Quilted Turtles

Nearly 30 years ago, I made a little crocheted turtle for each of my boys. My younger son named his TeeTee, and amazingly, he still has it. I also made them these cute little monkeys that reminded me of Curious George, but this post is about turtles.


My baby boy now has three kids of his own, two boys and a girl.  A few weeks ago, his almost 7-year-old daughter sent me an email and asked me to make a fabric turtle like her dad's. I already had an idea for the shell, but it took me a little while to figure out the head and body. This is the result.  Now, her twin brother wants one too.

So, just in case my lovely grandchildren aren't the only ones out there who might enjoy a sweet little turtle, here is a tutorial for you.  I've created a .pdf file of the pattern for the body of the turtle, click here for pattern.  I will assume everyone knows the basics of sewing. The parts are hopefully labeled clearly enough. All seams are 1/4 inch.


Fabric: I recommend fleece, it's what I used. The hair is yarn, eyes and mouth are embroidered on. Stuffing is polyester fiberfill.

The pattern should be full size; make sure your printer doesn't shrink the page (unless you want it smaller).

The shell is octagonal, about 4.5 inches across, with each side being about 2 inches. It is a basic pineapple block, paper pieced. It looks something like this:

Turtle Body Assembly:
1. After cutting out the body pieces as directed, begin by sewing up the feet (leave flat side open), turning, and stuffing them. Leave the part that attaches to the body unstuffed.

2. Sew the center back seam of the body.

3. Place the center line of the feet at the 4 "corners" of the body bottom, with feet toward the center. Then place the body back on top, right sides together. Feet will be inside. Sew around the perimeter, leaving an opening at the neck as indicated on the pattern.

4. Turn body right side out and stuff.

5. If you have a machine embroidery design that would be appropriate, now is the time to add the eyes. Otherwise, the eyes and mouth can be added after stuffing.

6. Sew center front seam, and center back seam, leaving top of head open, and turn right side out. Stuff. Gather the top of head, pulling it closed tightly.

7. Insert the neck of the head part into the neck opening on the body. It will go in pretty far, just work with it until it looks right. Whip stitch it all around with matching thread.

8. If desired, take a couple of stitches between the front feet and body to pull them in a bit; it will help the turtle to stand correctly.

9. The hair is yarn; pull it through the fabric with a yarn needle, cut to correct length and tie a knot to keep it in place.

10. Attach the finished shell to the body, tacking it in several places to keep it firmly attached.

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. PM if you want.