Halloween is quickly approaching (eek!), so I decided to get into the spirit with some fun and easy felt projects. First up, a big eyeball!

These make great decorations, or you can add some crinkle material and a rattle insert for a fun and [not too] spooky toy for a little one!

Materials:

• white felt for eyeball and highlight
• black felt for pupil
• colored felt for iris
• coordinating embroidery thread
• stuffing
• crinkle material (optional)
• rattle insert (optional)
• interfacing (optional)
• basic sewing supplies (needle, scissors, pins, etc)
• pattern (available here)

This guy comes together in a cinch. I did everything by hand but it could easily be done on the machine. These directions are for the hand sewn version

Step 1:  print and cut your pattern and then cut your felt pieces. (2 large white circles for eyeball, 1 colored circle for iris, 1 black circle for pupil and 1 very small white circle for the highlight). If you’re going to use crinkle material, cut it slightly smaller than the large circle.

Step 2:  attach the iris, pupil and highlight to one of the large white circles with embroidery thread. I chose a contrasting color to stand out against the green (reminds me of a poisonous frog). The color combos are endless, so have fun with it! Optional – you can add red stitching radiating in from the edges to make the eye look bloodshot.

Step 3:  if you choose to add interfacing, now’s the time (I used Pellon Shape Flex). I would recommend this step especially if you plan to hand stitch your pieces. It adds a little reinforcement to the felt. I opted to iron and trim it after I sewed the iris/pupil/highlight. It covers up the stitching nicely (shown below right) and you won’t have to worry about snagging it when you add the stuffing. And the blanket stitch does a great job of hiding your edges, in case you’re worried about the interfacing showing.

Step 4:  once you’re happy with the look of your eye, place your finished front piece on top of the second white circle, wrong sides together, and pin.

Step 5:  blanket stitch your pieces together, leaving a 2” opening. I used red embroidery thread to make it look a little bloodshot. If you’re unfamiliar with the blanket stitch or need a refresher, check out this great project with very clear step-by-step instructions. The blanket stitch uses a surprising amount of thread and can vary greatly depending on how close you place your stitches, so be prepared!

Step 6:  stuff with crinkle material (optional) and stuffing. Use small pieces of stuffing to ensure you get it nice and full.

If you choose to add a rattle insert, try to place it towards the center. Not sure where to purchase crinkle material or rattle inserts? I get mine here.

Step 7:  when you’re done stuffing, continue your blanket stitch to close up the opening. You may want to add a bit more stuffing as you close the opening. Once you’ve reached your starting point, tie it off, bury your thread and trim.

And that’s it, a spooky eyeball of your very own!

Couldn’t be easier, right? Go ahead, make a bunch!

Happy haunting!

xoxo