Tiger Tail Tutorial: GYCT Design's Make Believe Week

Welcome to my stop on the Make Believe Week with GYCT Designs! 

Several months ago I had a friend send me a message asking for a tiger tail. Not anything super specific, but just to play around Daniel Tiger style, an luckily at my leisure without a deadline. Then GYCT Designs came out with this neat series, I saw it as the perfect opportunity to work out the snap on (or you can use velcro) Tiger Tail! And, I made a matching set of Tiger Ears to go with the tail! Check out the other awesome Amazing projects from today over at GYCT Designs!

Such a fun set! Little man likes it. Actually, he hasn't taken it off for 2 days.

The ears a just a strip of fabric covering a headband. Large enough to slide the headband in and out of the tube.

The tail was initially going to be the only thing I made. But it seemed to need the ears. It is made from felt, poly-fil and snaps. 

It's been a lot of fun for little man, running around the house and pretending to be a tiger!

I decided to make up a tutorial for the tail so you can make one for yourself!

Tiger Tail Tutorial

what you need:

Rotary cutter

2 sheets of felt (I just got the paper sized pieces from my local Joann's store) 1 orange 1 white

1-2 pipe cleaners

1 snap set

poly-fil

Cut strips off your length of your sheets of felt, 3 each color. In my case, because I had used an inche, I cut 2" by 10".

Sew the strips together, alternating in color. I used a 1/4" seam allowance here. Top stitch seam allowance down.

Cut the panel in half across the strips. In my case it was 5".

Sew the two panels together making sure to follow the alternating pattern. Top stitch seam allowance down.

Fold in half, mark seam allowance (3/8"), and using a curved piece (a camera lens cap worked perfectly), mark the end of the tail following from the seam allowance of one side to the fold on the other.  As you can see, I accidentally forgot the seam allowance. That is somewhat important. :)

Sew down the length of the tail, following your traced curved line and backstitching at the fold to secure. be sure you leave the top open!

Trim the excess corners at the end. 

Taking your pipe cleaners, fold in the ends so not to poke through, and zig-zag stitch them down on the seam allowance from the end of the curve to the last inch of the tail. Backstitch the ends of the pipe cleaners a couple times

turn the tail right-side out

Lightly stuff with poly-fill. Too much wont lend to the pliability of the pipe cleaners.

Stitch the opening closed 3/8" 

fold the seam allowance down and pinch the ends baste 1/2" down.

Time for the snap, or velcro, pieces: Cut 2 strips, 2" x 1.5". This image is the finished tab. 

Fold one end down by 1/2" and stitch in place,

fold in half long way and stitch down the edge. repeat for the other snap tab

place the non folded edge on the triangle lining up with the basting stitches.

Stitch in place. I stitched along the triangle to secure it down. 

Repeat with the other snap tab.

Apply snap according to manufacturers directions. Make sure that you have the snaps facing the correct way! I may or may not have had to re-apply the snap once, or twice...

And, voila! A Tiger Tail you can attach to a belt or belt loop!

Happy sewing, and make believing! :)