I was looking for a craft with an Easter theme for craft time at my SPACE group. I found these amazing no sew sock bunnies, but I wanted to try make it safer for babies as dry rice could be a choking hazard.
Instead of using rice to fill it, I cut up a very cheap pillow for stuffing instead. This does make them less stable, but nice and snuggly. I also decided to make a mini rattle to place in the middle of the stuffing with a few drops of lavender. I thought this would be great for colour, texture, smell and sound.
As this is a DIY toy, make sure you watch your little one when they play with the toy. I swear my little mint is going to be an amazing health & safety inspector when she grows up (or very accident prone).
- Sock
- Pillow (or other safe stuffing for baby toys)
- Lavender oil
- Twine
- Ribbon
- Marker pen (for eyes and mouth)
- 2-3tsp rice or pasta (for rattle)
- Very small container (for rattle)
- Sellotape
As a general guide, use the ankle area for the ears and the heel for the head/face. The remainder becomes the rabbit’s body.
- Fill the very small container with enough rice to make a good rattle noise.
- Tape up the rattle securely, so you don’t lose any small pieces!!! (It’ll be hidden so it doesn’t have to look pretty.)
- Wrap some stuffing around the rattle and put into the sock.
- Add or drop or two of lavender to the stuffing.
- Add some more stuffing to the sock, leaving enough space around the ankle area to make the ears (roughly 2-4″ or 5-10cm, depending how long you want the ears and the length of the sock).
- Using the sock heel as approximate area for the face, tie twine tight (and secure) to make the neck area.
- Tie more twine tightly (and securely) above the head to section off the ears from the head (where the stuffing ends).
- Cut the ankle part of the sock in half, just short of the twine, to form two ears.
- Trim the ears in a triangle shape (wide at the base, coming to a point at the top of the ear).
- Tie some ribbon around the neck area; make sure it’s tight and secure.
- Use the marker pen to draw on eyes and a mouth. (If you’re feeling artistic, you could add some more rabbit features with the marker pen.)
