Can you believe it? I developed another bunny sewing pattern for Easter! After the earlier versions of sock bunnies I made two years ago from a single sock (Baby and BiBi), I decided to sew a bigger version of the bunny from socks this Easter.
Meet Lilac, the lop-eared bunny stuffed animal! This version stands at 14” tall and is more cuddly and huggable, and kids will love its size as well as its iconic long lop ears.
Sewing stuffed animals from socks aren’t as hard to sew as you think. A sock is easy to manipulate into any shape and form.
The stitching plays a significant role in determining the workmanship of your handiwork. When I was new to this, my stitches weren’t great when I started sewing my first sock doll. So if you find yourself struggling with your first sock stuffed animal, don’t give up – your sewing skills will improve over time. It just takes more practice.
Another tip that I find quite important is the stuffing of the socks. I always stuff my sock animals densely so that the shape is easy to manipulate.
A pair of blunt point tweezers is a good helper in the stuffing. Use the tweezers to grab the poly-filling and push it in. Besides, it is also great for turning small pieces right side out after sewing.
Easter Sock Bunny Sewing Pattern
scroll ⬇️ to get the free pattern & tutorial
Even when preparing my craft patterns & tutorials, I have a few test runs and different versions, some of which are not perfect. The same happened during I designed and developed this Easter bunny stuffed animal. That means many late nights and lots of trials and errors, but the important thing is, I enjoy every minute of creating something new.
It is truly the best feeling ever when you’ve just finished a sock animal all on your own. It will be the same for you. It will be even more amazing because you can gift someone a special handmade gift, and it’s so unique, no one else in the world will ever have one like it.
And that’s how Lilac and the Easter bunny sewing pattern came to me – yet another idea that comes when I sew. A little change here and there, like “hey, if I put the mane here, I can make a lion stuffed animal!”, “an extra sock and I can make long ears for a lop ear sock bunny” or “if I shape the sock in this way, it becomes a penguin stuffed animal or an owl.” I hope for more ideas to flow in to create even more sock animal dolls with you.
I can see Lilac, the Easter sock bunny, crouching behind a bush while her big bright eyes. She is eagerly watching her siblings wandering around the garden. Lilac and her siblings are playing their usual game of hide-and-seek, and she has chosen the bush as her hiding place as it is quite big. Lilac continues to watch her siblings look for her, and smiles to herself. She can clearly see them through the leaves, but they can’t see her! Yayyyy. She has never won a game of hide-and-seek, but she is determined to win it today!
Suddenly, a movement to her left catches her attention. What’s that? A small creature whose movements make it look like it is dancing, and yet it is actually flying in the air. It’s a butterfly! Its big colorful wings hypnotized Lilac with their striking colors and unique patterns. Curiosity overcomes her and she tries to catch it, swiping at it with her paw. The butterfly darts out of the way and starts to fly higher and further away. Eager to make a new friend, Lilac abandons her hiding spot and chases after it, all of her attention on the game of hide-and-seek lost. Her ears lop up and down as she hops after the winged creature.
And too late, she turns to see one of her sisters pointing at her, a triumphant look on her face. Lilac’s long lop ears droop, realizing that she has been caught. This Easter bunny sits down on the grass and gazes longingly after the butterfly as it flies away. Suddenly, it turns around and flies right at her, landing on one of her ears, and just sits there.
They look so pretty together – Lilac with her lop ears and the butterfly, flapping its wings on one of them. Lilac’s siblings curiously come closer, wondering how she managed to befriend a butterfly. Lilac, the lop-eared sock bunny, smiles proudly, her heart bursting with joy. She didn’t win today’s game of hide-and-seek, but she made a new friend!
Look at Lilac, the sock bunny. She’s so happy to be able to enjoy a felted carrot after her Easter egg hunt.
WHAT’S NEXT:
- Start sewing and share your completed handmade on Facebook and/or Instagram. Remember to tag us, @craftpassion, so that we are able to see them.
- Pin it to Pinterest for a future To-Sew List
- Share with your sewing groups for a sew-along event.
- Learn more about the basics of hand sewing and how to choose a sewing machine for beginners.
- Browse more free sewing patterns and stuffed animals to make, especially animals that are sewn from socks.
- Browse more craft ideas to make, particularly for Easter crafts.
Lop-Eared Sock Bunny Sewing Pattern
Meet Lilac, the lop-eared easter bunny! This version stands 14 inches tall and is more cuddly and huggable, and kids will love its size as well as its iconic long lop ears.
You need a pair of crew-length socks and another piece of matching-colored socks to sew a cute lop-eared sock bunny. Instructions come with step-by-step pictures.
Enjoy sewing them!
Materials
- Sock (crew length), Men Size, 1 pair
- Sock (ankle length), Women Size, 1
- Safety eye 15mm, black, 2 pcs; or button; or felt
- Poly-fill stuffing material
- Embroidery floss, maroon pink
- Sewing threads (matching colors)
- Ribbon, 2 ft
Tools
- Sewing machine, or, you can hand-sew without a machine
- Long sewing needle (about 2"), tapestry needle and pins
- Water Soluble Fabric Marker
- Scissors
- Blunt point tweezers
Instructions
HOW TO SEW LILAC LOP EARED SOCK BUNNY
- PREPARATION:
Gather all the materials and tools listed above. I used a pair of men size crew length grey-lilac woolen sock and a single women size ankle-length matching purple cotton sock.
The ankle sock is slightly smaller than the crew length sock, but it is fine as long as it is not bigger.
Cut or rip open the hem seams with scissors or seam ripper if your main socks have folded hems.
- DRAW, SEW & CUT:
Body & Tail:
Turn your socks wrong side out, press flat as shown in the picture.
If your sock has a pattern like stripes or lines, match both layers and pin them together.
Cut out the heel part from one of the socks, then split it into 2, as shown in the picture (left sock).
Sketch the pattern of legs and arms on both socks.
Sew on the lines and cut. You need to cut a little longer into the heel between the legs. That extra cut will become the opening for the turning and the stuffing.
Ears:
a.) To sew the long lop ears for the sock bunny, get the foot piece of both main and matching socks.
b.) Align and press flat on the side. Cut into 2 pieces each.
c.) Sketch a teardrop shape on the wrong side of the main sock, with about a 1″ opening on the top. Pin the matching sock with it with the right side facing each other. You will need to stretch the matching sock a little if the size is smaller.
d.) Sew on the sketch lines and cut. Turn right side out. You will find that the earpieces will curve into the smaller matching sock.
- STUFF:
a.) Turn all pieces right side out. If the opening in between the legs is too small, snip a little to make it bigger so that your thumb can go in. Don’t cut too big because the material the stretchy, a little cut will make a lot bigger opening.
b.) Stuff the head rounder, then body and legs. Stuff the arms too. Give them some massage to release the lumps and unevenness of the poly fiber.
c.) Sew the opening between the legs with the slip or ladder stitches, don’t pull the thread yet until you have finished sewing to the end. This is to make the stitches straighter and neater.
d.) Push the raw edges in and pull the thread to close the opening. Knot the thread and hide it in the body.
- ASSEMBLY:
Sew Arms To The Body:
a.) Turn the raw edges of the arms in and sew up the opening.
b.) Position the arms on the body (slightly below the head) and pin.
c.) Slip stitch around to attach the arms to the body.
d.) Repeat the same to the other arm.
Make The Little Tail
a.) Trim the heel part of the sock to an ellipse shape. Sew running stitch along the raw edge. Pull halfway and stuff.
b.) Pull the thread tight and knot.
c.) Pin and sew the tail to the back of the body.
Stitch On The Ears:
Position and sew the ears to the head, make a few stitches to the side of the ears so that they stay closer to the head.
If you want the ears to look flat, sew around the ear with a pick stitch (about 1/4″ from the edge) to bring the 2 layers together.
Give It A Tiny Nose:
a.) Cut a small piece from a scrap of the matching sock, about 1″ x 1/2″ to make the nose. Trim it to an ellipse shape.
b.) Sew running stitch around.
c.) Pull the thread and push the raw edges in with blunt tweezers to gather the sock into a small ball.
d.) Sew a few stitches to bring the little nose into shape.
Sew Eyes & Give It A Beautiful Smile:
Mark the eyes, nose, and philtrum of the mouth with an erasable fabric marker.
Sew the nose onto the face.
a.) Embroidery the philtrum with maroon pink floss, by using branch stitches. knot the floss at the eyes marking so that the knots can be hidden away once the button eyes are sewn.
b.) Sew the button eye on the marking. Let the needle come out from the other eye’s marking.
c.) Sew another eye, pull the thread to make the eyes set in.
d.) Depend on how deep you want the eyes to set in, pull the thread accordingly. Knot and cut.
Tie a ribbon on the neck and put up some blushers on the cheeks to complete the lop-eared sock bunny, Lilac.
Notes
HOW TO SECURE THE KNOT: Secure the knot by inserting the needle between the 2 threads.
The knot is locked with the sock and it won’t slip away through the knits when you pull the thread during sewing.
WHY DO WE HAVE TO HAND DRAWN PATTERN? Not all socks are the same size, so I can’t provide a standard printable template for this sock animal. The best way to proceed is to sketch out the sewing line by referring to the pictures.
DOLL SIZES: For different sizes of sock animals, use different sizes of socks.
SOCK CHOICE: Socks will be stretched after they are stuffed so thick socks that are close-knit make better quality sock sheep toys.
SEAM ALLOWANCE: Approximately 1/8” or 1/4”.
You need bigger seam allowance for loose-knit and thinner sock materials because they can be ripped off easily
STUFFING: always massage the stuffing to loosen out lumps. Long tubular parts should be rolled with both hands so any lumps will be smooth, and help to make the parts longer and firmer.
Recommended Products
Purchase the exact same material and tool used in this pattern from Craft Passion Shop.
RJ
Wednesday 18th of December 2019
I can't wait to make this for my granddaughter! Thank you so much for making this pattern available!!!
Nancy Battersby
Monday 15th of July 2019
Thank you for all your sock animals, I pack Shoeboxs for Samaritans Purse, and your designs will go in my boxes. So many cute designs made out of socks. Thanks, Nancy
Jo Keisman
Friday 5th of July 2019
So many adorable animals. I have only made monkeys so I am really excited to try others. I am curious if anyone has found a good place to purchase the traditional socks used for sock monkeys, but in other colors. I am looking specifically for blue and dark orange :-)
Carol Gardner
Tuesday 7th of May 2019
Thank you for the tutorial. I used a floral knee-high sock, so my bunny is a little taller, but perfect for my granddaughter who is 2 1/2. I have a picture on my Pinterest board - Easter.
Jan
Sunday 3rd of March 2019
Do you sell these on Etsy by chance? Would love to purchase 6 of them.