SALTY SAM AND THE WINDY DAY PROJECTS SEWING INSTRUCTIONS

GENERAL NOTES

Read carefully before commencing

1. When the pattern pieces say ‘cut 2’, you need to flip the pattern over to cut the second piece as a mirror image, even sometimes when you are using felt, as the two sides can be different.
2. A seam of 4mm is included on the mermaid pattern pieces but not the seagull ornament as the sides are over-sewn together around the outer edges wrong sides together.
3. You will need less than one bag of stuffing to make the mermaids and the seagull ornaments. (250g bags)
4. Don’t use stick-on eyes, if the toys are for very small children. Use felt sewn on instead, or embroider some eyes on using thread.
5. Smaller toys on this website can be used to make a sea creature mobile for above a baby’s cot, but do not attach small items such as beads or stick-on eyes that could fall off into the cot.
6. Clip all curved edges carefully before turning the toys the right way out for stuffing.
7. Then use a pencil to help ease points out and get stuffing into hard to reach extremities (except seagulls’ beaks).
8. Push stuffing into toys in smallish amounts otherwise it will lump up.
9. If you are short of any fabric, most shops will sell 20cm of fabric off a roll.
10. You won’t need more than one small sheet of felt in each colour you choose to use; you can now buy washable felt.
11. You will need two pieces of fabric 22cm by 28cm to make the mermaids’ purse and small remnants for the mermaid dolls and covered coat hanger with bag.
12. Sew right sides together when working with the fabric and wrong sides together when working with the felt.

These toys are not suitable for babies to play with.
Please make sure that all parts of the toys are securely fitted together.
Your use of the toys is at your own risk.

Please note that the material on this website is for personal use only.
It is a copyright infringement and, therefore, illegal under international law to sell toys made with these patterns.
© Christina Sinclair 2008

Pattern Pieces

SEAGULL ORNAMENT

For each bird you will need:

1. Cut two seagull shapes out of felt.
2. Embroider wing edge, eye and pattern on panels using backstitch and French knots. Or decorate as desired, using beads and sequins, for example.
3. Tie a small bead to each end of the narrow cord. Secure the loop to the inside of one of the panels with two ‘legs’ hanging down below the bottom edge.
4. Over-sew two panels wrong sides together around the edges starting from the tip of the tail and work along the back, around head and then underneath. Before finishing, leave a gap of 2cm. Lightly stuff the body, but not the beak.
5. Prepare the tail. Sew the two ends of the narrow ribbon together. Fold the bottom of the loop up and sew to the ends. Sew the bottom of the loops up to the ends as many times as you need to until the tail is the desired length.
6. Continue sewing around the seagull. Poke the sewn end of the ribbon into the seagull’s tail tip and make sure that the tail is securely incorporated in the seam as you finish off.
7. Alternatively, feathers can be used to make the tail.
8. Stick on eyes can be used instead of embroidering them on.

These seagulls are really not suitable as toys for small children; they should only be used as ornaments.

PADDED COAT HANGER

This method of covering a hanger to make it more luxurious can be used for a hanger of any size.

1. Pad a coat hanger using strips of wadding. Cut the wadding into 5cm wide strips. Wrap one end of a strip over the end of the hanger and then continue to wrap it around the hanger in a diagonal fashion along to the other end. Add in new strips as needed and secure with a few hand stitches. Make the padding as thick as you like before cutting the fabric to fit.
2. Alternatively, wrap the leg piece of a pair of tights around from end to end, or use a ready-made pad by slipping the hole in the pad over the hook of the hanger and then sewing along the bottom edge in a lacing fashion to secure to the hanger.
3. Then to cover the hanger, cut two pieces of fabric at least 1½ times the length of the padded hanger (length of fabric) by half the circumference of the padded hanger plus 3cm (height of fabric).
4. Put the two fabric strips right sides together and sew down both short ends.
5. Open the seams. Hem the long sides neatly (1cm) top and bottom.
6. Turn the fabric right side out. (You now have a band of fabric.)
7. Work a row of running stitches using double thread close to the bottom edge sewing the front and back together.      
8. Fit onto the hanger from underneath and pull sewing thread tight enough to match the fabric length to the size of the hanger. Secure thread and adjust fabric to neaten folds.
9. Do the same along the top edges working from each end towards the hook. (You can sew a small button with a shank at each end of the top of the hanger to keep garments with narrow straps from falling off.)

TIP (FOR POINT 9)

Pin fabric onto the wadding first to make sure the finished result will be even.

EMBROIDERED LAVENDER BAG

1. Trace the design onto a piece of fabric using a sharp, soft pencil or fabric pen (with ink that will disappear). You can do this by putting a piece of fabric over the printed-out design. If your fabric is quite dark and you can’t see through it, try resting the paper and fabric against a window (masking tape can help keep it secure). Don’t make the pencil lines too wide and then your threads should cover them.
2. Embroider the picture onto a piece of fabric big enough to sit in an embroidery hoop. Use backstitch, lazy daisy and French knots to complete the picture.
3. Cut around the picture to create an upright rectangular panel 19cm by 12cm and then cut another panel out of plain fabric to match (for the back).
4. Sew side and bottom seams (½cm) right sides together. Turn over the top by 1cm and hem neatly.
5. Turn the bag right side out. Then put a running stitch around the bag 2½cm down from the top edge.
6. Put dried lavender flowers into a sealed net or muslin bag small enough fit into the embroidered bag. Pull the running stitch tight and tie a length of narrow ribbon around the bag leaving a loop at the back to hook onto the hanger.
7. You can make a bag with your own design if you like, but when you draw the picture keep in mind that it needs to be easy to sew.

MERMAIDS’ PURSE

You will need:

Two pieces of fabric 22cm x 28cm          

A circle of felt/fabric/fleece 15cm diameter

Two pieces of narrow ribbon or cord 80cm long

1. Hem 1½cm on each of the 4 edges of both pieces of fabric.
2. Turn down the top of each piece 5¼cm to make a hem.
3. Put a running stitch channel along the centre of the hem to accommodate the width of your ribbon or cord.
4. Over-sew the edges of the sides of the bag (right sides together) from top to bottom avoiding the ends of the channels.
5. Fit the bottom edges around the circle of fabric and sew securely. Turn bag right side out. Stiffen bottom with a piece of card or foam, if desired.
6. Double over each piece of cord and knot at the ends then thread the ribbon or cord into each channel (using a safety pin attached to the loop end to help you). Pull both cords to close bag.

MERMAID DOLLS

You will need:

Various colours of fabric                various colours of double knitting yarn

1. Sew the top to the bottom across the waist.      
2. Sew front to back leaving a 3cm gap along the top of the head. Clip the edges carefully and turn right side out.
3. Stuff the doll incorporating a sachet of dried lavender flowers, if you would like to, and then close the gap at the top by over-sewing. (This seam will be hidden under the hair.)
4. Wind dk yarn around a piece of card 11cm in length 60 times.
5. Hand sew across the yarn 1cm down from the top of the card on each side, securing all strands together using a sewing thread of a matching colour. Remove yarn from card. Sew this hair to top of the head using the 1cm band as the mermaid’s fringe. Sew on top of the two sewing lines that were created on the card, lining them up on the head and attach the hair to the head.
6. Embroider a face on the front of the head taking the needle in through the back of the head. Leave the hair in wild loops!

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