DIY Upcycled Puppet
How to Make a Puppet from Old Clothing
How much is that puppy in the window? Free! Because I made it from recycling old clothing I had laying around the house! Isn't he just the cutest little puppy puppet? I think he is pretty adorable with his necktie ears and button eyes. You can put one of these adorable little guys together in under an hour with my FREE printable pattern included in the tutorial. Happy Upcycling!
Supplies:
- Free Printable Puppet Pattern (Click here to print)
- 2 buttons
- 2 sweaters
- fabric for the inside of the mouth (I used a polo shirt)
- pair of jeans
- necktie
- any other clothing you would like to add to the puppet
- red felt for the tongue
- black embroidery floss for the nose (or black fabric)
1. Cut the bottom of the pair of jeans at about 8 inches.
2. Cut two of the head pieces from the sweaters.
3. Cut two of the mouth pieces from the pair of jeans and two from another fabric.
4. Draw a triangle on one of the mouth pieces cut from the denim and use embroidery floss to fill in a nose. You can also sew a black triangle to the fabric instead.
5. Use a satin stitch to fill in the nose with embroidery floss.
6. Pin the red felt tongue to the inside of the mouth fabric and sew it onto the fabric.
7. Pin the top of the mouth to the inside of the mouth with the outside facing in. So that the denim piece with the nose is pinned to the blank maroon fabric and the maroon fabric with the tongue is pinned to the blank denim fabric. Sew and then turn right side out.
8. Pin the two inside pieces together and sew.
9. Cut the eye circle out of the denim and pin to one side of the head. Sew onto the head using a zig-zag stitch along the edge of the circle.
10. Place the two head pieces face to face and pin. Sew them together with a straight stitch, then sew a zig-zag stitch along the edge to prevent the knits from fraying.
11. Place the mouth of the puppet on the face and draw a line to measure the opening. Now cut the line so there is an opening on the face where the mouth will fit into. Pin the mouth into the slit and sew the mouth in. Only sew the knit sweater to the denim. Sew a straight line, then sew the edges with a zig-zag stitch to keep the knit from fraying.
12. Turn the head right side out and sew the buttons on for the eyes.
13. Turn the head and the denim body inside out and pin them together. Sew them together with a straight stitch, then sew the edges with a zig-zag stitch.
14. Cut the ends of the necktie for the ears. Pull out the interfacing from the necktie if there is any. Fold the ends over and sew. Now pin them to the sides of the head and hand stitch using a loop stitch to attach them.
15. Use a loop stitch to hand stitch the edges of the mouth. Just loop stitch 3-4 stitches on the edge of the mouth on both sides so it does hang open and is easier for your hand to manipulate it.
