"I Smell Good" Mr. Bunny

When I was in the third grade I had a teacher, Ms. Cluster, who was very ill . Shortly after I arrived into her class after moving into town, she went into the hospital. It was almost Easter and not long after we read the Velveteen rabbit that I decide to make her a get well present, a stuff bunny. I only a had a tiny scrape of blue fabric and I stuffed it with crumbled paper because that was all I had. I gave it to Ms. Cluster' daughter to ensure a safe passage but alas it never arrived to the proper owner because the next school year when Ms. Cluster finally came back, she had no clue what I was talking about.  It was just another one of those childhood disappointments.

The good news is that I've learned a bit more about sewing in the last 3 months and I can make Mr. Bunny again. In addition I've created him with an almost hidden back pocket that enables him to smell fresh and clean. (This idea was inspired by the countless used fabric softener sheets that I pulled out of the dryer all crumbled up and still smelling fresh.) He would have been the perfect pet for my childhood since my parents didn't allow pets. And of course if your dog sleeps by himself in some lonely corner bed at night, Mr. Bunny can cuddle with him and smell just as good as you when you put on your favorite shirt, fresh out of the dryer. Plus with Easter right around the corner, Mr. Bunny would make a sweet gift to just about anyone.

BTW if you like clothes pin rocking chair one of the eggs is on, I made an instuctable on that too.




























 

Okay to make Mr. Bunny you will need some basic sewing supply:
1/2 yard of fabric of your choice
scissors
needle
thread
(sewing) pins
yarn of your choice
fabric pencil
pencil/pen
paper
stiff plastic (I used a cupcake liner packaging box)
stuffing
sewing machine
optional: used fabric softener sheets and ribbon




 

1. I started with the ears because my plastic box from the cupcake liner is a small size and I wanted to ensure good size ears. I cut one side of the plastic into a sheet and then cut that in half. I over lap the 2 sheets and cut out bunny ears that matched. I pretty much eyeball everything and never measured but if you want to figure out for your bunny, you can always use a ruler or measuring tape.
2. I laid one of the ears down on a piece of white paper to trace it. Then I gave some extra room for stuffing. And then add app. 1/2 in seam allowance along the outside of the pattern traced.
3. I cut the pattern on the most outer shape and then proceed with the other pieces needed which are: body, head, arm and leg. It should look like the 6th picture.
4. Using a fabric pencil trace the pattern pieces onto your fabric. It's okay to go light on marking, as long as you can see the outline to cut it, it's fine. You will need to 2 of the head, 4 of the arms, 4 of the legs, 4 of the ears, and 4 of the body. Remember that for the arms and legs to flip the pattern backwards to ensure that Mr. Bunny doesn't have 2 right legs and 2 right arms.
5. Cut the traced pattern on the fabric out. Mr. Bunny is starting to look good.







 

It's time to start sewing.  If you don't have a sewing machine, don't worry, you can still hand sew this, it will just take a bit longer. 
I discovered in my sewing class that the secret to great sewing, seamless edges is to sew on the inside and then flip out the pattern to the pretty side.  So every time this is getting sewn on the machine, flip out the fabric so that both correct, nice looking fabric is on the inside.

1. I started sewing with the legs.  Where the smaller body parts meets the main body, you want to keep that side open when sewing. 
Also  don't forget to backstitch to ensure that the stitches are strong and lasting.
2. After sewing the pattern piece, flip it inside out and add stuffing.  I went light on the stuffing because it's easier to sew when the pieces get attached. (My first stuffed animal on my sewing machine.  I'm a newbie, you gotta go easy on me.)
3.  Continue sewing, flipping out, and adding stuffing to the other leg, arms, and ears.  For the ears, remember to insert the plastic pieces first to ensure that the ears will stand up nicely.
4. Mr. Bunny needs a face before you sew his head.  I drew very basic and did Xs for his eyes and an upside down triangle for his nose.  Then I used yarn instead of thread to sew the face.  You can opt to get creative here.  I think next time I would like to add big, blue buttons for the eyes. 
5. The head needs the ears to be attached at the same time it is sewn.  Use  pins and attach the ears facing down onto the face.  Be careful to not pin too close to your seam allowance because you could break your sewing needle.  Add the other head fabric, wrong side facing up and secure with more pins. 
6.  Sew the head so it looks like picture 8 when flipped out.
7.  Now it's time to sew the body.  For the body sew lengthwise one piece down the center after folding it.  Sew another piece
8. Sew another body piece about 2/3 in lengthwise as shown in picture 9. 
9. As shown in picture 9 assemble the first 3 body pieces.  The first 3 have correct pattern facing up: full, 2/3, and 1/2.  Like before with the ears, attach the arms and the legs inside the body, cover with the last body fabric, secure with pins and sew.  Mr. Bunny from the back should look like picture 12.
10. To attach the head, hand sew the head on.  I used an invisible stitch to keep it pretty.

1. Mr. Bunny needs a cute fluffy tail.  Using yarn fold back and forth about  3 1/2 inches of yarn. The more you fold, the fluffier his tail will be.  Tie the yarn around itself then into a double knot.  Cut the yarn, allowing 8-9 inches left over.  Attach a needle and sew the tail to Mr. Bunny's behind.  Trim the edges and he should have a nice tail.
2.  It is optional to add a nice ribbon around Mr. Bunny's neck.  I think a bow-tie would be awesome too. 
3.  Also optional to place used fabric softeners in the semi hidden back pocket of Mr. Bunny.  You will have the nicest smelling pet in the block.  You could even add a secret love letter or whatever else you want.  Just remember, Mr. Bunny is meant to be shared.