Making funny felt toys with your own hands can be very interesting for both children and adults, and detailed patterns with templates will help you create many options for animals, characters and other crafts. Felt is considered one of the most popular materials among needlewomen, it is easy and pleasant to work with.
There are several types of this material, which it is recommended to be able to understand in order to make high-quality toys.
How to choose felt for making
This type of material comes in different thicknesses:
- the thickness of thin felt is 1-1.5 mm, it is suitable for miniature parts. Thanks to this thickness, crafts are more neat than those made from thick material;
- Thick material from 1.5 to 5 mm is successfully used for making handbags and educational books.
Felt can differ in composition, which can be: completely made of natural wool, semi-wool, eco felt, acrylic and synthetic.
In order to choose the appropriate type of this material, it is worth considering all the advantages and disadvantages of each of its types:
- wool is ideal for making decor, accessories, jewelry, but it tends to shrink after washing, becomes shaggy and forms pellets;
- semi-woolen has a smooth texture, it is convenient to make most crafts from it, but because of its softness, the toy may not hold its shape;
- acrylic material practically does not shrink, does not fade, it can be easily cleaned, but it is prone to shine, fraying, and does not tolerate high temperatures;
- Synthetic has the property of being translucent when the sheet width is less than 2 mm, but it is very durable in texture.
To choose the right felt, you should first think about what it will be made of, whether it requires frequent use or washing. Based on these questions, it will be much more successful to choose the type of this material.
Necessary tools
To make felt toys with your own hands using patterns, it will not be enough to have only sheets of material and templates; you will also need special stationery tools.
For example, to make a toy there must be several types of scissors:
- simple cutting,
- small scissors with straight tips,
- curly (for cutting waves or zigzags),
- roller knife (for felt 4-5 mm).
A punch can be useful for cutting out the center of flowers or making holes. A disappearing marker is often used for marking. A simple gel pen will be convenient for drawing patterns.
The parts are sewn together with simple threads, and floss is used for decoration. When hand sewing, you need to select needles with thin and sharp tips. PVA, Moment or textile glue may also be useful. For voluminous products, filler is often required, for which you can use cotton wool, synthetic padding, holofiber, polyethylene granules and foam rubber.
General principles of manufacturing
The main principle of making a toy is the use of pre-prepared templates and patterns that will be transferred to the fabric. The simplest versions of crafts consist of two similar patterns that are sewn together. It is also important to use step-by-step instructions for creating a particular toy, which describe the steps in detail.
Felt owl
Cute DIY pink felt owl toys will make an original gift, which is quite easy to make using step-by-step instructions with patterns. You need to print the patterns from the Internet, cut them out, pin them to the felt and cut them out. Sew the parts together with a forward stitch. Sew the eyes, beak and ears to the front of the toy.
You will also need blanks for paws and wings, which will also need to be sewn onto the toy. Also, don't forget to stuff the owl with holofiber or synthetic padding, through a specially left hole between the two sewn patterns.
Lamb
To make the toy you will need brown and white felt, a ribbon and a small bell for decoration. 
The necessary templates are printed on paper, cut out and applied to felt, outlined with a pencil and the required number of parts are created. The sheep is sewn with an overlock stitch. To give the craft volume, you can fill it with cotton wool.
Dog
To create a 2018 symbol from felt you will need:
- colored felt,
- scissors,
- needle and thread,
- gel pen,
- paper.
The pattern should be pre-printed and cut out. Lay out the finished parts on felt and trace them with a gel pen. Sew the dog from the finished parts using a running stitch or another stitch you like. It is also recommended not to sew both parts at once, but to leave some unstitched for stuffing the toy (with synthetic padding or cotton wool).
To give the dog a more lifelike appearance, you can sew on buttons for the eyes and nose and add a ribbon collar.
Cow
To make a charming felt bull you will need:
- sheets of white paper;
- scissors;
- colored felt;
- floss threads;
- glue;
- synthetic filler;
- decorative tape;
- black rhinestones;
- decorative button.
You need to print out a pattern from the Internet and create felt blanks based on it. The cow's head should be made of white felt, with black spots. The spots are glued to the body and head of the bull. After that, you can sew the cow, leaving a small hole for the filler. Horns are made of brown felt and glued to the animal's head from the inside.
Then both parts of the head are sewn together and filled with synthetic fluff. You need to sew the eyes of the bull - these will be black rhinestones. The cow's udder is made of beige felt and filled with artificial fluff for volume. You can tie a decorative ribbon around the cow's neck and hang a beautiful button on it.
Piggy
To make this charming animal from felt you will need: pink, red, white and black felt, threads and a needle, scissors, a pattern, scissors and synthetic filler. Trace the pattern on the fabric and cut out the blanks. Sew decorative details on the body and head: eyes, nose, mouth. Sew the toy, filling it with synthetic filler.
You can also make a keychain out of a pig by sewing a loop into it.
Frog
The toy is made of green felt, you may also need white and red. You can download the pattern from the Internet in advance and cut out all the necessary parts. The frog's belly and eyes should be made of white fabric, and the cheeks of red. The paws and body are cut out of green felt.
All the blanks are sewn together, a hole is left in the body to fill the toy with synthetic filler. Also, for volume, you can fill the paws with fluff. You can tie a ribbon or a decorative scarf on the neck of the animal.
Deer
To make a New Year's deer you will need felt, beads for the eyes, nose, satin ribbon, threads and a needle, holofiber. You need to download the pattern from the Internet and transfer it to felt. 
Sew the animal parts and stuff them with material. You can tie a festive red ribbon and a loop around the reindeer's neck to hang the decoration on the tree. Then sew on the nose and beaded eyes.
Giraffe
Trace the giraffe pattern onto yellow felt and cut it out with scissors. Two buttons will do for the eyes, and synthetic padding will do for the stuffing. The eyes, muzzle and nostrils are sewn onto the animal's head. The parts are sewn together and filled with synthetic filler.
When sewing the top of the head, you need to insert horns into it. You can cut out spots for the giraffe from felt of a different shade and glue them to the toy.
Cat
To sew a cat, you will need multi-colored felt, threads to match the color of the fabric, synthetic fluff, buttons and a satin ribbon. Cut out the details and fold the fabric in half. You need to make two details for each part of the animal's body. On the muzzle, sew a nose from red felt, whiskers and eyes, fill the blank with fluff and sew it together. Sew the details of the ears and the tummy, which needs to be stuffed with filler.
The head needs to be sewn to the body. The paw parts are sewn together and filled for volume. The cat's toes can be made with wide stitches. The paws and tail are sewn to the body. A decorative ribbon can be tied around the cat's neck for additional decoration.
Teddy bear
To make this cute toy you will need felt of brown and beige shades, black beads, threads and a needle, holofiber. First, you need to cut out the blanks for the future bear and connect them together.
Separately sew the paws, filling them with holofiber. Sew the bead-like eyes, mouth and ears to the muzzle. Sew all the parts together with a forward needle stitch.
Elephant
It will be nice to make funny felt elephant toys with your own hands, it is quite simple with pre-printed patterns. You will need blue, light blue and pink felt, beads for eyes and a lace may also be useful. The body parts are sewn together and filled with holofiber. A lace can be attached to the tail area.
To highlight the elephant's eyes, you need to sew on black beads. The ears will look great made of pink felt. You can also sew a loop to the animal and hang it as a decorative ornament.
Hare
To make the toy, you will need to print the stencil in the required scale and transfer it to felt. Such small details as the nose and mouth are carefully cut out with sharp scissors. Small black buttons or beads will do for the bunny's eyes. You can make antennae with black thread by making several large stitches.
The muzzle is made on one part of the head, you will only need to sew the ears to the other, and then sew the two parts together, leaving an opening at the bottom for stuffing. You can use artificial fluff as stuffing for the bunny. Such miniature toys are suitable for home decoration.
Fox
A souvenir felt fox can be made for a keychain or brooch, and when using Velcro, the toy can also serve as a patch. The silhouette of the fox is made in a sitting pose with a slightly tilted head - this is one of the most popular stencils. After the blank is made on felt, you can begin attaching the ears to the head with glue.
The paws are sewn to the body. The tail is made separately, you can make wide stitches on it with white thread to imitate wool. Connect the tail to the body with glue.
Crocodile
A simple toy to make, which can serve as a funny souvenir. You need to cut out all the details of the paws and body from felt according to the pattern. A toothed comb needs to be sewn into the animal's back. 
Sew the paws with claws. Connect all the parts and temporarily secure their location with pins. Sew the toy, starting from the head, fill the crocodile with synthetic fluff. Sew beads in place of the eyes.
Lion
To make a cute lion cub, you will need cutouts of the mane, ears, head, nose, body, paws and tail. You will need two pieces of orange felt for the mane. You will need to cut out the paws, muzzle, tail, two pieces of ears, paws and body from yellow fabric. Cut out two pieces of ear and one piece of nose from white felt.
Sew the yellow muzzle to the mane, and sew the ears from yellow and white felt - they need to be sewn on the sides to the muzzle. Sew beads in place of the eyes, and make a mouth with thread stitches. Sew the second part of the mane to the head and fill it with synthetic filler. Sew the paws and tail to the body. Sew two parts of the body and fill with padding polyester. Connect the head to the body with threads.
Flower
A simple felt rose can be a wonderful decorative addition to your interior or to a specific item. You need to cut out a strip of pink, one edge of which should be zigzag. 
Roll the strip and sew a rose, making several punctures at its base. In the middle of the flower you can sew a bead, which will make a cute accent on this product.
Felt Apple: Master Class
To cut out a delicious apple from felt, you will need patterns that can be downloaded and transferred to fabric. You will need 5 parts for the future apple. Two leaves are cut out of green felt. The parts of the apples are sewn together one by one, which will resemble a small cover, it will need to be filled with padding polyester.
The leaves need to be embroidered with a natural pattern that will give the toy realism.
Sew leaves to the top of the apple. Such a toy can be a great gift for mom if you sew a lot of apples and fill a basket with them.
Finger theatre
You can make finger puppets from felt with your own hands, with patterns it won't be difficult! First you need to prepare patterns of all the necessary characters, which will make the work much easier. It is recommended to cut out small blanks from felt with manicure scissors. The parts are glued together and muzzles are drawn on them.
The figures are sewn together at the top and sides, and the hole at the bottom serves as a finger hole. Finger theater can be a fun game for children, especially if you play out a short performance with music.
New Year decorations (Christmas tree, Christmas ball, snowflake, angel, penguin, garland)
Christmas tree
The most popular New Year's toy made of felt is made from a pre-prepared pattern. Such a souvenir will be symbolic as a gift or decoration. 
The Christmas tree can be made as a flat blank decorated with various beads, buttons, glitter, sequins and satin ribbons. You can also make voluminous toys by connecting two parts of the tree with threads.
Christmas tree ball
The ball for decorating a festive tree can be made flat or three-dimensional. The product can be decorated with an applique of any animal or snowflake made of felt. 
You can also decorate the Christmas tree ball with beads, sequins, ribbons or lace.
Snowflake
To make it you may need colored felt, ribbon for hanging and beads for decoration. 
Also, to create a voluminous snowflake, you will need two blanks that will need to be sewn together and filled with synthetic padding.
Angel
This decoration can look great on a Christmas tree or as a keychain. The angel is easy to make from pre-cut felt blanks. The body is sewn with neat stitches, the arms and legs are filled with padding polyester. The wings are sewn separately and stuffed with filler. All the parts are fastened together.
As decoration, you can trim the wings and the hem of the angel's dress with colored sequins. Hair and beads instead of eyes are sewn to the head. The angel's head can be glued to the body with super glue, which will instantly fasten the parts.
Penguin
The transferred parts are cut out onto felt, and first the belly part is sewn to one of the body parts. Then the two body parts are sewn together and stuffed with holofiber. 
Black beads are sewn onto the penguin as eyes. As a decoration, you can cut out a bow or a flower from felt and glue it to the penguin.
Garland
This decoration can be easily made from felt circles, squares, triangles, as well as toys and other decorations made from this material.
It is enough to cut out all the details using a stencil and sew them together with threads into a long garland, which can be used to decorate not only the tree, but also the room for the holiday.
Peppa Pig Felt
The popular cartoon pig is very easy to make from felt using a special stencil of all the necessary parts, which must be connected together using glue or thread.
All the parts should be positioned correctly so that the toy resembles the real Peppa Pig as much as possible. You can also sew a small pocket for a magnet on the back of the pig, after which the toy can be attached to the refrigerator.
Mickey Mouse from felt
You can make your favorite Disney character yourself from felt at home, especially with the help of patterns, it will not be difficult. Usually, such a toy is made of black felt, only Mickey's muzzle is orange, his shoes are yellow, and his paws are white. You can also use red felt for the bow and pants. All the details are sewn together and stuffed with holofiber to give volume to the product.
Step by step with photos it is quite easy to sew such a toy even for a child.
Homemade toys from colored felt can be made with your own hands at home or shown at school as a master class for children, this is a very exciting and simple process, especially with pre-prepared patterns. Such an activity can captivate not only a child, but also an adult, because felt can be used to make not only animals, but also interior details and accessories.
Master classes on making toys and finger theater from felt can become not only an interesting lesson at school, but also a hobby, as well as creative earnings. From this unique material you can create interesting masterpieces that will be easy to perform not only for adults, but also for children.
Video: DIY Felt Toys with Patterns
Find out how to make an owl from felt in the video:
DIY Felt Christmas Tree Toys, Master Class: