Materials and Techniques

Things that you will need:

  • Fleece, or some other fabric, in white, green and red. Try to get cloth that doesn't fray at the edges. Cloth is usually sold in bolts of 1 meter or more in width and you choose how much length you want. 20cm should be plenty for each color.
  • Thread in red, white and green. If you're super cheap, then just go for green thread.
  • Sharp scissors.
  • Sewing pins. They will make your life easier.
  • Sewing needles. Don't use ones that are too thick.

    Optional stuff:

  • Sewing machine. If you know how to use one and what parts are appropriate for using it, then be my guest. I personally don't use them.
  • Cotton stuffing. I use this for stuffing the main body but you can spare the expense by using scraps of cloth. Stuffing is often sold in large bags so unless you are breeding an army of metroids, you might not want to go out and buy some. Or, you can dissect an old toy or pillow for their fluffy innards.
  • Needle threader. Ham-handed gamers might have a problem threading a needle, but this nifty tool makes the job easy. You first push the wire part of the threader through the needle's eye, and then take one end of your string and thread it through the loop of wire. Then you pull the threader back through the eye of the needle, and it will take the string through the eye.

    The pattern

    I've provided a sewing pattern here in .JPG form. It's recommended that you resize the image and print it out to your desired size. For reference, I like the nuclei to be 1 inch in diameter. The solid lines you cut along and the dotted lines provide suggestions as to where the pieces are supposed to be sewn. The color of each piece and how many you should cut are also provided. Do not cut any cloth pieces at this point.

    THE PATTERN

    How to sew!


    Thread your string through the needle and match up the two ends. Then tie the two ends in a knot with about 1 cm of tail or more remaining. Tie another knot on top of the first knot to make it thicker. You'll need the knot to be thick enough so it doesn't pass right through the cloth. You will want to use about an arm's length worth of thread each time because any longer and it'll get easily tangled.


    I'll be referring to this as the 'basic stitch'. It is used when two pieces of cloth are placed together. Simply poke the needle through both pieces of cloth and slowly pull the string taut. Don't pull too tightly though; you don't want an 'accordion' effect on your cloth. Then, on the side which the needle emerged from, poke the needle through again. Rinse and repeat. Usually, you stitch following the edge of the cloth, keeping about half a centimeter of space between the seam and the edge. The smaller you make each stitch, the better the end results will be.


    I'll call this move the 'whipstitch' (although it's technically not the whipstitch). For the plushie, you'll use it for the metroid's nuclei. First, pass the needle through the 'back' or 'inner' side of whatever you're sewing so that the knot is not anywhere visible. Also pass the needle through the edge of the second piece of cloth. Then, pass the needle through to the back end of your first cloth piece, but not the second one. Repeat. It's important to keep the stitches small and neat because they will be showing on the outside of the finished plush.


    This I call the 'hidden stitch' because if done properly, it hides the thread within the cloth. It achieves almost the same effect as the basic stitch but instead of sewing on the inside of the plushie, you are sewing on the outside. It's perfect for sewing up openings that are used for stuffing. It's used when there are two pieces of cloth that are folded inwards, with their folds needing to be connected. First, poke your threaded and knotted needle through the inside (or 'bad' side) of one cloth, ensuring that the knot is on the inside of the plushie. Next, pass the needle through the outside (or 'good' side) of the other piece of cloth at the closest location where the pieces meet. Don't pull the thread too tightly; you'll need space to perform the next step. Now that your needle is on the inside of the plushie again, pass it through to the outside. Repeat. Remember to pull the earlier stitches tight at some point, once you don't need the wiggle room.


    When you finish sewing a section or run out of thread, you'll want to end the string in a knot. To do that, first find one of your previous stitches. If possible, try to choose one that is on the 'inside' of the final product so that the knot doesn't show on the outside. Now pass the needle through the stitch, but don't pull on it tightly. Pass your needle through the loop you just made. Now pull on it carefully, working the knot as close to the cloth as possible until you can't pull anymore. Do this again using the same stitch you first used. You should have a tight knot. Now snip off the remaining thread, leaving about 1 cm of tail. If your knot is on the 'outside' of the plushie, then you can hide the tail of the thread by poking your needle through the cloth near your knot and then taking it out at a farther location. Then snip the tail close to the cloth so that none of it is showing on the outside.

    Next: Making the Body

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