Let’s dive into making gnomes! This is a pretty forgiving scrap buster, so please go easy on yourself on this one and have fun with it!!!
You will need:
· Scraps
· Rice (I used about 3 cups for these gnomes)
· Small rubber bands/hair ties
· Stuffing
· Hot glue and glue gun
· Wire and needle nose (You will want something thick/strong enough to hold its’ form, yet bendable enough that you aren’t hurting yourself. A hanger is a bit thick, but could work. Otherwise, your favorite home improvement store or craft store should have something. Mine is 17 gauge (0.043”) electric fence wire)
· Fur (Eek! Please don’t hate me. Wait to cut this till you have your gnome made)
You will want a piece of scrap for the body, the nose, the hat and a band for the hat. You will want to measure these with your heart and with what you have leftover. These can be made with wovens or knits. If you use knit, remember that the bodies will “grow” as you fill with rice. Your hat can be a single triangle with the seam in the back or two triangles with the seams on the sides. The only “requirements” I ask for is that your nose have enough fabric to have a “tail”. Your band for the hat needs to be about the same width as your hat with a width somewhere between 1.5-4” tall.
If you insist on sizes….
My taller gnome is:
Body: 9” tall x6” wide
Nose: 3” circle (I used a cup that looked about right for this)
Band: 1.75” tall x 8” wide
Hat: 2 triangles 11” tall x 4” wide
My shorter gnome is:
Body: 7” tall x 8.5” wide
Nose: 3.5” circle
Band: 3.5” tall x 9” wide
Hat: 2 triangles 8.25” tall x 4.75” wide
Start by sewing a cylinder from your body piece, the hat sides, and the band ends. Next you will pinch the sides of the base of the body together so that it makes an x. Sew across this bottom. Please excuse my quick uneven sew (no one is going to see this anyways!!!) Sew bands to hat.
(click arrow to view next photo in tutorial)
Fill body with rice. I suggest a funnel or cup to help keep the rice from going rogue! Stuff hat and nose. Tie off the nose with a rubber band. Tie off the top of the body and on your last pass add your nose piece.
Here is where you will cut your fur. I like to get under the fur and try to only cut the fabric underneath. If it’s along the grainline, you can also do a “snip and rip” to avoid cutting through the fur. Hot glue fur to body under nose.
Cut a length of wire long enough to go through your body and hat. Curl the ends so it doesn’t poke through your fabric. Insert in body and place hat on top. Hot glue the back and sides of the hat to the body.
That’s it! Stand back and admire your little cuties!!!
-Nikki Scott
TSM Influencer
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