Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends Felt Finger Puppets for Izzy

Thomas and Friends felt finger puppet

Happy Birthday Izzy! After my friends' daughter saw the Dora the Explorer puppets I made previously, she requested Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends felt finger puppets for her 3rd birthday.

Here are close ups of each puppet I made:

Thomas

James

Percy

Sir Topham Hatt

Back View of the finger puppets

She played with them immediately as soon as she opened her present. Her mom asked her to say "Thank-you" but she kept playing, not hearing her mom. But that's probably the best "thank-you" of all.

Nursery Rhyme Felt Finger Puppets - Humpty Dumpty, Hey Diddle Diddle, Hickory Dickory Dock and the Three Blind Mice

My nephew's beginning to talk. And with really big words! So for his 2nd birthday, I made him a set of nursery rhyme felt finger puppets. I thought it'll be fun to have the characters accompany him during story time with mommy and daddy.

Here are the finger puppets I made for him - you can order your own for Christmas delivery individually or as a set from my shop. International delivery is cheap because they are light and usually fit in a letter envelope.

The very popular Humpty Dumpty:

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

Oh no! Humpty Dumpty had a great fall!

The very silly nonsense characters in Hey Diddle Diddle:

The cat playing the fiddle? The laughing dog? Cow jumping over the moon? And the dish running away with the spoon? Super silly indeed!

Hickory Dickory Dock:

The clock and mouse

The clock's hands are sewn in a way that make them moveable — which I hope will be useful when he starts learning to tell time.

And finally the rhyme that everybody sings to, Three Blind Mice:

Three Blind Mice

Seeing the entire collection of puppets together before wrapping it up brings warm memories of when I learned these rhymes in school. I can't wait to make many more nursery rhyme puppets for my son, Halford, when he's a little older!

Don't forget you can buy these handmade felt finger puppets for your own little ones from my shop. Remember, 50% of profits will go to charity.

Dora the Explorer (and friends) felt finger puppets

One day, I was asked by a friend to make a set of Dora the Explorer finger puppets for her twin girls. Feeling up to the challenge, I said "Sure!"

For research, I began watching a lot of Dora the Explorer online. She asked me to make Dora, Diego, Swiper, Backpack, and Boots. They were so much fun to make that I added Map, Isa, and Benny to the collection! Here are the close-ups of the finished finger puppets: 

Dora

Swiper

Diego

Boots

Backpack and Map

Isa

Benny


 

Felt Zoo Animal Puppets

I've put together a tutorial for these felt zoo animal hand puppets below. You can also purchase my handmade zoo animal, barnyard/farm and bird felt finger puppets from my shop.


For my twin nephew's 3rd birthday, I wanted to make them each a set of puppets after seeing this Old MacDonald Puppet Tutorial & Pattern from Just Another Day In Paradise.

Here are the set of farm animals I made for Ben:


For Adam, I wanted to make a set of zoo animal puppets. Using the existing Old MacDonald Puppet Tutorial & Pattern as a starting point, I've added/modified some pieces to make the zoo animals I wanted.

Here are the zoo animal patterns:




















































Notes on a few animals:











The Canadian Moose— except for the antlers, much of it is adapted from The Horse pattern









The Giraffe— The mane and face are adapted from The Horse pattern— The tail is from The Cow's tail pattern
— Spots are randomly cut, using The Cow's spot pattern as a guide












The Lion— The mane is from The Horse hair pattern
— On the front, hand sew the ears and mane in place












— On the back, hand sew the lion's mane, leaving 1/4 inch space around the head












— Before sewing the puppet together, I "tacked" the outer mane towards the center. You could use pins, but I find it's too "bulky".












— Once sewn together, cover up any "bald spots" by hand sewing on more mane.









The Kangaroos
— The adult kangaroo's face is a combination of The Horse and The Cat pattern









The Zebra— Identical to The Horse Pattern— Stripes are cut free hand, using The Cat's stripes pattern as reference












The Zoo Keeper and The Snake— The collar is made by cutting a small slit down the middle of The Farmer's shirt pattern, fold down, and sewn into place

— The felt is too delicate for the snake's tongue. I used a piece of ribbon I already had on hand.

Don't forget, you can also purchase my handmade zoo animal, barnyard/farm and bird felt finger puppets from my shop. I also sell a few felt finger puppet patterns.

Star Wars Felt Finger Puppet

For my friend's son, Ian, first birthday, I made him a set of Star Wars felt finger puppets. His dad's a Star Wars buff, so I'm imagining they'll (or he'll) have a lot of fun with the puppets.

I'm not a Star Wars buff, but my husband said they should be very "accurate", otherwise, his dad is going to notice.

After hours of research, here are the completed puppets:

 Here are few close ups:

I didn't  have a pattern to work with. I started with the basic finger puppet shape, and then cut pieces of felt based on my sketch. Slowly, putting the puppets together by sewing and layering pieces of felt in place.

Finally, I made a pouch (with Ian's name in Star Wars' font of course!) to store all of his puppets.