Mom's Little Hottie (hot Water Bottle Cover)

It's getting colder by the week, winter's approaching and that means my mom is going to start getting really chilly fingers and toes. And seeing as it's Mom's Day and I haven't made anything for her in years... I reckon it's about time.

You will need:
- Pen
- Paper
- Scissors (sharp enough to cut through material)
- Fleece material (pink and white, 1 x 1 metre of each is fine)
- Felt material (white for the eyes and pink for the heart)
- Sewing thread
- Embroidery thread for the add ons
- Pins
- Large safety pin
- Hot water bottle
- Stuffing (optional - I thought I would be needing this for the head, arms and feet to give a bit of form but in the end, didn't)

Step 1: Sketch It Out for the Front

- sketch out your drawing (make sure it's a little bigger than your hot water bottle)
- cut it out and place onto the fleece material (I've gone with a double layer for the front and back)
- trace the outline around your paper template with a pen or thin marker. Cut the material at the borders.
- Note: make sure you leave about 10cm or so at the borders.

Step 2: For the Back Part

- I made the hot water bottle opening about a third of the way from the top.
- Where I've marked the numbers:
1. where the opening is
2. extended material section
- you need the extended material part to turn back onto itself to sew a neat hem

Step 3: Back - Top and Bottom Bits

- When you sketch the outline onto the material, do it in two sections (for top and bottom)
- You want those extended parts for each section
- For the bottom 1 is at the bottom and 2 at the top
- Pin your material together in preparation for cutting along the number 2 line

Step 4: Back - Sewing the Top and Bottom Seams

- Still on the back section
- Take the top and bottom sections, line them up and make sure that the bottom section overlaps the top a bit (the reason, so that your hottie is hidden away well and doesn't start to pop out).
- Take each section separately, turn back the material onto itself and sew along to form a neat hem
- You can see on the first section, it wasn't happening so I just sewed along the middle.

Step 5: Front and Back Stitched Together

- Pin your front piece to the back (top and bottom sections)
- Make sure it's all lined up correctly
- Sew along the marked outline (I sewed mine from the front)
- Note: don't forget to leave a space (say 15cm or so) so that you can turn it all inside out

Step 6: Cut Out Along the Border

- When cutting along the border, try not to cut too close to the stitching (leave about 10cm)
- On the back section: your opening should look like this (bottom section overlapping the top)

Step 7: Turn It Inside Out - the Fun Part

- Make sure it all fits, pop in the hottie to see.

Step 8: Add the Extras

- Cut out the pieces you need from your felt
- I did white eyes, pink for the dummy and heart
- I then sewed on black embroidery for the eyes
- I also used white embroidery for stitching on the lettering

Step 9: All Done

- Sew up the opening that was left when you turned it all inside out
- Cut out the fleece material needed for the nappy and pin together
- I measured it by placing the hottie, top to bottom onto the white fleece material and cutting from this
- Sew on all the add-ons (felt material and embroidery), I sewed on a nose in embroidery
- And I also added on the front in black embroidery - "We all know how much you miss little old me"

And Mom's little hottie is ready - just in time for winter