The Panda Pillow - with free sewing pattern!

We've had a very busy weekend and while I still found time for a little crafting, I didn't finish any projects worth bragging about here. 

But, while going through all the patterns I have stashed in my craft closet (with the purpose of getting rid of the ones I won't use anymore - or never have), I found a hand drafted pattern for a pillow I made years ago for my son: the Panda Pillow. 

So today I decided to take a trip down memory lane and share the story of how this pillow came to be. I've also copied the pattern onto clean sheets and made a pdf out of it for anyone who wants to use it (though it's still a handmade pattern, so not very high quality).

Anyway, ever since my son started watching cartoons on TV, he has been a fan of the Panda Channel. I have no idea if the Panda Channel in on in any other part of the world, but in Portugal it's the nº 1 channel for kids, and its symbol is, of course, a panda:

Periodically, there are Panda Channel magazines, books and other merchandising available, and about three years ago (long before I even had a blog), some panda pillows hit the stores. My son promptly told me he needed one and, half distracted, I promised I would get him one for Christmas. By the time Christmas was right around the corner, however, panda pillows were sold out and I couldn't find a single one anywhere.

A promise is a promise, though. So if I couldn't buy a pillow, I decided it couldn't be that hard to make one. And so the Panda Pillow came to be. 

In the past few years, it has been living on my son's bed and while it is no longer in mint condition, he still loves it.

Since this is an old project, I can't exactly post a photo-tutorial, but I'll give you some pointers in case you want to make one too. 

Materials needed: 

- the pattern (download here)

- white fabric for the pillow

- black felt for the ears, nose and eyes

- white felt for the eyes

- black embroidery thread for the mouth

- polyester filling

Instructions:

- cut the fabric and the felt as indicated in the pattern

- on the front of the pillow, sew (or glue) the eyes and the nose (use the pictures for reference)

- draw the mouth with a pencil and cover the lines with embroidery thread. I freehanded it, and then used a stem stitch (see below):

- join the ear pieces in pairs and sew them right sides together. Turn inside out. If you want, you can fill them with polyester filling before attaching them to the pillow pieces (I left mine empty)

- join the front and back of the pillow right sides together, with the ears pinned in place and tucked inside. Sew all around leaving just one small opening. Fill the pillow with the polyester filling and sew the opening shut. 

Since the pattern is less than stellar and there are no pictures accompanying the instructions, let me know if you have any questions and I'll try to help you the best I can.

In the meantime, enjoy your week!

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