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Tuesday, April 12, 2011

My Wee Bird Tutorial ~ Ready At Last!!

Hello my dear friends,

at last I have finished the tutorial for my wee bird! It has taken me so much longer than I thought it would but sometimes things just don't work out the way we would like them to.


You will need the following:



- Fabric
- Needle and Thread
- Cotton stuffing/fibre fill
- Black embroidery thread and needle (for the eye)
- Some old book pages
- Small piece of cardboard  for the wings and tail 
- A piece of wire about 10cms long
- Glue - instant grip glue
- Modge Podge and foambrush
- Acrylic paint and brush (I chose a darker brown for the beak)
- Scissors
- Pencil
- Cardboard to make the pattern templates
- Ink pad in a brownish color and little rag



Let us start!




Print out the pattern page and make yourself cardboard templates.


Place your body piece onto the wrong side of the double folded fabric and trace. (I sew almost everything I do by hand, so I do not cut out this piece just yet but wait until I have seen the first seam - if that makes sense?!) Trace the chest piece onto a single piece of fabric and cut it out.


Sew the top seam of your bird's body first using a 3mm/1/8" seam allowance inwards from the line that you have traced onto your fabric - this line is the cutting line.



Then attach your chest piece to the body pieces (this can be tricky some times) and sew almost all the way around leaving a small opening to stuff your wee bird.




Now carefully stuff your bird - not too firmly though and sew the opening closed.



The next step is to glue your book pages to your cardboard, trace the wing and tail pieces and cut them out. I like to trace my pattern on the plain side of the cardboard, that mean you don't mess your book page side up.


Using a small rag rub and age the edges of the wing and tail pieces and let dry.


Each wing and the tail have two pieces - glue the smaller piece of each part on top of the larger one. Then them dry and then slightly bend the wing and tail over a pencil or your finger so they become ever so little rounded. This will help them stick to the body better.



Now back to the body. To make the beak, pinch the front of your wee bird flat and using needle and thread sew a few stitches to keep the fabric in place. Knot the thread off and cut it.


Now you have to give your wee bird sight!



With your pencil mark where you would like the eyes to be and using the black embroidery thread, stitch from one side of the body, through the body and let the needle come out on the other side on your pencil mark. Then stitch through the head from one pencil mark to the other making a small stitch. Go back through the head again to the first side making a small stitch yet again. When doing this pull your thread slightly to make an little indentation on both sides of the head. Now make a french knot on either side of the head. When you are done go down through the body and cut the remaining bits of thread off.



To make the feet for the little fellow, take your piece of wire ( approx 10 cms long) and wrap it around a paintbrush handle or a knitting needle to form a small spring.



Sit your wee bird down with the spring slightly infront and partially under him and attach with a few stitches either side of the spring.



Using the above photo as reference glue your wings and tail to
your bird's body with instant grip glue and let dry. And now ...


... your wee bird is finished!!!!


All you have to do is find him a home (maybe a little nest made from a old sweater that has been felted?) and even a little friend!

And last but not least ...

...you could make the wings and tail from fabric if you like for a different look. I will make a wee bird this way soon and show you it in a future post.

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial of mine. I work very hard to make sure I try and explain everything as good as I can so everybody will succeed with their creation.

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

38 comments:

  1. Thank you so much! I have a bird loving friend going through chemo and this will brighten her day! You are a sweetheart to share this.

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  2. Karen,
    Thank you so much for the bird tutorial! I love it and will definitely try it.
    Have a great Wednesday.
    Hugs,
    Sonya

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  3. Karen,
    This is awesome!! I know from experience that writing a tutorial takes a lot of time and thought, so, thank you!!!
    And he is just the cutest little thing!
    As soon as I can catch my breath I will give him a try.
    In the mean time I'm going to share with my friend so they can give it a go.

    blessings
    barbara jean

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  4. Great tutorial and very cute bird!
    thank you :-)

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  5. Karen... Thank you so much for this tutorial, that little bird is as cute as can be.
    Trust you are feeling a little better?

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  6. Karen, how cute and lovely-thank you so much for your great tutorial-
    your birdie is very special.
    XO,Dorthe

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  7. Hi Karen! Thanks so much for taking the time to write such a detailed tutorial. Your bird is just adorable.

    Hugs,
    Robin

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  8. Hi Karen,
    your bird is just adorable!!!Thank you so much
    for the tutorial.Have a wonderful day.
    Hugs,
    Marie

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  9. And i tried to make your bird.
    So sorry....it looks like a dolfin...please, donot laugh.
    Donot know where it went wrong.
    May be i give it another try...someday.Because i love it.
    Anyway...thanks for the tutorial.
    Love,
    Agnes

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  10. You are amazing Karen!!! This chubby fellow is so PRECIOUS!!!! The instructions are perfect...thank you for being such a sharing soul dear friend, hugs and love, Dawn

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  11. I adore this gorgeous little birdie, thank you so much for the great tutorial.

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  12. I found you from Craft Gossip and I see some common friends that have left comments. This is a great tutorial and the bird is so cute. Thank you for sharing this with us.
    Deb

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  13. What a sweet little bird! It's ages since I got the needles and threads out, but you have inspired me to get stitching again, thank you. It's a great tutorial, now I must have a look further back on your blog and see what else you've been up to!
    Happy creating,
    Judy

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  14. cutest I´ve seen! I will make one today. Thanks!!!

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  15. I love the paper wings, different from any I have seen!! Thanks for the tutorial, I am getting ready to try one!!

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  16. Love your little bird !
    I think I'm gonna give it try.
    Thank you for sharing!

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  17. karen, i love you wee bird and your inspirational blog. i have followed you since christmas. thank you for your generosity of sharing with us.

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  18. Love the bird,gave this tutorial a go the bird looked great.

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  19. Gracias por el tutorial, está precioso!!!! besos

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  20. Birds are my favorite...I think....especially the ones with little fat bodies.

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  21. I'm a little late to your lovely blog. Just found you this morning and enjoying it so much. How nice of you to share your projects, tutorials with your readers.

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  22. C'est vraiment trop mignon, j'ai regardé aussi le tuto pour faire le nid, il faudra que j'aille voir dans le grenier j'ai des vieux pulls dans des cartons, mais pas forcément de la pure laine, j'espère que ça ira tout de même pour feutrer ! merci pour ces précieux détails !(je me régale à lire) Ladyfée

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  23. I am going to try one of these!! Dianntha

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  24. I am the least "craftiest" person around . . . but couldn't resist trying this - I just love it! My first one turned out pretty good for a novice.

    I absolutely LOVE your blog and your tutorials are amazing, especially for beginners like myself.

    Many, many thanks!

    eli

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  25. Your birds are so sweet and beautiful! Thank you for giving such clear instructions also. ~Diane

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  26. I love your birds , cant wait to see your next project....

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  27. This is soooo darling! Thank you for sharing it! I love it!

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  28. Love this little guy,just what I needed today

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  29. Great stuff - time to get crafting again! Thanks for the tutorials.

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  30. Karen, these are the cutest and I just posted them on Craft Gossip Felting ♥ Do stop by and leave a comment : http://felting.craftgossip.com/2014/03/15/wee-bird-and-felted-nest-tutorials/

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  31. Your wee bird is ADORABLE! Thank you so much for sharing a tutorial for your creation! I hope to try making one of these some time in the near future, just to see if I can do it, because they're so doggone cute!

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  32. Felicidades por tu blog tan lindo, y gracias por el espectacular tutorial!!!

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  33. I was just searching online for craft projects to do for my grief support group and found this darling bird. Thank you for sharing your projects! I am sure my group will enjoy this one.

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  34. Hello! I love your "Wee bird" tutorial. I'm wondering if I could have your permission to use this for a library craft at our library.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Jill,
      thank you for asking. Yes, that would be OK. All I would ask is that you tell people that take part, that it is my tutorial and I would love to see pictures if possible. Feel free to email them to me or tag me @todolwen on Instagram.
      Have a nice day. Karen B.

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