To me, the best Christmas and holiday season gifts are simple, made with care, and inexpensive enough to have extras on hand.
This includes those looking for one more stocking stuffer, something to give at a gift exchange, or for those “surprise” visitors with kids (of any age).
As my holiday season gift to you, I’ve created six little templates of favorite characters who know you don’t need to have color to be colorful!
For any of these designs, you will need one piece of white felt, one piece of black felt, and polyester fiberfill stuffing (or rice for a more bean-baggy feel). Then print out one of the following templates of Black and White Friends:
- Baymax from Big Hero 6
- Adipose from Doctor Who
- Tree Spirits (Kodama) from Princess Mononoke
- Snowgies (my kids call them “Elsa boogers”) from Frozen Fever
- The Stig from Top Gear
- Falcor (the Luck Dragon) from The Neverending Story
The steps for all of these patterns are the same:
Fold a piece of white felt in half, and trace the template onto one half. Cut through both halves at the same time to create two identical pieces.
Sew the pieces together using a simple overcast stitch, leaving a small space for the filling. Once filled, sew it up the rest of the way.
Where there are “X-ed” lines on the template, use a plain running stitch through the front and back of the figure. Use black thread where there are “dotted” lines to for design.
Finally, cut out the solid black details of each piece and tack them onto the figure. You can sew them on with a simple stitch or adhere them with tacky glue.
Make a few of these when you can, year round, and keep them on hand for all little gift giving emergencies. You can dress them up for the holiday season with a bow or label, or just leave them simple and ready to share.
Keep a few for yourself as well. In a world that always seems so complicated, sometimes it’s nice to have a little desktop companion who is as simple as black and white.
