Felt Cat Toy Pattern

My kitties, like most kitties, have a weakness for jingle toys stuffed with catnip. My Moonunit likes to carry them around the house in her mouth while yowling loudly! And Prince likes to fling them against the ceiling as hard as he can! Every once in a while I make them handmade toys, which usually turn out to be their favorites! (The key is super fresh catnip, I use SmartyKat organic catnip.) 

I decided this month they needed a jingle fish with cute little scales. I decided your kitties needed one too so I made a little pattern and tutorial for you to follow. Do it. Your cats want you to. ​

Supplies

Felt, 2 colors
Jingle Bell
Polyester Stuffing
2 Snap in Safety Eyes
Catnip
Embroidery Floss
Embroidery Needle
Scissors
Printer

I zipped this guy through the sewing machine just to save time but I usually hand stitch them which is more time consuming but more fun, (in my opinion.)

First you'll want to print and cut out your pattern. Then grab your felt and fold each piece in half because you'll be cutting two of each pattern piece for each side of your fish toy. 

Pin your pattern pieces to your felt and cut. Make sure to use sharp scissors to really define your scalloped scales. ​

All cut out! You should have two of each piece. 

Pin your scales to your fishes, front, middle and back. 

Then zip them through the sewing machine or hand sew your scales onto your fishes. 

At this point I sewed some decorative fish tail markings on both sides of my fishy, this is completely optional.

First, I sewed Only the top seam across the fish. I then used a seam ripper to rip a TINY hole in each side for the snap in eyes to fit, don't make a big hole or your eyes will pop out which is dangerous for your babies! I sewed the top seam Only at first because it would be super difficult to machine sew so close to the metal safety snaps after they were inserted. (You can always make felt eyes if this is a big concern for you.) Stuff your cat toy with fluff (don't forget to stuff in a little catnip and a jingle bell)

​Then sew around the entire outside edge and trim closely. 

I couldn't resist sewing a blanket stitch around the outside edge of my fish once he was done. I think he turned out pretty cute. 

Fortunately it doesn't matter how cute it is because your kitties will tear it up anyway! 

Here's the printable pattern if you're interested in making some jingle fishies for your kitty cats. 

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Download File

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(The pattern should take up half a sheet of 8x11.5" printer paper so make sure you have the orientation correct before printing, mine worked best on the "Shrink to Fit" setting.)

​ My kitties love the heck out of these guys! Prince cat prefers the big, felt toys he can throw against the ceiling and Moon really prefers the knitted ones made out of natural fibers so she can pretend that she's hunting game in the wild. Hehe. 

Thanks for reading! Let me know if you give this pattern a try!

-Ashley