How to Hand Sew an Easy Felt Shark Plushie – Free Printable Pattern – Great for Beginners and Kids

Today, we’re making an adorable felt shark, perfect for children ages 6 and up (with a little adult help!). This project is a fantastic way to learn essential sewing skills while creating something fun and not too complicated. Ready to swim into this?

 

What You’ll Need:

• Felt (in your chosen colors for body and belly)
• Free Shark pattern (link below)
• Markers (or similar) for tracing
• Embroidery floss (try to match the colors to your felt)
• Needle with the big eye / Embroidery Needle (a child-friendly one works best)
• Scissors
• Stuffing (polyester filler, scrap felt, or even ripped-up plastic grocery bags)

(Two pattern options below, one with an image of the finished project, one without)

Click Image To Download and Print

Click Image to download and print

Step 1: Trace and Cut

First, download and print the free shark pattern (click the image above to access it). The pattern includes the shark’s body and belly.

Lay the pattern pieces on your felt and trace around them with your marker. If you need to cut out any pieces twice, remember to flip them to ensure they align perfectly when sewing. After tracing, carefully cut out your felt pieces, trimming away any visible marker lines. Don’t throw away the scraps—they’ll make excellent stuffing for your shark!

Step 2: Create the Eyes

Next, let’s give your shark some eyes! You can either use small pieces of contrasting felt for these features or opt for simple stitched versions.

To make stitched eyes, start by making a small knot at the end of your embroidery floss. Poke the needle from the back of the shark’s body piece to the front at your chosen spot for the eye. Secure it with a “knot stitch”—pull the thread tight and tie a knot by looping the floss and pulling it through. For a bigger eye, you can repeat several times; I usually do four stitches for each eye. Repeat for the second eye, ensuring the knots are tucked inside the shark piece.

 

Step 3: Attach the Top

Now, let’s attach the top. Place the two top gray pieces of felt together, making sure the messy part of the eye stitches is hidden between them. Cut a long piece of sewing floss (about the length from your fingertips to your shoulder) and tie it with a knot at the tip of the shark’s snout. Begin attaching the two top pieces of the shark together using a blanket stitch, starting from the snout, around the head and dorsal fin, and sewing the top and bottom of the tail together.

How to Blanket Stitch: To make a blanket stitch, put your needle through both pieces of fabric, and pause before pulling it all the way through.  Pull the end of your thread (Where it came of your last stitch) around the top of your needle, then pull your needle fully through the fabric.  Move down your felt a little bit, and poke the needle back through on the same side as you started the previous stitch, and again loop the tail end of the thread over the top of the needle before you pull it all the way out of your felt.  Keep repeating this process, ensuring your stitches are evenly spaced and pulling tight, until you reach the end of your stitching line.

Step 4: Add the Belly

After you’ve attached the tail, and when you reach the small lower fins, align your underbelly piece with the bottom of the shark. Continue your blanket stitch, but instead of sewing two gray top pieces together, sew one gray piece and one piece of your chosen belly color. Carefully stitch around the side, and fin making sure the edges of both felt pieces are lined up as you stitch.

As you reach the front fin, check how the bottom part of the head felt aligns with the top part of the shark’s head. You might need to stretch the belly piece if it’s become too short or adjust the head if the belly seems too long. Tuck and pull as you stitch around the face to keep the edges aligned.

 

Step 5: Add the Stuffing

Once you’ve stitched past the second fin, pause your sewing to add stuffing! Use small pieces of polyester filler or scrap felt. Torn-up plastic grocery bags work great too! For tighter spots like the head and tail fin, use the back of a pencil to push the stuffing in. Once your shark is nicely stuffed, continue with the blanket stitch around the side of the shark back to your starter stitch.

 

Step 6: Finish the Tail

Close the opening and finish off by tying a knot at your starting point.

And there you have it! A fearsome felt shark, crafted by your own hands! This project not only teaches kids the basics of sewing but also encourages creativity, problem-solving, and the satisfaction of completing a fun project. Enjoy your crafting!