Materials and supplies

The basic tools needed are a sewing needle (#8 or 10 quilting sharp) and an embroidery
needle, ball-ended pins, something to stuff with (the eraser end of a pencil or the handle of a
wooden spoon work fine) and a very sharp pair of scissors. Use a felt-tipped indelible marker
to trace the pattern onto the material. On dark material, use a silver metallic marker.
Other tools that are helpful but not essential include a curved needle for attaching the ears
and tail, beeswax to strengthen the thread, a small cat "slicker" brush to get loose fluff out of
the fur, and a hemostat (locking forceps) which aids in turning.

L-R top: quilting sharps, scissors, pins, thread, markers, stuffing tools
L-R bottom: curved needle, beeswax, hemostat, slicker brush
The pattern is broken up into long pile and short pile faux fur. "Pile" refers to the hairs. If
you're making a miniature wolf, you can use short pile fur in place of the long pile fur and
minky or robe velour in place of the short pile fur (legs, face, etc.).
When you're cutting the pieces out, use small snips of the scissors can be careful to only cut
the backing and not the fur. The fur should be pointing in the same direction as the arrow on
the pattern piece.
Cut these from long pile fur: Body, Belly, Cheek, Neck, Outer Ear, Tail
Cut these from short pile fur: Muzzle, Face, Inner Ear, Inner and Outer Forelegs, Inner and
Outer Hindlegs

Fabric has a right and wrong side. The right side will be the outside of your plush - this is the
side with the fur, obviously. The wrong side is the inner side of the plush. The instructions
will call for some pieces to be sewn RST, which stands for right sides together.

L-R: Long pile faux fur, medium pile fur, short pile fur, shaggy minky and robe velour.
If I were making a typical wild wolf, I'd use ticked medium gray for the body, neck and tail,
pale gray for the belly and cheeks, and tan or gray for the face, inner ear and legs, and add
markings with brown and black indelible markers. However, wolves come in a wide range of
colors from solid black through different combinations of gray and reddish-brown to solid
white. You can also make your wolf in wild fantasy colors and use some of the many
interesting and unique faux furs available.

Wolves come in many color variations.

If you want to make a wolf with patches of color such as a darker or lighter muzzle, bands of
color on the legs or tail, "mitten paws" or so on, you can cut up the pattern similarly to how I
divided the body into the torso and legs to get the different fur lengths.

Here's an example to make a differently-colored tail tip. Section off the tail end and cut it
from a darker fabric (making sure the fur lays in the same direction), then sew it back
together as one piece, and you've got a natural-looking dark tip to the tail. You can use this
technique on any part of the pattern. Remember to add a seam allowance around the pieces.
You'll also need a small piece of black felt, safety nose and safety eyes (the size depends on
how big you make your wolf), all-purpose polyester thread that matches the fur color and
black cotton floss to embroider the mouth. For stuffing I like low loft polyester fiberfill that
packs in firmly. You can use plastic "beanie" pellets to weight the legs and make the wolf
stand more solidly, or a low-loft stuffing like Cluster Fluff in the body and legs to make a soft,
floppy wolf.

L-R: a selection of snap-in safety eyes and noses, a side view showing how the washer snaps
onto the stem of the eye, cotton embroidery floss and a good brand of fiberfill stuffing.
Hand sewing
Making the wolf plush by hand requires two stitches, the backstitch and the ladder stitch. The
backstitch is used on all of the seams. The ladder stitch is used to sew the turning opening
closed and to attach the ears and tail.

The dotted line represents the sewing line.

Backstitch
1. Poke the needle through the fabric where you're starting the stitch.
2. Bring the needle back through both layers of fabric just in front of the previous stitch.
3. Begin the next stitch the same distance you came forward in making the first stitch.
Ladder stitch
Begin with your knot on the inner (wrong) side of the fabric, where it will be hidden.
1. Bring the needle out through the fabric on the sewing line.
2. Take a stitch through the fabric on the same side.
3. Cross over and bring the needle through the fabric on the other piece. This is the rung of
the ladder.
4. Take a stitch through the fabric on that side . . .
5. . . . and bring it across to make another rung on the ladder . . .
6. and continue.
Every inch or so of ladder stitches, tug very gently on the thread. As the stitches tighten up,
the raw edges of the fabric will turn under and make a nearly invisible finished seam.
At the end of the seam, you will make a hidden knot. Tie off the thread, but don't cut it.
Push the needle through the fabric right next to the knot and bring it out a short distance
away, and pull gently. The knot should sink into the fabric pile. Pull the thread taut and cut it
off as close to the fabric as you can without cutting the fur. The plush will spring back and the
ends of the thread will disappear back into it.
Machine sewing
Hand sewing is easier for smaller sized plushes, but you may find machine sewing easier (and
faster) for larger versions. Fur fabric can be difficult to work with, so here are some tips:

If you've never worked with fur before, test out your machine on a scrap piece first.
Use a ballpoint needle (the backing fabric is a knit).
Pin with extra-long pins.
Set your seam length for 3mm.
A zigzag stitch can be used, too.
Sew with the pile direction, not against it.
Raise the presser foot so the fur moves through more easily.
Comb or brush the pile away from the seam line as you go.
When sewing long pile to short pile fur, keep the longer fur piece on top.
Clean your machine after sewing fur, as loose fibers can quickly damage it.

Resizing the pattern

The size of your finished wolf will depend on the size of your pattern. At printout size it's a
rather small 15 cm/6 inches tall at the shoulder, but you can easily enlarge it in an image
editing program or by using the grid method.

First draw a grid over the original pattern. Here the grid has .5cm sized squares. On a new
sheet of paper, draw a new grid with larger squares. Here I'm enlarging the pattern so the
second grid has 1.5cm sized squares.
Copy the pattern onto the second grid using the first grid as a guideline. Be as accurate as
possible, and remember to copy the registration marks, pile direction arrows and pattern
piece names so you don't become confused.
Getting started
Print or trace the pattern onto card stock or light plastic. Transfer all the little registration
markings and the pile direction arrows. Flip the pieces labeled "2, 1r" and draw the
registration marks and arrows on that side, too.
Next, you'll need to trace the pattern pieces onto the wrong side of the fabric. Lay the pieces
out, paying attention to the direction of the arrows. Leave enough space between them so
that you can cut them out about 1/4 inch / 6 mm out from the sewing line. This space
between the sewing line and where you cut is called the seam allowance.
The pieces labeled "2, 1r" (r = reversed) will need to be traced twice, once with the piece
mirror-imaged so you have a left and right piece. The arrow will be pointing in the same
direction, which will help keep you oriented.

This is what you should end up with. If you're using more than one color of short or long
furs, you'll need to lay the pieces out slightly differently.
On the edges of the fabric you'll notice a row of little holes. The fabric between the holes and
the edge will be softer and have a different texture, and the fur will be a bit matted looking.
This is called the selvedge, and it's the finished edge of the fabric as it comes off the roll.
Don't trace your patterns on the selvedge.
Like I mentioned before, when cutting out the pieces be careful to only take small snip
through the backing without cutting the pile. You should end up with this:

You can see the shape of the wolf coming together! Laying all the cut pieces out like this will
show you if there's a mistake or if a piece is missing.

Pinning and tacking

There are two ways you can hold pieces of fabric together while you're sewing them, pinning
and tacking.
If you choose to use pins, use long ones when working with long pile fur and shorter ones for
short pile fur and fabric like minky, velour or velboa. Pin at the registration marks first, then
fill in pins down the rest of the row.
Tacking is making a temporary stitch in the fabric where you would otherwise put a pin. It's
helpful for small pieces (like the cheek and face). Push the needle through the two pieces of
fabric on the seam allowance, bring it back through at the same spot and tie a knot.
As you pin, make sure the fabric's fur is not sticking out along the edge. If you don't get the
fur out of the way, it will be caught in the sewing line, which will result in a lumpy and
unprofessional-looking finished seam.
Putting it all together
Note: not all the registration marks are labeled with letters. The unlabeled ones are in spots
where it is helpful to know where things match up, such as the curve of the paw.
We'll start by making combining the face and the cheek. Right sides together (RST) match A
and B on a face piece with A and B on a cheek piece. Sew from A to B. Repeat for the other
face and cheek piece.

Next, join the face assembly to the body. RST, match D and C on a face with C and D on the
body. Sew from D to C, and repeat for the other side.

To complete the body assembly, we need to sew on the outer half of the legs. RST, match E
and F of an outer foreleg to E and F on the body. Sew from E to F. RST, match G and H on
an outer hind leg to G and H on the body. Sew from G to H. Repeat for the other side.

Now we'll make the belly assembly by joining the inner legs to the belly gusset. RST, match I
and J on an inner front leg with I and J on the belly, and sew from I to J. Then match K and L
on an inner front leg with K and L on the belly and sew. Repeat for the other side; this is the
belly assembly.

To make the crown assembly, we just need to stitch together the muzzle and neck pieces.
RST, match M and N on the muzzle with M and N on the neck, and sew from M to N. Done.

Sew the crown assembly to one side of the body assembly RST, matching O and P on the
crown to O and P on the body. Sew from O to P. Repeat for the other side, and continue
sewing the body sides together along the spine from P to Q.

Stitch the two sides of the face together from R to B, leaving the little space between O and
R open. This is where you'll insert the safety nose.

Now you have a single body assembly need to be sewn to the belly assembly. I find it easier
to tack them together than to pin them for the next steps.
Right sides together, match B, I, J, K, L and Q on the body assembly to B, I, J, K, L and Q on
the belly assembly on the respective sides. Sew the assemblies together starting at B and
going to Q on one side. On the other side, sew from B to J and then from K to Q, leaving the
stretch between J and K open. This is the turning opening.

Before you turn your wolf right side out, you need to clip the curves. This eases the fabric
and eliminates limps on the corners.
Notch the outside curves. Clip the inside curves.

Before turning and stuffing your wolf, you need to install the safety nose and eyes. Stick the
stem of the nose through the gap at the tip of the muzzle, making sure it's the right way up,
and push the washer on as tight as it will go.
Carefully poke a small hole in the fabric of the face pieces where the circled dot is on the
pattern. Cut two diamond shapes a little larger than the eye from black felt, and cut an X in
the center. Put a diamond on the stem of the eye - this will create the distinctive black outline
of the wolf's eye. Install the eyes the same way as you did the nose.

When this is done, you can turn your wolf right side out through the turning opening. Use the
handle of a wooden spoon, the eraser end of a pencil or hemostats to assist. Start with the
hind legs, then the front legs, and lastly the head. Gently make sure all the far corners of the
plush, like the end of the muzzle and the paws, are turned completely right side out. Don't
push too hard with your tools, or you could pop a seam. If you do rip open a seam, it's not a
total disaster - just turn the plush inside out again and repair it.

To make the ears, first pinch the inner ear pieces together along the little center cut and
stitch along it. This will cup the ear in a bit - you can skip this if you're making a very small
wolf. Match S, T and U on an inner ear with S, T and U on an outer ear, right sides together.
Sew from S through T to U, leaving the bit between S and U (the base of the ear) open. Turn
the ear right side out. Repeat for the other ear. You might want to stick a pin at S, where the
little dot is, to remind yourself this is the inner corner of the ear.

Lastly, you need to make the tail. Fold the tail piece right sides together along the V-W axis (X
and X should touch). Sew from V through X to Y. Sew from Z to W, leaving the space between
Y and Z open. Clip the curves and turn the tail right side out through the turning opening.
Stuff the tail lightly, and close the turning opening between Y and Z with a ladder stitch.

Stuffing
You can stuff your wolf firmly so it stands upright, or lightly so it's floppy. Either way, you
need to stuff the head and paws tightly so they retain their shape, especially the head, or it
will be distorted by the facial embroidery and attaching the ears will be difficult.
First pull apart your stuffing to get rid of clumps that might have formed while it was in the
bag. To stuff firmly, use small pieces of low-loft polyester fiberfill and pack them in tightly
with the handle of a wooden spoon or the eraser end of a pencil. Unlike air filling a balloon,
stuffing won't expand to evenly fill the inside of your plush, so make sure you get stuffing
into all the corners and odd ends like the muzzle tip. Turn the plush around a few times as
you stuff, otherwise you might fill it more on one side than the other.
You can use plastic beads (the same kind used in beanbags) to weight your wolf's paws,
which will make it stand up more firmly if it's firm filler, and give it an appealing floppiness if
it's lightly filled. The beans will go everywhere, so I recommend working with them on a
cookie sheet or something similar to contain them. Make a little bag from lightweight scrap
material and fill it with beans, then glue or sew it closed and insert it into the paws.

A very large wolf might require a skeleton to stand upright. If you do this, go ahead and sew
from B to Q on both sides of the body, but leave between P and Q along the spine open to
insert the skeleton. Use galvanized wire of a diameter suitable to the size of your project.
Measure from about halfway up the body down the back leg, up across the middle of the
body, down the front leg and back up to just about the base of the neck. This gives you the
length required; now double it so you have a left and a right one. Any cut ends should point
away from the top or bottom of the plush, and bend the ends back on themselves. Twist it so
you have a front and back leg, and join the two halves together at the neck and tail end.
Wrap the wire skeleton with black electrician's tape to protect it, and insert it. Stuff around
the skeleton and close the opening of the spine with a ladder stitch.
For a floppy wolf, stuff the neck and torso lightly with a high-loft fiberfill like Cluster Fluff.
Don't use large handfuls at a time or your wolf will be lumpy. Stop and give it a few shakes as
you go to settle the stuffing.
When the wolf is stuffed to your satisfaction, close the turning opening with a ladder stitch.
You might want to switch to a heavier thread, or you can used waxed dental floss in a pinch.
Final touches
The ears and tail are added with a ladder stitch. Pin the tail at X to the butt end of the wolf, a
little above Q. Secure your thread in on the body, where the knot will be hidden by the tail,
and bring the needle out where you are starting your seam. Because people have a tendency
to pick plushes up by the tail, I usually go around it twice just to make sure it's securely
attached. Finish with a hidden knot.
Pin the ears on the top of the head where shown. The ears have a slightly asymmetrical
shape, so make sure the S corner (with the dot on the pattern) is the inner corner. Attach the
ears with a ladder stitch the same way as you did the tail, by putting the first knot under the
ear and hiding the final knot.

Safety eyes sit on top of the plush, which can give your wolf a bit of a bug-eyed stare. For a
more natural look, you'll need to create an eye socket with some simple needle sculpting.
Thread your need with a long section of thread. Insert the needle behind the ear but don't
knot it yet. Bring the needle out a the inner corner of the eye on the opposite side of the ear,
under the black felt. Re-insert it at the same spot, and bring it out behind the ear. Pull gently
on both strands of thread to sink the eye into the head, and knot the thread off. The fur will
hide the knot. Repeat for the other eye.

Embroider the mouth with black cotton floss and an embroidery needle (which has a larger
eye). Make a knot at the end of the thread and bring the needle out through the fabric at 1.
Take stitch across the front of the muzzle from 1 to 2. Bring the needle out at the center of
the muzzle just under the nose and take a stitch from 3 to 4.

You can also make claws for the wolf the same way. Start the thread at the back of the paw
and take vertical stitches at the front. Don't pull too hard on the thread or it will squash the
paw out of shape.

Extras
To make your wolf stand out from the pack, think of some optional extras to give it flair and
personality.
Additional colors and markings can be added to your finished wolf with indelible markers or
an airbrush. Paint markers can be used on dark fabric. As the paint dries, brush the markings
gently with a stiff toothbrush to keep the fur from drying in a clump. It's best to test it on
scrap fur first.
You can purchase a prerecorded sound chip with howling or growling noises many places
online for just a few bucks. The chip will come encased in a plastic housing with a battery
and is usually activated by pressing on it. When you're stuffing your wolf, put the sound chip
in a location where it can be squeezed easily, like the paw, ear or tail tip.
Another neat idea is to give your wolf glowing eyes. Brush glow-in-the dark or UV reactive
paint on the back of transparent safety eyes. Glow-in-the-dark paint requires a few hours of
exposure to sunlight to work, reactive paint will light up under a UV light.
A fantasy character wolf might wear jewelery or clothing, or accessories like glasses. You can
make your own or check out doll shops. Purchased accessories will probably require some
work to fit your wolf properly.
You can color in this line art to design your plush:

Voodoo-Tiki's Wild Wolf Plush Pattern is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license. Info here: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bysa/3.0/us/
This means you are free to copy, distribute, transmit or adapt the work as long as you give
attribution to the original creator and if you adapt the work, you also must distribute it under
the same or similar license. You are free to sell plushes made from this pattern, but the
pattern itself may not be sold.
The attribution is written as Copyright YYYY Voodoo-Tiki, Creative Commons
Attribution-ShareAlike License N.N with YYYY being the date (in this case, 2013) and
N.N the license version number (in this case 3.0
Places to purchase supplies online
These are just a few suggestions to get you started. Google is your best friend. Search
around to get the best deals, and watch out for sales and coupons. Brick and mortar stores
usually get their best selection of faux fur in September, ahead of Halloween. Check their
remnants bins, which usually have cuts of a yard or 1/2 or less.
http://www.amazon.com/
http://www.bearycheap.com/index.html
http://carolszoo.com/
http://www.crscraft.com
http://www.distinctivefabric.com
http://www.etsy.com/
http://fabric.com
http://www.fabricempire.com
http://www.habermanfabrics.com/fashion-fabrics/faux-fun-fur
http://www.hancockfabrics.com
http://www.imstuffedfur.com
http://www.joann.com
http://www.michaels.com/
https://www.mohairbearmakingsupplies.co.uk/index.php
http://www.scissorsales.com/department/hemostats-10097.cfm
http://shamrockroseteddybearsupplies.org/product-catalogue.php
http://www.shannonfabrics.com
http://www.syfabrics.com
http://www.theminkyboutique.com
Wolf photo credits
Black wolf "Peter" by http://wincey.deviantart.com/
Gray wolves "Animal Stock - Wolf 004" by http://raistock.deviantart.com/
Red Wolf "Red Wolf Stock 62" by http://hotnstock.deviantart.com/
Gray & brown wolf "The last light" by http://wind-princess.deviantart.com/
White wolf "White wolf stock 12" by http://hotnstock.deviantart.com/