Constructing Puppet Bodies
figure one figure two
The body of the puppet is just a basic fabric roll or sleeve. I like a good long sleeve.
Using a large baggy sweat shirt trace a pattern and cut two pieces, stitch together and
you have a body. (figure one). Next make the sleeves for your puppet. If you do this
next you will know how big to make the arms and hands (figure two)
Cut two 8 X 10 inch pieces from your shirt fabric.
Fold one of the pieces in half lengthwise and with the wrong side of the fabric out.
Place the Sleeve Pattern on top. You can download a free pattern from puppetrproject.
com or draw your own. Line up the longest straight edge of the pattern with the fold of
the fabric and trace the remaining three sides (as shown in the picture below). You’ll
also notice, in the picture, that we have trimmed the shirt fabric to roughly follow the
Seam 1 edge of the pattern. You may do this if you wish, but it’s not necessary.
Repeat these steps for the other sleeve.
Simply stitch along the traced line, leaving the Shoulder and Cuff Edge open.
Cut the excess fabric from the seam edge. Try to trim as closely as possible to the
seam, but be careful not snip the stitches. With the sleeve turned wrong side out, turn
up the Cuff Edge about 3/8 of an inch. Press the cuff in place with a warm iron, sew
around the edge of the cuff. The Cuff Edge should look like the picture above.
Repeat the steps for the other sleeve.
Hands and arms are easy to make without a pattern. Draw a simple shape on
newspaper, cut out, pin to fabric and cut two pieces, trace pattern on a sheet of foam
and cut two. Sew fabric then foam together, then stuff the foam into the fabric. The arm
in the picture above is a basic arm that was made from a Simple Series puppet pattern
from puppet project.com. You can conserve fleece by splicing the Arm and Hand
Pattern and using some scrap fabric for the upper part of the arm, it’s an option and a
good way to “stretch” your fleece. (figure two)
With the sleeve turned wrong side out, lay the finished puppet arm on top as shown in
figure three. Make sure the thumb of the puppet hand is toward the folded part of the
sleeve.
Stitch along the top of the arm (the Shoulder edge of the sleeve), attaching the two
together. Now turn the sleeve right side out over the puppet arm (figure four).
figure three figure four
figure one figure two
The body of the puppet is just a basic fabric roll or sleeve. I like a good long sleeve.
Using a large baggy sweat shirt trace a pattern and cut two pieces, stitch together and
you have a body. (figure one). Next make the sleeves for your puppet. If you do this
next you will know how big to make the arms and hands (figure two)
Cut two 8 X 10 inch pieces from your shirt fabric.
Fold one of the pieces in half lengthwise and with the wrong side of the fabric out.
Place the Sleeve Pattern on top. You can download a free pattern from puppetrproject.
com or draw your own. Line up the longest straight edge of the pattern with the fold of
the fabric and trace the remaining three sides (as shown in the picture below). You’ll
also notice, in the picture, that we have trimmed the shirt fabric to roughly follow the
Seam 1 edge of the pattern. You may do this if you wish, but it’s not necessary.
Repeat these steps for the other sleeve.
Simply stitch along the traced line, leaving the Shoulder and Cuff Edge open.
Cut the excess fabric from the seam edge. Try to trim as closely as possible to the
seam, but be careful not snip the stitches. With the sleeve turned wrong side out, turn
up the Cuff Edge about 3/8 of an inch. Press the cuff in place with a warm iron, sew
around the edge of the cuff. The Cuff Edge should look like the picture above.
Repeat the steps for the other sleeve.
Hands and arms are easy to make without a pattern. Draw a simple shape on
newspaper, cut out, pin to fabric and cut two pieces, trace pattern on a sheet of foam
and cut two. Sew fabric then foam together, then stuff the foam into the fabric. The arm
in the picture above is a basic arm that was made from a Simple Series puppet pattern
from puppet project.com. You can conserve fleece by splicing the Arm and Hand
Pattern and using some scrap fabric for the upper part of the arm, it’s an option and a
good way to “stretch” your fleece. (figure two)
With the sleeve turned wrong side out, lay the finished puppet arm on top as shown in
figure three. Make sure the thumb of the puppet hand is toward the folded part of the
sleeve.
Stitch along the top of the arm (the Shoulder edge of the sleeve), attaching the two
together. Now turn the sleeve right side out over the puppet arm (figure four).
figure three figure four
