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How to Make a Cat Doll

Make this adorable stuffed kitten doll with a few supplies and good attention to detail. This stuffed cat would make a perfect gift for a young child or the cat-loving adults in your life. Its features are so realistic, you might even fool your friends into thinking you've adopted a cat. Your cat can be any color you want, but for this project, you will be using only three different colors.

Things You'll Need

  • Pattern
  • Fur cloth (two colors short fur, one color semi-long fur)
  • Felt
  • Felt-tip pen
  • 1 1/2 Disk Joint (to connect head and body)
  • Plastic or glass eyes (1/2 inch diameter)
  • Polyester fiberfill
  • Thick thread
  • Fishing line(for whiskers)
  • School Glue
  • Kitty pattern
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Instructions

  1. Assembling the Head

    • 1

      Choose three different colors for your cat. Feel free to make adjustments to suit your preference, but for this instruction you will need one color for the cat's body and head, another for its tail, legs and ears, and a third for its feet.

    • 2

      Cut the pieces of your cat pattern, (free pattern at craft website referenced at end of article) allowing for a 1/4 inch seam clearance on all parts except the ears.

    • 3

      Trim the fur on the cheek and nose to resemble the natural hair length on a cat's head.

    • 4

      Sew the pieces with the fur facing in so your stitches will not show. You will invert them later for stuffing. First sew the cheeks to the larger fur pieces that will form the side of the head. Next, sew the crest, the piece that comprises the head from the forehead to the back of the neck, to the cheek pieces. Finally, sew the chin to complete your cat's head.

    • 5

      Turn the head inside out and stuff with polyester fiberfill.

    • 6

      Sew the opening most of the way around, insert the disk of the disk joint (which will connect the body to the head), leaving the stick end protruding from the neck, then pull the thread to tighten.

    • 7

      Shade around the nose on your cat's head with a felt-tip pen to distinguish the nose from the rest of the face. Because this is going to represent a Ragdoll cat, or a Siamese, shade nose accordingly. Stitch a mouth by hand just above the chin and finish by outlining the nose to distinguish it from the rest of the head.

    • 8

      Glue the eyeballs into place.

    • 9

      Glue the inner ear (felt) to the outer ear (fur piece). Trim the fur to match the size of the felt piece. Sew the ears to the top of the cat's head.

    • 10

      Use simple fishing line to create whiskers; it's clear and wiry, just like cat whiskers. Stitch on one whisker at a time. Push the needle through, tie a knot that will be concealed under the kitten's fur, and cut to desired whisker length. Repeat four times on each cheek. This completes the head assembly.

    Assembling the Body

    • 11

      Cut each piece from pattern, leaving up to 1/4-inch seam allowance.

    • 12

      Sew the pieces together, fur facing inward: sew the paws to the forelegs and the inside legs to the belly, sew the dart of the thigh, then sew the outside legs to the side body. You'll have to leave a small hole in the felt of the neck to make room for the disk joint that will connect the head to the body. Finally, sew the tail and turn the whole thing inside out.

    • 13

      Stuff the pieces with polyester fiberfill. You'll be stuffing the tail and body separately and sewing them on the body later. If it's easier, you can stuff the legs separately and sew them onto the body, but this would require some modification to your pattern

    • 14

      Set the washer and stopper of the disk joint in place at the neck of the body. These are the remaining pieces from the disk joint. Stitch the neck closed around the stopper.

    • 15

      Connect the head to the body by popping the protruding piece into the stopper on the body. Put the washer and stopper of the joint on the inside of the body.

    • 16

      Pull the fur up to cover the disk joint. Secure with a few tight stitches around the neck.

    • 17

      Trim the fur on the cat's legs and stomach to resemble a real cat. Hand stitch small lines onto paws to form the cat's toes.

    • 18

      Hand stitch the tail to the hip to complete your cat doll.


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