Let's Make a Sock Bunny!

Hi everyone! How are you doing? I hope you are maintaining your sanity as you shelter in place. Are you feeling creative today? I sure hope so, because here we go…

I’ve been toying with the idea of trying to make a sock monkey and sharing it with you all. It’s very much a throwback toy from when I was a youngster. But, judging from the number of DIY how tos on Pinterest I found for them, I feel like sock monkeys might be making a comeback. Or, maybe we are all just feeling a bit nostalgic these days.

Anyway, the ones I found on Pinterest all seemed kind of complicated to me; and I also worried I wouldn’t find the right kind of socks in my home to make them with. And, so I kept looking for just the right sock toy to make with you. There were some cute sock dolls that I almost went with. But then I saw these sweet little bunnies and knew I had my next project.

I found the bunny at a website called We are Scout. The crafter’s name is Lisa Tilse, and she lives in Sidney, Australia. Her pictures and directions for making the bunny are easy to follow and understand, so I’m going to use them to explain to you how to make your own bunny. I’ve tweaked them just a bit to accommodate the materials I had to work with and/or things I learned while making my sample. But I want to give full credit to Lisa for her fun project and well-written instructions. You will find her website here:

http://www.we-are-scout.com/2014/04/tutorial-make-the-cutest-easter-bunny-softies-from-socks.html

Keeping with the overall pandemic theme of this blog, most of the supplies needed are basic craft supplies, and I’m hopeful you’ll have them on hand.

Supply List:

Cotton socks, newborn or baby size – one sock per rabbit (I didn’t have any baby socks available, so I used the smallest pair of socks I could find. I kind of liked the fact that the socks I used were gray as I thought it made for a natural looking bunny. With a ribbon. 😊)

Scissors Sewing thread to match the sock A sewing needle Black embroidery thread A soft pink marker (I used blush instead) Mini pom-poms, ribbons or other embellishments Toy stuffing

LET’S MAKE A SOCK BUNNY!

Turn the sock inside-out and lay it flat with the heel facing you.

To make the ears cut down the center of the sock, finishing just before the heel. Then cut a triangle out of the top of the toe by making two diagonal cuts, as shown below. (Because I used an adult size sock instead of a child’s sock, and I didn’t want the ears to be too long, I cut about two inches off the toe of the sock. If you do the same, you will need to cut the ears into a point by cutting a small triangle on each side of the top of the toe as well. See my grey sock illustration on how I cut the toe off and made my ears pointed.)

Sew the seam together. (I pinned the two pieces together so they didn’t slip.) Start at the top point of one ear and sew along the cut edge, finishing at the top point of the other ear. Sew with small firm stitches. Reinforce the ‘V’ where the two ears meet near the sock heal by sewing a few double stitches there. (If you cut off the end of your sock as I did, you’ll start sewing at the side of one ear and then continue on.)

Now turn the sock the right way out and massage the ear seams between your thumb and fingers to flatten them out.

Use small pieces of toy stuffing to stuff the body, leaving the ears unfilled. Continue to add small pieces of stuffing until the bunny is nice and round. Mold the body into an oval shape so the bottom is wider than the top. The ears should be at the back of the head, with the heal of the sock filled out to make the rabbit’s face. The body should be firmly stuffed and round rather than elongated. (What to do if you don’t have toy stuffing? You could use cotton balls, tissue paper, Kleenex, paper towel, etc. I think anything soft and flexible would work. Get creative!)

Cut off the ribbed section of the sock. Cut the sock short enough so that it has to be stretched to meet at the bottom. This way your sock bunny will be firm and round.

Now you’ll sew the opening closed with small neat stitches. Refer to the photos below.

Sew across the center of the opening, to bring the two opposite sides together with a single stitch. Repeat a few times. Now sew the opposite two sides together in the same way.

Fold in the raw edges and top stitch across and through the folds to close the holes. Finish with a double stitch. To hide the end of the thread, pass the needle up through the body and out. Pull the thread and cut it close to the sock. The end will then disappear within the bunny’s body.

Now we'll arrange the ears. Sew a row of running stitches across the bottom of one ear where it meets the head. The stitches should go through both the front and back of the ear. Gather the ear by pulling the thread, then secure the gather with a double stitch where the two ears meet in the center. Don’t cut the thread – stitch along the base of the second ear and gather it in the same way.

Stretch the center of each ear out to the sides, to create a nice shape, keeping the tips pointy.

You’ll create the bunny’s face by embroidering the eyes and nose and drawing on the cheeks.

Thread the needle with black embroidery thread and tie a knot in the end. Insert the needle at the base of an ear and bring it out on the face where you want to embroider the first eye. Create the eye with a cluster of small stitches to form a circle.

Pass the needle through the face and bring it out in position to stitch the second eye. Next pass the needle through the face again, exiting where mouth will be. Sew a cross for the mouth, then take the needle back up to the starting point at the base of the ear. Tie a knot and trim the end of the thread off. We will be covering the ends of the embroidery thread with embellishments.

Add some rosy cheeks with a marker. Use light strokes to build the color up – don’t be too heavy handed. (I didn’t want to use marker to add my bunny’s cheeks; I wanted something softer. So, I actually used blush make-up that I applied with a Q-tip.)

We’re almost done! All there is left to do is to add a tail and some embellishments by your bunny’s ears. If you happen to have a store-bought pom-pom to use for a tail, that’s great. You can sew or hot glue it onto the back of your bunny. I did not have a pom-pom to use, so I made one using leftover white yarn I had on hand. If you need instructions for making a pom-pom, try these from The Spruce Crafts website:

https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/how-to-make-pom-poms-2116513

Add some pom-poms, felt flowers or ribbons to the base of the ears and your super cute sock bunny is complete! I’ve been crafting with the patrons of CIDL for long enough to know how good you are at putting your own touch on projects we’ve made together. And, I’m sure your bunnies will be adorable. Here's my bunny sample, front and back.

E-mail me a photo of the bunny you make, and I’ll post it here on a future blog. For that matter, send me a picture of any project you’ve made from Beth’s Blog, and I’ll share it with all. Send your pictures to me at graib@cidlibrary.org. I'd love to hear from you!

Till next time. Stay safe and stay home.