.
8. Sew each arm on two of three sides leaving one side open.
9. Stuff the arms, fold in the raw edges and pin them  to the body where you want them.
10. Using the same whip stitch as before attach the arms to the body, ensuring that each stitch passes through the arm and body.
11. If you are using buttons for eyes sew them in place on the heel/face of the sock bunny. If you do not have buttons simply embroider eyes onto your bunny using the embroidery floss.
12. Add the nose, mouth and any other features to your bunny using the embroidery floss. (If you have a hard time hiding knots and want the face to be perfect/knot free this step can be done before any other and the knots can be hidden inside the sock.)
13. If you like, use a hot glue gun to attach a pom-pom tail.

You are done, enjoy your bunny!

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MS Paint to the rescue....

Tips:
To make the bunny safe for young children do not add button eyes or a pom pom tail and make sure your seams are sturdy!

All of the sewing (except for embroidering the face , adding the arms and stitching up the crotch after stuffing can be done with a sewing machine.

If you do not want visible seams turn the sock inside out before sewing it, the turn right side out before stuffing.

The more colourful the socks and thread the better!

Original Sock Bunny project found here.