Plush Lizard Pattern

A very simple pattern for a plushie lizard - easy to make for beginners and a fun way to use up fabric remnants.

Basic instructions

Print the pattern onto cardstock, or on regular copier paper and then glue onto cardstock (cardboard from a cereal box, a manila folder or poster paper works fine). For best results your lizard should be at least 11 inches long or so; any smaller and it will be difficult to turn. You can make it considerably larger, although it might require you to tape together pattern pieces.

Trace onto the wrong (back) side of the fabric, flip it over, and trace again so you have two mirror image pieces. The lizard will look best if you use a patterned fabric for the top and paler, unpatterned fabric for the belly. Don't cut the fabric along the line you've drawn! Cut about a 1/4 inch outside it (this is called the seam allowance). Use the drawn line as a guide for sewing.

Pin the fabric with the right (outer) sides together. Sew along the solid black line using a backstitch. Leave it open along the dotted line - this is where you'll turn it through and add stuffing. Do not sew along the blue lines yet. The red indicates where to put the eyes and nostrils.

Turn the lizard right side out. If you're making a small one a turning stick and/or forceps will make things much, much easier.

Add stuffing a small amount at a time, stuffing the tail and head first, then the legs, and lastly the body.

Close the opening along the side using a ladder stitch (also called a mattress stitch or Henson stitch).


Variations

I made the example lizard from pebble-patterned fleece and cream colored felt. However, I found the felt unpleasant to work with and it tended to pull, showing the stitches, when I was stuffing it. I'd recommend making yours entirely from fleece. You can also experiment with other fabrics like short faux fur, velveteen, embossed velour, or fake suede.

I used glue-on googly eyes, but you can make eyes from circles of felt, buttons, or plastic "safety" eyes - these last you'll need to install before you stuff and close. The nostrils are bits of felt, but you can also embroider them or use french knots.

I soft-sculpted the paws to give the toes definition. The blue lines on the pattern show where I put the stitches.

You can add embellishments to your lizard, such as fringe along the spine, felt eyelids to give it a sleepy expression, a tongue sticking out, claws, an embroidered mouth, and so on.

The example lizard is hard-stuffed, but you can make a floppy lizard by hard-stuffing the head, limbs and half the tail, and then lightly stuff the rest with a combination of fiberfill and plastic "beanie" beads.





Copyright: For personal use only. Do not copy and redistribute.