Hi there

A friend of mine is having a baby so I thought, let's make her something. I bumped into the pattern of this fox and I thought it was very cute. I'm a beginner, so it wasn't easy to make, I kept repairing little mistakes until I was satisfied with the result. I hope you like it!

I got the pattern from this book: http://ingesnuffel.blogspot.be/p/ons-boek.html

Step 1: Patterning

Cutting the pattern out of paper and your fabric of choice is a boring job to do, because it takes a lot of time and you don't see any progress. It is however an important job, otherwise your stuffed animal will look like a monster, which might actually be a good idea if you like this.

Step 2: To Make the Fox Stretch Resistant

Before you can begin sowing everything together (yes I know you are anxious) you have to attach both pieces of fabric together to make everything stretch resistant.

Since we're sewing 2 pieces of fabric together we need to stitch the pieces together before actually sewing them. This to prevent the pieces from sliding while they're in the sewing machine. I used thread (you can pull it out any time), but you can also use needles (you have to pull it out while you are sewing). When you use thread like I did, just sew the pieces together with wide stitches to hold the two pieces in place.

Little tip! When you use different fabric on the inside, watch out that your inner fabric's print doesn't show on the outside.

Step 3: Sowing the Felt

This step is very hard when you are a beginner, because you can see the stitches from the felt on the outside of your fox. So it has to be a little bit straight and at an equal distance from the side. You have to turn fast while you are sewing.

Since the side of the felt has to be sown to the top fabric in the same place as the white backing fabric, we can sow them at the same time

Step 4: Sowing the Separate Pieces Together

Finally we have reached the step where we can begin sowing everything together and see our fox take form. First I took the loose pieces and sew them together like the paws and the tail. Take the two pieces and lay them down on top of each other with the outside of the fox against each other. Sow them together and then turn the piece inside out, so you can't see the stitches anymore. Don't forget to leave the bottom side open (the side you attach to the body) so you can stuff it later.

When you sow the tail together, make sure you stay a decent distance from the side, because otherwise you will see your previous stitches where you sew the felt to the fabric. Also leave a big enough gap on the side where you will attach the tail to the body, or you won't succeed in turning it inside out. You can sow it by hand later.

Little tip! It doesn't matter if you sow a little bit skewed in this stage, because when you turn it inside out, it doesn't show that much.

Step 5: Sowing the Separate Pieces to the Body

In the end you will turn the whole fox inside out, like you did with the separate pieces, but first we need to attach the pieces to the front body. Begin with stuffing the pieces you sew together in the previous step. You can use pillow stuffing from a cheap pillow or you can buy it in the store in a bag. Make sure you take enough stuffing for every piece. Just keep pushing in stuffing until there is no more space inside.

It is very hard to sow everything together and attach the different pieces, so I began with sowing the head together. Again lay the two pieces of the body on top of each other with the outside against each other and start sowing just below the head. Keep your distance from the otherwise you will see the stitches you made earlier. You can turn it inside out to look at the result.

I first attached the bottom side. Like you see in the pictures there is a piece for the bottom of your fox. You need to attach that piece together with the legs of the fox and the tail. Take the paws and the tail and place them where you want them on the front of the body. Then place the bottom piece on top of that. You will have to pin it down to keep it in place. I first sew the paws and the bottom together and just then thought about the tail. So I cut it lose where the tail should come and did it again. It is a little bit hard, because when you sow this together, your tail will lay down on the paws and it is very thick. You just push it down while you sow it. It is possible that there is a little gap when you sow the paws to the body, but you can sow it by hand later.

Then the final pieces, the arms of the fox. You can turn the bottom inside out, so it doesn't bother you when you are sowing the arms to the body. Place the arms of the fox where you want them and start sowing from the head to the bottom on both sides. You have to take care that you don't sow over the bottom piece. Just leave it open so you can pull everything inside out and stuff the animal.

Little tip! Don't forget to turn the fox back with the outside on top of each other when you sow something to the body.

Step 6: Stuffing and Finishing Touch

Almost done! Now you have to stuff the rest of the fox, take care that you use enough stuffing. Then you can sow the bottom to the back part of the body. Take both sides and bend them to the inside. Pin it together and use a blind stitch to finish the bottom. You can look where there is another gap that needs a stitch and after that your cute fox is ready.

Thank you for reading and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!