Friday, July 23, 2010

A Tag-Along Lion Named Phil

My oldest boy, Finn, loves lions. Well he's obsessed with lions, really. If he sees a lion and he can't have it then he gets so depressed that he will sit in front of the TV watching soap operas and finish off an entire quart of double fudge cookie dough ice cream and, wait, that's someone else that I'm thinking of. Anyway, he really loves lions. The other day he had an encounter with a lion that he couldn't have and after I bribed had a clear discussion with him about how a snow cone is so much better than crying, I told him that I would make him his own lion, so I did. My inspiration came from the lion that I put on my magnetic busy boards.

To start I bought a yard of lion colored fleece. Ok that wasn't the actual name of it, but it should have been. I used a large sized Tupperware bowl to trace and cut out 2 circles from the fleece. You can really use any size you want.
I then cut out shapes of the pieces for the face from felt and ironed on some Heat n Bond.
I placed them how I wanted them on one of the fleece circles and then ironed them on.
I then used my sewing machine and did a zig-zag stitch around each piece on the face to make sure they held down tight, and because it looked so much dang-cuter that way. (Is dang-cuter a word?)
I then took the second circle and sewed it around the edge to the first, right sides together, leaving the neck space open.
And flipped it right side out.
For the body I used a smaller bowl, traced most of the way around it and then at the top of the circle I drew two lines going up. (Look at the pic below, you'll understand.) Cut this piece out of 2 layers of fleece and sew around the edges, right sides together, leaving the neck open. Flip right-side out.
Now sew the front of the body and the front of the head together at the opening, making sure the seam goes into the inside.
Stuff him full of Fiber Fill and hand sew the back of the neck closed.
Now for the hair. If you have ever tied a quilt, that is basically how I did the hair. If you haven't, here's how.
Take your needle and yarn and poke it in and then out of the fleece in a small spot.
On your first make sure you leave about 3 inches of yarn sticking out the end. If you're on to the next piece make a loop 3 inches on each side.
Then take your needle and go back through the same holes that you did the first time and pull all of the way through creating a knot. Start the next piece right where you ended the last one.
I left all of the loops until I was done and then cut each loop right at the top to make the hair.
I did 2 rows of hair to give it some thickness.
Next step is to cut 2 ear shapes out of some felt. Cut a tiny slit in the middle of the bottom. This will make the ears curve forward when sewn on.
Hand stitch onto the head between the two rows of hair. Cross the slit over itself and sew it down like that.
And once the 2 ears are on your lion is done!
I added a little scrap bow tie (it's basically just a knot) to hide the seam around the neck.
And then go hide him in the bushes for your little lamb to come find, cuz that's how lions roll.
And he will love him, and possibly name him Phil, like my little guy did :D
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19 comments:

Lori Thompson said...

I too have a lion lover in my home. It's so cute! Thanks for sharing!

Kayla Moore said...

Aww thanks for putting this up. My sons birthday is coming up and I always like to try and make them one gift and buy the rest. He would LOVE this. Thanks for the idea!!!

Unknown said...

so so so cute :) come on over and link up to MMM!!

Staci J said...

That is just so clever and adorable! I need to make a monkey for my little guy:)
Visiting from justsewsassy.com

Anonymous said...

How fun! That turned out darling and you can tell your little one just loves it!

Unknown said...

I absolutely love that. What a great, simple gift for your kiddo that I am sure he'll cherish. I am totally inspired. And, really, that it such a heartfelt gift, it makes me teary eyed. :-) I think my hormones must be a little wacky. ;-)

Kaysi @ Keeping it Simple said...

Adorable, I love that!!

Judy Whatilivefor said...

Oh my word, how cute and perfectly cuddly! The wheel are now turning for what kind of animals I can make for my boys...I'm trying to figure out an easy way to make a dinosaur.
Thanks for sharing!

Sachiko said...

How adorable!! I love the lion, and the little boy is so cute too!

Anne said...

How cute is that!!! I linked to your tutorial over at Craft Gossip Sewing:
http://sewing.craftgossip.com/tutorial-oversized-fleece-lion-softie-for-bigtime-snuggles/2010/08/01/
--Anne

Unknown said...

Oh, I love this! I saw it on Tea Rose Home and had to pop over and tell you how great it is! It's like those big animal pillows at melissa and doug for outrageous prices but better because there's no outrageous price AND it's homemade AND it's so cute. Great idea!

Lina Thomlinson said...

Adorable! The lion's as big as he is! Looks like love at first sight for him.

Unknown said...

That lion is the cutest ever! We appreciate you joining us this week at Anything Related!
{Rebekah}

suzieQ said...

My babies are 25 and 30...but this post makes me smile. I love your lion and the love that went into making him. I'm not sure who is cuter, your adorable little guy or his best friend.

Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...

Hi Sammy, I just love Phil! He is adorable. You have done a fantastic job and your little guy looks as happy as can be! I have featured this today - Stop by and grab a featured button if you like. Thanks so much for linking to the Sunday Showcase, I greatly appreciate it! Hope you have a wonderful week! ~ Stephanie Lynn

kim west said...

featued this cute little lion on my blog today. I ADORE IT!

kimboscrafts.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

Stopping by from your feature over at A Little Tipsy. I love this! So simple and so cute. And so huggable! Perfect for a little guy or gal. Thanks for sharing!

cnhenigin said...

i am absolutely in love with this project! now, i just need to get a sewing machine and learn how to sew!! :)

Stacey said...

This is AWESOME!!!
Thanks for sharing!

 
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