Even though zebra print fleece isn’t readily available now you can still make an adorable zebra puppet! We have a free download of the pattern to cut the stripes that I sewed on a white zebra puppet.
Where Did the Zebra Print Fleece Go?
A zebra puppet can be made by using our Horse Puppet Sewing Pattern. Included in this pattern are the simple adaptations necessary to make a zebra. Just by changing the ears, forelock, mane and using black felt for the mouth pieces from the pattern you have a zebra.
When I first created the Horse Puppet Sewing Pattern about eight years ago, zebra print fleece was available. Over the years animal print fleece went out of vogue and now it is challenging to find a fairly realistic zebra print.
To Make a Zebra Just Add Some Stripes
With that in mind, I decided to make a zebra puppet using white fleece as the background and then adding black felt strips to simulate the look of a zebra.
Since these stripes weren’t included in the horse pattern, you can download a free pattern for the stripes that I used. You can add more stripes and make the stripes larger or smaller. I hand sewed the stripes on. If you are comfortable using a glue gun, that also works. I actually prefer making the puppet using stripes rather than using the zebra print fleece. The stripes make the puppet unique!
What Type of Puppet Eye Do You Prefer?
The zebra made from fleece has the large cartoon eyes which is in the horse pattern. The zebra where I made my own stripes has a flatter eye. Compare the two pics to see the difference. Which type of eye appeals to you most? The large cartoon looking eye requires sewing. The flatter type of eye is simply layers of felt sewn together.
Tips on How to Make the Flatter Type of Eyes
Included in the free download of zebra stripes pattern are circles for the flat eyes.
• Using black felt cut out two Eye Backs and two P’s (pupils)
• Using white felt cut out two Eyes
After cutting out the circles from white and black felt, layer the pieces with largest black circle on the bottom, white circle on top of it, and the smallest black circle on the top. (The black Eye Back defines the eye, the white Eye is the iris and the small back circle marked “P” on top is the pupil.)
Sew the layers together. You can also use a glue gun. Once the layers are attached together, the completed eye can be hand sewn to the puppet or use a glue gun. I hand sewed mine in case they came out wonky looking I could easily resew them. The Horse Puppet Sewing Pattern has the pattern and instructions to make the large round eyes which are on the fleece zebra.
Tips About Where to Put the Eyes
To give the puppet the illusion of looking at you, attach the eyes close to the center seam and to the black felt of the mouth. Try to get the pupils of both eyes looking in the same direction. Check out the above pics for a better idea.
Pattern has a 100% size and a 65% size
The pattern has 100% size that will fit on our horse pattern. We’ve also included a 65% size for anyone who wants to make a smaller size puppet. We have a detailed blog post about resizing our patterns at How to Reduce the Puppet Size.
Get Your Free Zebra Stripe Download Now!
With the free zebra stripe pattern, you can be as creative as you want in designing the puppet to be uniquely yours!
