Sew an Easy Stuffed Ball Toy for Your Dog
In this post, I'm going to show you how to make an easy stuffed ball toy for your dog. My dogs love these toys because they bounce and roll when you throw them, unlike most stuffed toys.
My dogs had a round bird toy that they loved, but it was starting to fall apart. I used a free pattern from Apple Green Cottage to create two new bird toys for them. The author of the pattern suggests making it as a gift for a baby, but as soon as I saw it, I knew it would also make a great dog toy!
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Materials used:
(I saved this from previous toys they had destroyed, but you can also buy it new)Assembling the pieces for your stuffed dog toy
I used felt for these toys because felt is a little tougher to shred than woven fabric, and it's a little thicker. I was able to cut all five pattern pieces out of one sheet of felt.
After creating paper templates for the eyes and beak, I used zigzag and straight stitch to sew the face on.
Once you have cut out all of your pieces and you've sewn their faces on, follow the instructions from the pattern. When sewing it together, I recommend starting with one of the body pieces, rather than the face, because when you turn the toy right side out at the end, you'll have to hand stitch the opening between those last two pieces. It'll look nicer if your hand stitching is hidden toward the back of the toy because inevitably, it will look a little different than the machine stitching.
The finished stuffed dog toys
The final birds. I had to sneak them outside to take pictures before the dogs realized what I'd made.
Such patient pups!
These shots are a little fuzzy because my camera doesn't handle motion well, but the dogs were very excited to play with their new toys. The new birds bounced and rolled just like the old one had.
But which bird is better? The grass is always greener.
