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Custom-printed fabric, wallpaper and home decor.

plushie

Prove your Love for Sushi with this DIY Nigiri Plushie

Remember the days when you were told “don’t play with your food”? We hope you’re ready to throw that rule out the window for today’s tutorial by the cut-and-sew connoisseur, Na’ama. The Berlin-based maker is back with a new DIY plushie that we know you’re going to love soy much. Sharpen your chopsticks, grab your fabric shears and get ready to create the most adorable nigiri plushie.

Prove your Love for Sushi with a Nigiri DIY Plushie | Spoonflower Blog

Na’ama: Hello there sweet makers! Do you have a great love for Japanese food like I do? Well sometimes I think that this love is not only about the fact that it tastes amazing, but also because it’s a very aesthetic cuisine. The thing with food is that no matter how pretty it is, it will always be eaten at the end (or rot). This is why you need to have this Nigiri dude by your side, on your desk or on a shelf, just to remind you forever how great sushi is! Oh, and I created a companion friend for him – Mr. Soy, to spice things up!  [Read more…] about Prove your Love for Sushi with this DIY Nigiri Plushie

The DIY Cacti You Need In Your Life Right Now

If you’re anything like us, you love the idea of adding plants and greenery to your home but aren’t the best at keeping them alive. Spare yourself — and your plants more pain by whipping up one (or both!) of these adorable plush cacti created by Berlin-based maker Na’ama. Read on for the full how to.

Na’an: Hello there sweet makers! How great is a plant that you never need to water, and still will have a long and beautiful life? When you solve problems with fabrics, like I always do, everything is possible! And if you have the love for cacti, it is a unique plant that can decorate your window, shelf or table. I created 2 different cacti design, so each will never feel lonely. They share similar sewing techniques/methods, with slight variations. Let’s make some cacti! [Read more…] about The DIY Cacti You Need In Your Life Right Now

Learn to Make A Squeaky Dog Toy For Under $5.00

Updated February 25, 2021
Eco Canvas was retired on February 25, 2021 but you can recreate this project with Spoonflower’s Recycled Canvas. Learn more about Recyceld Canvas, a woven canvas featuring REPREVE® recycled polyester suitable for seasonal outdoor use.

diytoy

Did you know October is “Adopt a Shelter Dog Month”? My very own adopted shelter pup, Olive, loooooves playing with absolutely anything that squeaks, and I’ve long had it on my list to make her a custom squeaky plush. I figured this was the perfect reason to quit pro-crafter-nating (totally a word) and finally make it happen! Now, I know what you might be thinking… “my dog is going to demolish that in seconds flat. So why would I spend the time to make my own?” Of course every dog has a unique “rate of destruction,” and I’m not saying these will last forever by any means, but by using durable Eco Canvas material, polyester thread, and reinforced stitches, your pup should enjoy some solid play time before this toy gives in (and uh, is my dog the only one out there who gets just as much enjoyment out of playing with the plain poly-fill and deflated fabric far after she’s already destroyed the toy?). This project is quick to sew up, it should only take you about 15 minutes per plush! I think your pup will agree that’s some time well spent (besides, don’t you have some Project Runway episodes to catch up on while you sew!?). 

*Le sigh…* ennui has set in. Bored of her once beloved tennis ball, Olive is ready for a squeaky upgrade

You can really have fun customizing this project, and you know… your dog can definitely tell when you give them handmade stuff and they’ll love you more for it, trust me!  It’s also more affordable to DIY, yes, even with custom-printed fabric. In this tutorial, we’re using a cut and sew kit from Wanart that will get you 9 plushies in just one fat quarter of Eco Canvas. That’s just $1.80 per plush (I dare you to find a cheaper, cuter store-bought option!). You likely have all the other materials already, except maybe the squeaky inserts, which are also super affordable (see what we suggest below).  These can of course be customized with whichever fabric you feel suits your pooch’s personality best. Follow along with our tutorial and prepare to make your doggie’s day!  [Read more…] about Learn to Make A Squeaky Dog Toy For Under $5.00

How to Make Your Own Softie With PicMonkey – Just In Time for the Softies for Mirabel Handmade Toy Drive

*While the integration of PicMonkey on Spoonflower will no longer be available as of December 31, 2020, you can still create your cut-and-sew plushie on PicMonkey, Canva or another design software program of your choice and upload it directly to your Spoonflower account. 

make your own PicMonkey softie

What a festive November it’s been for the Spoonflower team! While we’re busy prepping for the end of the year holiday party in the Greenhouse, we’re also in the final weeks of our Softies for Mirabel handmade toy drive. If you’re just learning about this wonderful drive today, don’t worry, there’s still time for you to sew, knit, or crochet a softie for the drive! Please mail or drop-off all softies to the Spoonflower headquarters by Saturday, December 5th. For more donation drop-off details, please click here.

Softies for Mirabel

[Read more…] about How to Make Your Own Softie With PicMonkey – Just In Time for the Softies for Mirabel Handmade Toy Drive

Show us what you #Spoonflowered!

The Spoonflower community has been busy stitching up some wonderful things! Our favorite way to get inspired is by taking a peek at what our amazing sewists and crafters are up to.  We’ve rounded up some of your awesome projects that have been shared around the web using #Spoonflowered this week. Tell us what you’re making in the comments below, and don’t forget to tag your works in progress, too!  We're nuts about this iPlushie cut-n-sew project @theartwerks stitched up for her nephew!

We’re nuts about this iPlushie cut-n-sew project @theartwerks stitched up for her nephew!

[Read more…] about Show us what you #Spoonflowered!

Greenhouse Event: Halloween Plushies!

GreenhouseHeader

Plushie_party

Plushies pictured here: (back row) Jennifer Franklin's Zombie Cut and Sew Doll, Shelleyfaye's Skelley Baby Doll, and  Retro Rudolph's Zombie Skelly Panda and Casual Green Ghoul – reversible doll; (middle) My Zoetrope's Cutie-Cat Pumpkin Pillows; (front) Amel24's Halloweeny Plushies.

Trick or Treat! It's a Halloween plushie party in the Greenhouse here at Spoonflower's Durham, NC headquarters! Join us to sew Halloween-themed plushies as Spoonflower's own Michelle Swart leads a basic sewing workshop for kids on Tuesday, October 22, from 4-5:30pm! This class is designed to be an introduction to hand sewing, and students will learn each step in creating their own stuffed toy from a cut and sew pattern. Michelle will cover everything from threading a needle to cutting pattern pieces and assembling a plushie for students to take home. We're printing some of our favorite Halloween themed toys (including several from last year's Zombie Plush Toy Design Challenge!) for folks to choose their favorite, and all materials for this class will be provided! This class is open to kids aged 10-16 years old, and no previous sewing experience is necessary. Head over to Eventbrite to reserve your child's spot in the class starting this evening at 6pm!

Please don’t throw me in that plushie pumpkin patch! Check out our latest contest winner

Picnik collage
The winner of our contest to design patterns for Jack O 'Lantern-themed plushie toys and pillows is longtime Spoonflower member, but first-time winner, Michelle Cavigliano, an illustrator from Brooklyn, New York. Her terrific Cutie-Cat Pumpkin pillow pattern won the most votes this time around — congratulations, Michelle! We actually managed to sew nine of the top ten in time for our weekly missive, so be sure to check the photos on our Facebook page. It's starting to be the time of year when you can't resist the urge to curl up with a nice, soft gourd, so you're fortunate that all of the top ten patterns are now available for sale!

The voting results were:

1. 739 votes for Cutie-Cat Pumpkin Pillows by my_zoetrope
2. 694 votes for Trick Or Treat Candy Sorter Plushie by sammyk
3. 664 votes for Jack o' lantern and his best friends by bora
4. 637 votes for Dress up your Jack o'lantern by verycherry
5. 601 votes for Pumpkin Skellie (Click to see sewn sample) by happysewlucky
6. 547 votes for Creepy Pillow by purplegoat
7. 481 votes for Happy Plush-o-ween! by jennartdesigns
8. 473 votes for pumpkinbanner by suziwollman
9. 444 votes for Quilter's Jack-O-Lantern by mrshervi
10. 388 votes for Jack'o'Lantern plushie hat-mask kit (with treat bag) by majo_bv

[Read more…] about Please don’t throw me in that plushie pumpkin patch! Check out our latest contest winner

A Kawaii Kitchen Full Of Cuteness: Bora wins the contest for plushie patterns!

Plush collage
While the plushie pattern contest was full of cuteness, the winning entry came from Dutch designer, and Spoonflower regular, Deborah van de Leijgraaf, also known as Bora. This makes her seventh win, so congratulations are certainly in order. This was a close one! We didn't quite have time to sew up all of the top ten, but we did manage to get a few finished and photographed in time for the email today. Pictured or not, you can still find all of the top ten patterns available for sale:

Congratulations to all the participants:

[Read more…] about A Kawaii Kitchen Full Of Cuteness: Bora wins the contest for plushie patterns!