project // stuffed marshmallow

It's amazing to me how sometimes the simplest of things can be so cute.

This is Jan. Jan the Marshmallow. I know that might seem like a strange name for a marshmallow, but read on and all will become clear. She's super simple, but oh so cute! Basically, this is a cylinder made from fleece...with a face. There's no pattern needed, only a bit of math.



Within a very short amount of time, you can have a cuddly friend to sit beside you as you sip some hot chocolate!



Here's what you need:

White or off-white fleece
Safety eyes (see note below)
Black embroidery floss
Stuffing
Scissors
Needle
Pins
Sewing machine

NOTE: though commonly referred to as "safety eyes", please remember that they should not be used on toys that will be given to very young children. Instead, you could embroider the eyes with satin stitch.



Here's what you do:

This is the math part. Decide roughly what size you want the end of your marshmallow to be and make a circle template. Cut out two fleece circles. Take the diameter of the circle (straight across from side to side!) and multiply that by 3.14 (pi). ooooh...pie! Wait, where was I again? Oh yes. Now, add about 1/2 inch. Whatever number you end up with, make a rectangle that is your number long by your diameter wide.

Let me show you:

My circle: 6 inch diameter
Multiply: 6 x 3.14 = 18.84 + a bit of extra (round it off...it will be okay!)
My rectangle: 6 x 19.25 inches

Make sense? This way you can make it any size you want. Oh, and I found that it's easier to sew if the stretch of the fleece goes the short way. Meaning if you grab the two ends, there should NOT be much stretch. But it will work either way.




Make a face. It's as easy as two eyes, with a little embroidered smile! Jan has her face on one of the circles so she resembles the marshmallows in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. But you can put the face in the center of the rectangle instead. I've made them both ways and can't decide which I like better. Varying the size of the eyes is fun too!



Fold the rectangle in half with right sides together. Pin the short edge, then sew in from each edge (1/4-inch seam!), leaving a gap that's 2-3 inches long in the center. Be sure to backstitch where you start and stop.

This opening will be where you turn it right side out later...it's so much easier to close the opening on a straight seam instead of the curves!



Your rectangle is now a tube, so take one of the circles, and with the right side facing in, pin it in place at the end of the tube. It's a good idea to have the seam of your tube at the bottom edge of your circle with the face. Pin it a lot. It looks crazy, but it will sew together better.

At this point, you'll also see how your math came out. If it doesn't seem to fit quite right, you can sew the tube to make it a little tighter, or trim off just a hair of the circles. But even if it's off by a tiny bit, it should still sew together okay.

Sew around the circle, removing pins as you go.



Turn it to see how it came out. Did you catch all the seams? Good. Now go back and sew the second end in place, just like you did with the first end. For a nicely shaped mallow, check that the circles both stretch in the same direction before you pin and sew.



Turn the marshmallow right side out through the seam in the side of the tube. Fill it with stuffing.



Use ladder stitch to close the opening and you'll hardly see it!



Awww...it's Jan the Marshmallow!

Why is she called Jan?



Well, it's because her older sister is named Marsha, of course! (You can see that her face is on the rectangle side!) And yes, I will be making a smaller one which we will be naming Cindy. My sister Grace has been watching the Brady Bunch for the first time lately, so it's only appropriate, right? Marsha is hers, Anna has claimed Jan, so I guess little Cindy will be mine...



It's silly how happy these make me! I hope they do the same for you.



Oh, and if you still can't get enough marshmallows, check out this fabric I made! You can find it at Spoonflower. It has a lovely aqua background and soft sweets in pretty pastels. I think it would be so nice paired with some solids in these colors!