If you would like a Hitty-size doll of your very own but don’t have the time or skills needed to carve one, why not give this simple to sew Felt Kitty Friend a try! The materials are inexpensive, and you can make as many as you like. You can vary the hairstyles and hair colors to make each doll unique. I am developing some clothing patterns which I will post soon. But you can get started making the dolls right now. If you want something a bit more challenging, try the tutorial for Flexible Kitty Friends.
Download the Felt Kitty Friend Pattern Here!
You can share photos of your finished Kitty Friends in the Kitty Friends Facebook Group. This group is where I will post about new clothing and accessories patterns for Kitty Friends as I add them to the website. My first clothing pattern is Olivia’s Holiday Outfit.
Felt Kitty Friend Instructions
Doll Materials:
Skin color felt fabric for body
Needle for hand-sewing
Sewing thread to match felt
Contrast color thread for basting
Straight pins
Ultra fine point Sharpie markers (for eyes and mouth)
Black Pilot Frixion erasable pen (or other fabric marking pen)
Craft scissors for cutting out pattern
Small embroidery scissors for cutting fabric
Seam ripper
Iron and ironing board
Premium quality polyester stuffing
Hemostat clamps
2 jumbo bamboo skewers (or 3/16” diameter wooden dowel)
Small hacksaw or coping saw
100 grit (coarse) sandpaper
Pencil
Ruler
NOTE: Please supervise children and take safety precautions when using an iron and when cutting out wooden pieces.
STITCH DIAGRAMS
CUTTING OUT FELT PIECES
Download and print the “Felt Kitty Friend Pattern.” Cut carefully around the outline of each pattern piece with craft scissors (save the good scissors for fabric so they won’t become dull). One 9” x 12” sheet of ordinary craft felt is enough to make a doll. Pin the “Body” pattern on a single layer of the felt fabric and use the embroidery scissors to cut out the shape. Remove the pins and make sure the pattern doesn’t need any trimming or adjusting (sometimes the pins distort the shape a bit).
Cut out the “Face” and “Head Back” using a single layer of felt. Notice that the “Face” pattern piece has three triangle-shaped areas, called darts. Cut the top dart on the black line, but do not cut out the chin darts.
BASTING BODY LAYERS TOGETHER
Place the felt “Body” piece on top of a second, slightly larger piece of felt. The best way to hold these together while sewing is to hand baste a line of stitching in the center of the body and inside the arms and legs. A contrast color thread makes the stitches easy to see and remove later. Use the Frixion pen or other fabric marking pen to mark the position of each of the three dots on the pattern. The dots indicate where you will need to reinforce your stitching just above the clipped areas.
MARKING THE FACIAL FEATURES
Place the “Face” pattern on top of the piece of felt you just cut out. You are going to use this pattern as a template to position the eyes and mouth. The easiest way to mark the position for the features is to poke a pin through both the eye dots and the center of the mouth on the pattern piece. On the other side of the felt, check with a ruler to make sure the dots are centered. At the exact spot where the pin comes through, use the ultra fine point Sharpie to make small dots for the eyes and mouth. Try to make both eyes the same size. Draw a half circle shape for the mouth. Set the “Face” piece aside.
NOTE: If you are using a darker color felt for the face, you can embroider the features after marking them to make them stand out more.
HAND SEWING VS. MACHINE SEWING
This tutorial will focus on hand-sewing techniques. All those tiny curves around the hands can be hard to sew accurately with a machine, unless you have some experience. If you are a beginning sewer, it will probably work better for you to hand-sew the pieces together. However, if you feel like your machine-sewing skills are up to the challenge, go for it! Just make sure to go very slowly when you reach the hands and feet, and use a shorter than normal stitch length. And you will need a 1/8″ seam allowance.
SEWING THE BODY
Thread a needle and make a knot at the end of a double length of thread about 15” long. Anything longer than this is likely to get twisted up as you sew. Trim off the ends close to the knot. Start at one of the neck edges and secure the end well by making one or two backstitches at the top of the neck. Then sew 1/8” from the edge of the body, using a backstitch. If you have trouble judging how much 1/8” is, use your paper pattern for reference. Try to keep all your stitches the same distance from the edge, if possible. Remember to pull the thread tight after every stitch. Sometimes, the thread will get caught or twisted. If that happens, you may have to pull on each thread separately. When you have only about 2” of thread left, insert the needle between the layers of felt and make a knot. Cut the thread, then start stitching with another double length of knotted thread.
When you reach the first dot under the arm, take a couple backstitches. Then continue until you reach the dot between the legs. Take two more backstitches here, then continue sewing down the other leg. Add more backstitches when you get to the third dot under the other arm.
After you have sewn all around the arms and legs and back up the other side of the neck, secure the top edge of the neck with a couple backstitches. DO NOT SEW THE TOP OF THE NECK CLOSED. You need to leave this open for stuffing. Finally, tie a knot and clip off the extra thread.
Trim the bottom rectangular felt piece to match the top one. Now carefully clip between legs as close to stitching as possible without cutting through your seam. Clip beneath armpit areas as well. This will allow for the maximum amount of movement and will make dressing the doll easier.
You can now remove the basting stitches. This is easy if you have a stitch remover called a seam ripper. Pull up one of the loose stitches with the seam ripper, and keep going until you have removed all the stitches.
Set your iron to the polyester heat setting. Do not use a cotton setting, because it may melt the felt. The heat will also make your Frixion pen marks disappear. Iron the entire body flat, then do a final trim all around the seams, clipping them as close to the stitching as you can (but not less than 1/16” from the seam-line).
The body is now complete.
SEWING THE HEAD
To sew the darts on the “Face” piece, begin with the larger dart in the top of the head. Fold the “Face” in half with the features on the inside and align the outer edges of the dart. Take a knotted length of double thread and start sewing through both layers of felt 1/8” from the outside edge, moving towards the point of the dart. Make a couple backstitches as you begin, and continue with very small backstitches all the way until you get to the point. Take a stitch at the end and then start working a couple small stitches back the other way to make the dart more secure. Tie a knot and cut the extra thread.
For the chin darts, use a fabric marking pen to mark the edges of the darts. Then fold one of the darts in the middle and backstitch from the outside edge towards the point of the dart. Sew the second chin dart in the same manner.
The “Head Back” has a dart also. Sew the top dart just as you did for the face. With the iron on low heat, press the seams of the top darts open to make them flatter. Do not trim the chin darts, just press them both towards the center of the face. The heat will also remove your marks if you used a heat-sensitive marking pen.
SEWING THE HEAD TOGETHER
Put the “Face” and “Head Back” together (with darts on the inside), matching the two darts at the top. Use a pin or a basting stitch to hold the two pieces together. Align the lower edge of the “Head Back” with the chin dart on the “Face” piece.
Start sewing the “Face” and “Head Back” together, 1/8” from the edge. Secure thread with a backstitch, and then continue sewing with a backstitch all around the head. When you get to the pin at the top of the head, remove it and keep going until you reach the bottom edge of the head. Secure the end of threads with a knot and another backstitch.
The head is now complete.
CUTTING OUT WOODEN PIECES
You will need to cut pieces of the bamboo skewers to fit inside the arms, legs and body. These pieces will stiffen the body and make the doll easier to dress. I used “Jumbo” size 3/16” diameter bamboo skewers, which I found in the outdoor grilling section of my grocery store. If you can’t find bamboo skewers, you can use a 3/16” diameter wooden dowel rod from a craft store. Cut two 1 7/8” long pieces for arms. Cut two 2 1/4” long pieces for legs. Cut one 3” long piece for body.
You can use a small hacksaw or coping saw to cut them. Children may need supervision for this part. Mark the cutting line with a pencil and score a line all around the skewer with the saw, then cut straight through until the piece breaks off. After you have cut out all the pieces of bamboo, use 100 grit coarse sandpaper to round off all the ends. You don’t want any sharp points poking through the felt.
STUFFING THE ARMS AND LEGS
Use a hemostat clamp to push a small ball of stuffing, about pea-sized, through the neck and down into one of the legs. If you don’t have any hemostats, you can use the rounded end of one of the bamboo skewers. Push the ball of stuffing all the way down to the toes. Repeat for the other leg.
Now insert one 2 1/4” long bamboo skewer into each leg. It is not necessary to add any more stuffing to the legs. At the top of the legs, hand-sew a line across the hips to keep the skewers in position. This seam also makes it easier for your doll to bend at the hips.
Use the hemostats to push a pea-sized ball of stuffing all the way to the end of the arm to shape the hand and thumb. Do the same for the other arm. Then insert one 1 1/8” long bamboo skewer in each arm. Sew a seam at the top of the arm, starting at the top of the shoulder about 1/8” away from the neck edge, and sew all the way down to the armpit area. This seam secures the bamboo skewer and allows the doll to bend her arm at the shoulder. Repeat for other arm.
STUFFING THE HEAD
Use the hemostat clamp or your finger to add small bits of stuffing inside the head until it is nicely shaped. It should feel firm and not too soft. Fold under the 1/8” seam at the bottom edges of the neck opening.
STUFFING THE BODY
Use the hemostats to push some stuffing through the neck and down to the hips. Add a 1/4” deep layer of stuffing at the bottom of the body. Then insert the 3” long bamboo skewer. It should stick out of the neck by about 1/2”. Now add more stuffing around the skewer with the hemostat clamp. The body should feel soft. It does not need as much stuffing as the head. Make sure there is some stuffing in the neck area as well.
SEWING THE HEAD ONTO THE BODY
When you have the body stuffed to your satisfaction, place the head on top of the skewer. You will need a double length of knotted thread to sew the head onto the neck. Start at the back of the head. Use a ladder stitch to sew the head to the neck all the way around. You might even want to sew around the head twice to make sure it is secure. Then tie a knot at the back of the head and hide it underneath the seam.
BLUSH
A bit of blush on the cheeks will make your doll’s face come to life. Chalk pastels (also called soft pastels or Conté crayons) in pink or salmon colors work best. Rub a little bit on a scrap piece of felt to test the color. Then apply the pastel to the cheek areas of your doll until you are happy with the color.
Now your doll is complete and ready for hair.
Wig Materials:
Size 3 or 4 (sport or medium weight) yarn for hair
Needle for hand-sewing
Sewing thread to match yarn color
Fake fur or curly fleece
Cardboard
Sewing machine
This tutorial gives you two options for wigs using either yarn for long hair or fur/fleece for short hair. The yarn method does require a sewing machine, but it is a basic straight stitch. If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can sew the yarn strands on by hand, although it will take longer. The fur wig uses a two piece pattern to fit the doll’s head.
When choosing yarn for your doll’s wig, look for soft, fluffy acrylic or wool blends in natural hair colors. The size of the yarn is not that critical, but smaller diameter yarn, such as sport weight, will look more realistic.
OLIVIA’S WIG
Cut a piece of cardboard 2 3/4” by 2 1/2”. Wrap yarn around the longer side of the cardboard until you have a 2” wide strip of yarn. Add tape near one edge on both sides of cardboard.
Carefully cut the yarn in half at the bottom edge and remove from cardboard.
Straighten yarn strands on either side of tape. Sew a straight machine stitch down the center of the yarn strands, in between the pieces of tape. Backstitch at the start and ends of the strands. Remove tape.
NOTE: To make the wig feel softer, untwist the strands of yarn after you have sewn the wig. Trim off any stray wisps of yarn.
Hand sew the center part of the hair onto the middle of the doll’s head with the needle and thread. If you wish to add a braid at the front, cut three pieces of 14” long yarn and braid the strands together.
One method of braiding that works well is to hold the three strands in a binder clip, anchored to a bulletin board using a push pin. This setup makes it easier to keep the tension consistent while you braid.
Attach the middle of the finished braid to the front of the wig with a couple stitches.
Wrap the braid around to the back of the head and sew it in place. Untwist strands of yarn below the attachment point. Trim any extra yarn to match the length of the wig.
SHARLEEN’S WIG
Cut a piece of cardboard 4” by 2 1/2”. Wrap yarn around the longer side of the cardboard until you have a 2” wide strip of yarn. Add tape near one edge on both sides of cardboard. Carefully cut the yarn in half at the bottom edge of cardboard. Straighten yarn strands on either side of tape. Sew a straight machine stitch down the center of the yarn stands, in between the pieces of tape. Backstitch at the start and ends of the strands. Remove tape.
Lay the wig on a flat surface and trim at an angle so that the front strands of the wig are 4” long, but the back strands are only 3” long.
To make bangs, cut pieces of yarn about 1 1/2” long and untwist them to make the strands thinner.
Sew bangs to the front of the forehead with thread on one side of the center head seam.
Then sew the bangs to the back of the forehead on the other side of the center head seam.
Place wig on top of head, with the longer strands in the front. Sew along center part to attach wig to the head.
JORDAN’S WIG
Jordan’s wig is made from a knit, curly fleece fabric. You can also use fur fabric with the same wig pattern, and using the same instructions, to make David’s wig. Most fur has a “nap.” The nap should flow downward to match the directional arrow on the pattern. You can brush against the fur fabric with your finger to see which way feels the smoothest. Arrange the “Wig Front” and “Wig Back” pattern pieces on the fur or fleece and cut them out.
Mark the middle triangle on both pieces with a fabric marking pen. Put the “Wig Front” and “Wig Back” pieces together, with triangles aligned and with RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER. Sew the two pieces together with a whipstitch, which finishes the raw edges.
Next, keeping RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER, sew the back of the wig together with a whipstitch.
Turn the finished wig right side out and try it on your doll’s head. After you have placed it in position, sew all around the edge to attach the wig to the head.
You’re Done!
Now you have your very own Felt Kitty Friend!
This pattern took me a month to develop, and I have done my best to make the instructions complete and accurate. If you have any corrections, questions or comments about the tutorial, please Contact Me. And if you want to be informed when I add new patterns for Kitty Friends clothing or accessories, please Subscribe.
Don’t forget to join the Kitty Friends Facebook Group to share your photos and stories with other group members.
