Peek-a-Boo Owl

a Gingermelon design

Michelle Down © 2013

List of Supplies

: 6 x 9 inch main colour felt for body/hat : 4 x 4 inch felt for face/hands

: 4.5 x 6 inch felt for hair : 3 x 4 inch felt for Owl face

: 3 x 3 inch felt for eye patches, bib : Scraps of felt for embellishments, bows, beak

: 1 x 2 inch black felt for eyes : Embroidery thread

: Disappearing ink pen : Polyfil

: Pink coloured pencil or powder blush : Seam binding or ribbon

Embroidery Stitches

Whip Stitch Blanket Stitch

Applique Stitch Ladder Stitch

Stem Stitch

** Please read through all instructions carefully before starting to make your Owl **
Layout and Cutting

: Cut out pattern pieces and lay each piece onto your chosen felts. Carefully cut out each
piece. I like to use a pair of dressmaker's scissors to cut out the larger pieces and a very
sharp pair of embroidery scissors to cut out the smaller pieces.

: I've chosen to use one strand of embroidery thread for all seams and facial features and like
to keep my stitches neat, small and evenly spaced. This gives a nice, clean finish and prevents
the stuffing from escaping from the seams.

: Use your disappearing ink pen and a ruler to mark the lines onto the face. These lines will
serve as a guide for the eye, nose and mouth placement.

: Mark dots on hands and sleeves.

Head

Hair

: Lay the face onto the hair back, centering it so that the bottom of the face is matched
up with the bottom of the hair. You should notice that the face is slightly smaller than the
hair back – this will ensure that when you sew the front and back hair together, the face
will be hidden between the two.

: Place the hair front onto the face and adjust so that it matches up with the hair back. Pin
hair front onto face and remove hair back. Using very tiny running stitches, sew the hairline
onto the face.

: For each pony tail, position one on top of another one and whip stitch around, leaving the top
edge open. Add a pinch or two of stuffing and blanket stitch top edge closed. Put them aside
for now as you'll be sewing them on after you assemble the doll.
Face

: Position eyes in place as illustrated and applique on. Place tiny stitches at the outer corners of
the eyes for eyelashes.

: With white embroidery thread, stitch a few tiny stitches onto each eye to give the illusion of
light reflecting off the eye.

: Embroider a tiny nose and mouth, making sure to position them on the lines as shown.

Assembling the Head

: Place head front onto hair back, wrong sides together and pin. Starting at the bottom,
blanket stitch all the way around, leaving an opening for stuffing. Stuff firmly and blanket
stitch closed.

: As you close the hole, add more stuffing. The face should be full and rounded and quite firm,
but not to the point of bursting at the seams.

: Pin pony tails in place and ladder stitch front and backs of each piece onto the head seam.
Pin bow to center of each pony tail. Insert a needle threaded with a length of embroidery
thread through the center of the back seam of the ponytail and out through the center of the
bow. Made a tiny stitch, going out through the back seam of the ponytail and repeat again to
secure the bow in place.
Body

: Applique bib onto front body. Use tiny stitches to sew bib embellishments in place as shown.

: Whip stitch around entire body, starting at one side of the neck and going all the way around
to the base of the neck on the opposite side. Stuff firmly and whip stitch up to the neck edge.

** I like to stuff the neck area as firmly as possible as it provides good support for the head.

: Run a gathering stitch just below the neck opening and tighten the thread, closing the hole.
Add more stuffing at this point to fill it up if needed. Hand stitched closed. You should
end up with a tight, rounded nub. I like to keep the thread attached so I can use it later when
I'm attaching the head to the body.

Arms

: Position bottom edge of left side of the sleeve onto the marked line just below the edge on
the left side of the hand, aligning the hand between the two dots on the sleeve.

: Applique sleeve edge onto hand, using thread to match sleeve colour.

: Repeat process with right side of the sleeve and hand.

: Position left side of arm onto right side of arm, aligning hands and sleeves. Whip stitch
around hand first, matching embroidery thread to shade of hand.

: Whip stitching around sleeve, leaving an opening for stuffing. Add stuffing and whip stitch
opening closed.

: Repeat entire process for second arm.

Assembling the Head to the Body

: Pin head to neck. Ladder stitch around once and then on the next few rows, take the ladder
stitch a teeny bit lower down on the neck and a teeny bit higher on the face.

: Keep your ladder stitches very tiny and straight as you go around as this will give a nice finish
to the seam.

: Each time you go around, go a little lower on the neck and a little higher on the face (about
1mm at a time). This will bring the head closer onto the neck and the head will be a lot more
stable. You can find a detailed video tutorial at my good friend, Anita's blog:
http://tookenstale.blogspot.ca/2013/04/ladder-stitch_15.html

Assembling the Arms to the Body

: Pin arms to sides of body. Using a longer needle threaded with embroidery thread, insert
underneath one arm and bring it through the body and out through the other arm. Insert needle
into the same arm, imagining if you will, that you are sewing two-holed buttons on at the top
of each arm. Go through the body again and out through the other arm in the same manner,
repeating the process a few more times and end off underneath an arm.
Hat

: Center Owl face onto hat front and applique around curved edge, leaving bottom edge un-
stitched.

: Position beak in place and applique on, leaving top edge open. Add tiny pinches of stuffing
and applique closed.

: Embroider the eyes onto the eye patches. Position eye patches in place and applique on. Use
tiny stitches to sew the eye embellishments in place at the top outer corners of the eye
patches.

: Whip stitch darts on front and back of hat, making sure to sew them from the back of the
felt. Open each hat piece and lay hat front onto hat back, wrong sides together and pin in
place.

: Whip stitch around hat curve.

: Blanket stitch around the entire opening of the hat. This will ensure that the edge keeps its
shape and does not warp as its being put on and taken off the doll.
Finishing Touches

Congratulations! Your little Peek-a-Boo Owl will be as cute as a button! You can now add the
finishing touches to your doll by using your coloured pencil or blush to add a hint of colour to
her cheeks. Once that's done, tie a little bow about her neck with the seam binding. Then sit
back and admire your beautiful creation!