Burlap Bunnies {With Tutorial}

I have been so excited about this project!!  I was going to post this tomorrow, but I can't wait.  I have been working hard on these little guys and gals:  My little burlap bunnies.  I saw this idea in Little Green Bean's Etsy Store.  I knew I had to give this a shot!!  So here is a little tutorial:

You will need:

Burlap - I used scraps, so I'm not sure how much. 

Sewing machine, pins, tan thread, and other sewing supplies.

Dry beans for stuffing.

Black acrylic paint.

Pink distressing ink.

Buttons, fabric strips, or other embellishments.

1.  I cut 2 pieces of burlap.  I did not measure, but I tried to make my pieces tall and long.

2.  I cut a "V" shape in the top of each piece for the bunny's ears.  Then I matched them up and pinned.

3.  I sewed up a little bunny sack to stuff with dry beans.  I did not sew any part of the ears yet.  So I started just across from the bottom of the V (does that make sense??) and sewed 3 sides and stopped, leaving plenty of room to sew up the ears later.  Hopefully the diagram helps make sense of that.

4.  Next, I clipped my corners and turned the little bunny sack inside out.  I bought the cheapest dry beans I could find, and poured the beans in.  I didn't stuff them TOO full because I wanted to leave room to sew these up in the next step. (I still had beans pouring out... this is why I chose beans and not rice!)

5. Alright, ladies.  If you are extremely talented and have a very capable sewing machine, you could attempt to sew gathers in burlap.  I broke off a sewing machine needle trying to do this.  So plan B:  I sewed straight across the top of my bunny sack and used my ribbon/fabric scraps to gather them.  Then I sewed around each of the ears and trimmed them to my liking.  I love that my tan thread was virtually invisible.

   

6.  Paint and embellish.  I painted the faces using black acrylic paint.   I realized that painting the face lower than I might think turned out the best so it didn't get lost in the "scrunch" when I gathered it.  Using a find Sharpie, I added a few details like whiskers.  I used pink distressing ink (I think it was called "Worn Lipstick") to add a little blush to the bunny's cheeks and the insides of his ears.  Embellishing was the fun part.  I bought NOTHING for this project... just used all scraps and stuff around the house.  I love scrap projects!!

Ta-dah!  I found this cute basket and threw in some Spanish moss.  These three pals are on my mantel.

Here are a few close-ups:

This bunny is my favorite.  (He was my model for most of the photo shoot!)

Meet Bunny-zilla.  I wanted one fat bunny, but I guess I went a little overboard.

There are still 2 more that need finishing touches.  I went bunny-crazy for sure!!  

So what do you think?!