Easter Chicken and Egg Tutorial 2

Easter is fast approaching so I thought it would be fun to have something unusual to decorate the table with. Having been given this cute little egg basket for our chickens, I thought it would be great to fill it for Easter.

You will need:

1/2 a fat quarter of cotton (approx. 20x50cm)

1 patchwork sized piece of cotton in a contrasting colour or pattern (approx. 20x25cm)

Something to stuff with - I used a mixture of fabric scraps and store bought stuffing.

Some grease proof paper

Fabric scraps approx. 10cm x 8cm for the eggs

Something for an eye – a scrap of fabric to appliqué, a button or a KAM snap.

How to make it:

You can't do this tutorial without asking what came first - the chicken or the egg? Let's start off with the chicken!

I drew a chicken shape, but because I wanted it to be 3d, I also allowed for a base and widening at the head. The extra head part should go from the beak to centrally on the back of the chicken's head and will have to be in half to allow the comb to sit in the centre (this means you will need an oval cut in half then add a seam allowance on either side). The underside should be wide throughout the length of the chicken base then taper up a small way at the front and back. In a contrasting pattern or colour, you will want 2 wings, a beak, a comb and wattle. Remember to add seam allowances to everything.

Now trace out the separate parts and cut out in your choice of fabrics.

Lay a small amount of stuffing down on the patterned side of each of your chicken body pieces and lay the wing over the top. I used a little temporary fabric adhesive to hold it in place better around the edges. With some greaseproof paper underneath to make it move easier under the sewing machine, go around the edges slowly with a tight zigzag stitch. I prefer to use a clear sewing machine foot so I can see what I’m doing better, and pushed the stuffing as centrally as I could so the sewing machine foot was flat. Once finished, tear off the greaseproof paper and squidge the stuffing back out equally.

I added an eye by using a KAM snap as I wanted it to be baby friendly, so I felt this or an appliqué would be the most difficult to chew off! (I just had the popper on the inside and the backing as the eye).

Prepare the features that will be sticking out next, so sew the beak, comb and wattle close to the edges with the fabric patterned sides together, leaving enough room to turn it inside out at the end. I recommend leaving the part that will be hidden in the seams of the chicken to hand sew then it doesn’t have to be as neat. You might find that if your curves are tight, or you aren't used to doing tight corners, that sewing with a piece of grease proof paper underneath and pulling it off after makes this stage much easier too.

Once you have turned them inside out, fill with stuffing and sew closed. I used a ladder stitch (also known as an invisible seam).

Sew the top head widening section together right-side together with the comb in the centre so the stitching of the seam holds the comb in place.

Now the detail is added, it’s all about putting the rest together. Remember you will want to sew it inside out to keep it looking neat. I started with the base. I sewed around just one side of the additional base piece.

I then repeated this with the head section. I pinned the comb and wattle in place (remembering they need to point inwards as you are working inside out).

Now it means you can sew the rest of the chicken as one continuous piece leaving the back section open for the tail.

I stuffed the chicken making sure there was plenty in the head and neck (or it’ll be floppy and looking sorry for itself!).

I poked the tail into the hole and bunched the fabric from the body around it. I stitched over the edges to join the tail to the body.

...and it's finished!

To make the eggs:

Make 4 pointy ended ovals that are all same size and shape. Line 2 up with right-sides facing, and sew down the length on one side. Line a 3rd oval up with one of the already stitched eggs and stitch the other side of that oval to the corresponding side of the new oval. Do the same with the 4th oval to the other side of the original pair (being careful to keep the rest of the fabric folded back out the way. Finally do the same with the 2 loose edges but only go half way.

Turn right side out, stuff the egg then use a ladder stitch again to hand sew the seam closed.

I made a few of these eggs and popped them in a basket with some blown eggs from our chickens. Let us know if you made anything fun for Easter.

Happy Easter!

We hope you enjoy our tutorials and love hearing what you think so please leave us a comment or send me an email to linda@sewingbeefabrics.co.uk

Happy Sewing!