Yoonie's Wabbit Tutorial

Happy Easter to all! This is a last minute gift I made for my Nigel and my nieces who will be spending Easter morning with me. Forgive me for some of the blurred pictures, I have a deadline and the weather has been bad for photos. (I think I've finally decided to invest in a good camera!)
Here it is...

Download the template. Decide on a size, enlarge as big as you like and trace 1 body and place on 2 pieces of fabric, right side facing each other. I have the nose template separated. Cut the nose out of felt along the outer lines, stitch around and stuff lightly. Pat it to flatten slightly.
Stitch along the tracing. (I usually reduce the size of the stitches for a tighter and secure sewing for softies.) I'm using 1 plain fabric for the front and floral for the back. Don't forget to leave an opening at the base of one foot or at a bunny ear. ( I choose to leave an opening on the ear, I hid the blanket stitches with a ribbon to accessorise.) I'm making three at one time so don't get confused by the changing fabric of the wabbit you see on this tutorial.

Prepare the nose and ear pieces.
A very important step. Snip, snip around the borders to release the bunching that will happen once you invert the sewn pieces. The more corners and curves a softie, the more slits you have to make to release the tension of the fabric. Don't overdo it & careful you don't snip the stitching.
Invert. Takes patience.
The back of the inverted wabbit. This is a great project for fabric remnants.
Start stuffing them. Make sure you fill the legs and the ears first, and when you're done simply make sure you have enough fillings for the limbs so that it will not bend on the joints.

Blanket stitch and close the opening.
Attach matching ear applique with blanket stitch or any embroidery you're comfortable with.
Embroider the paws with two simple lines and matching thread.
Attach the nose with thread, secure by passing the needle through the nose and face a few times, zig-zagging underneath.
Embroider the nose with a simple 'Y' with matching thread. Pull taut to create grooves.
Cut felt eyes and secure with matching button eyes.

Three completed wabbits waiting for their new owners!
And while I was busy sewing, Nigel drew mommy a WABBIT! (Awww! I could kiss him like crazy!!!!)
You can download this template, but do come back and share some photos of your wabbit! I would love to see them.