Making a giant plushie seemed like a fun idea during this shelter in place time. I have this large piece of green-ish fabric leftover from the Charizard onesie I made. (I overestimated how much I thought I'd need...by a lot) I had been wondering what to do with it and thought of a bunch of green things like Bulbasaur, Oddish, Chicorita, Metapod.....(I guess I only think in Pokemon) but they were either the wrong shade of green or required a lot more colors. Also, I wasn't completely in love with the idea of any of them. The idea of a plant felt more homey and they're generally one shade of green so I didn't feel an extreme need to be accurate.
I started with a square sheet of paper that was around 20x20 inches.
Packing paper works great for drawing out patterns.
(semi-pro tip: take them for free from Ikea when you check out)
Fold the paper into quarters and draw out a shape of a leaf.
(I attempted a 5 petaled piece, but it gave me a headache trying to get them all even x_x)
I created 3 sizes of leaves. Use the same pattern and cut each tier about 1-2 inches smaller.
Sew each piece together all the way around with a sewing machine.
Cut a slit, as big as you need it to be, in the middle on one layer of the fabric (do not cut through both layers!) to pull the piece through to the right side.
Stuff with stuffing through the slit, leave the centers of each piece empty (this creates less bulk when the pieces are stacked together), hand stitch the slit closed.
Stack the pieces to your liking and sew through the middle while pulling tightly so the center dips in and the leaves pouf up.
(semi-pro tip: I folded my thread over 3 times before threading through a large eyed needle. It holds up better when you pull tightly through the pieces of the succulent)
For the center piece, I made a small 3 leaf piece.
It's a cute little plant on its own :)
Sew the final middle piece through the entire succulent.
I have a button on the very bottom that I sewed through. I thought it would help keep things taut and prevent the thread from ripping through the fleece. (It was the most challenging thing ever trying to find the buttonholes without stabbing myself...) I would recommend using a button with larger holes.
I shaped the succulent by overlapping some of the pieces and hand stitched them to keep them in place.
After doing some Googling, the closest succulent that this one resembles is an "Echeveria Chinensis"........ kinda?
It's a great cushion to sit on and I can easily reshape it so it looks pretty again :)
<3
