FINISHED SIZE

22 cm x 7 cm (8 in x 3 in)

TOOLS

Tracing paper Pencil Gluestick Lightweight cardboard (an old cereal box is perfect)

Erasable fabric marker Scissors Pins Sewing needle (a darning needle is best, as the eye is large enough for the yarn to fit through, and it has a pointy tip that is good for sewing through the felt)

Stuffing stick (or pencil or chopstick)

MATERIALS

Wall, window and base fabric

a 28 cm x 15 cm (11 in x 6 in) piece of white felt

Roof and window-frame fabric

a 25 cm x 9 cm (10 in x 3 in) piece of light-blue felt

Door and heart fabric

a 10 cm x 8 cm (4 in x 3 in) piece of terracotta felt

Decoration

a piece of braid 25 cm (10 in) long and about 1 cm (3 8 in) wide

a 1 cm (3 8 in) button for the door handle Yarn

short lengths of tapestry yarn or wool knitting yarn (4 or 8 ply) in white, blue, terracotta, green and dark grey. (If using a very fine tapestry yarn, its a good idea to double it.)

Stuffing

polyfill or fleece

NoteMake sure you use good-quality wool felt. Ive used thick handmade felt from Felt Works, available in Australia from craft stores and in New Zealand from Ribbon Rose (www.ribbonrose.co.nz)

www.prairiemouse.typepad.com LOUISE HATCHARD

This easy-to-stitch little felt house is a perfect project for a young sewer with a little experience. It can be made in any combination of colours and decorated however you like, perhaps with buttons or felt flowers.

INSTRUCTIONS

1 Print out the pattern provided and glue it onto the cardboard. Cut out all the pattern pieces. Place the cardboard pieces on the appropriate fabric and trace around them using the fabric marker. Cut out all the shapes (try to cut just inside the line you have drawn this gets rid of the pen marks). You will need to cut 2 wall shapes, 1 base shape, 1 door shape, 2 roof shapes, 1 window-frame shape, 1 window shape and 1 heart shape.

2 Thread your needle with white yarn. Place one roof piece on top of a wall piece, so the bottom (short) edge of the roof is lined up with the top of the wall piece. Pin together. Use a running stitch or back stitch to sew the pieces together across the top. Repeat with second roof and wall pieces.

3 Open up one of the joined roof and wall pieces and place right side up on your work surface (this will be the front of the house). Cut your length of braid in half. Place the long edge of one piece of braid along the seam, letting the ends of the braid hang over the edges of the wall piece. Pin in place. With the white yarn, use a whip stitch to sew along the top of the braid and then along the other long side of the braid. Repeat with the other joined roof and wall piece (this will be the back of the house).

4 Thread your needle with terracotta yarn and sew the heart onto the front roof piece using a straight stitch. Then sew the door onto the front wall using straight stitch. Sew on the button for a door handle. (Dont use a button if making the softie for a child under 3 years of age.)

5 With blue yarn, sew on the window frame using straight stitch. With white yarn, sew the window on top using straight stitch. With the marker pen, very lightly draw lines onto the window (as marked on the pattern). With dark-grey yarn, sew along these lines using straight stitch or back stitch.

6 Draw some vertical lines beside the door for grass. With green yarn, sew along the lines using straight stitch or back stitch.

7 Place the back house piece right side down on your work surface. Place the front house piece right side up on top, neatly tucking the overhanging braid in between. Pin the house pieces together.

8 Thread your needle with blue yarn and sew the roof pieces together using blanket stitch or whip stitch. With white yarn, sew each side of the house together using the same stitch you used for the roof. Make sure the ends of the braid stay tucked inside.

9 Use your stuffing stick to push small amounts of stuffing into the roof. Then gradually fill the house until the stuffing is firm and even.

10 Take the white base piece and fold it in half lengthways. Using the marker pen, draw a line along the fold (this line will sit on the inside of the softie so you wont see it). Match up each end of the line with one of the side seams and pin at each side (make sure the line is facing the inside of the softie). With white yarn, sew from one side seam around the base to the other side seam.

11 Add a bit more stuffing now if you think you need to, then take the base template made from cardboard and tuck it inside the softie so it sits flat against the felt base piece.

12 Finish sewing around the other half of the base. Push and squeeze the softie a bit to make the stuffing even and the base flat.

Template shown at 100%. Seam allowance is included

basecut 1

wallcut 2

roofcut 2

doorcut 1

heartcut 1

window framecut 1

windowcut 1