Hi everyone!
Between the people who own cute rats as pets and those noticing that the year after next is the Chinese Year of the Rat, I was getting a lot of suggestions for a rat plush! I thought it might be fun to share it during October so I could do both a sweet version and a scary version like the Owl plush from last year.
So these sweet little rat babies have both a cute face to choose from and a creepy face – complete with bitten ear and eye scar! I’m sure one of them is bound to get you excited to sew ❤
They don’t have a lot of pieces, so they come together rather quickly. The neck is a little tricky so I’ve rated it a 3/10, but it might feel more like a 2 to some.
You can sew all the features with fusible web applique or using the embroidery files I’ve included below. Both faces only need a 4” x 4” hoop, so no one is left out! ❤ I hope you all like it!
And if you’d like to buy the fabric already pre-printed and ready to sew, 4 different designs are available on my Spoonflower page! No embroidery or applique (or even fabric hunting for that matter) needed <3. The group is modeled after Halloween candy! So there’s candy corn, caramel apple, pumpkin, and chocolate (with bat sprinkles ♥)!
September 28, 2018 at 10:17 AM
OMG!!! 😳🤗🎉🎈🎊 I love, love, love these little cutties!! I have a new brother SE 400 machine like yours that my wife bought me for our 20th anniversary. I took it out of the box back in August and that’s as far as I have gotten in the world of sewing. 😢 I am terrified of the machine and needles. When I was around 6 I sat on a sewing needle and it broke off in my leg. Skip to 50 and here I am yearning to learn to sew. Does anyone have any advice on how to get past this so I can use up all these materials? 😩 ~Margo
September 29, 2018 at 8:27 AM
Congrats on your new machine! I am sorry about your past with needles, though! I completely understand your fear ♥ I could probably write volumes on how to start using your machine, but I tried to break them down into small tips 🙂 I hope these might help!
• Keep your needles in their package until you use them. And keep them in a special, noticeable place, like a little colorful tray, so you always know where they are.
• Consider getting a magnetized needle holder, so you can pick up dropped needles easily.
• When threading your machine the first time, do it with the machine turned off. This way there’s no fear of it moving.
• When you thread the machine needle, you can use tweezers so you don’t have to get close to the needle.
• When you touch the fabric to guide it (while sewing), keep your fingers a few inches away from the needle at all times. Keep them flat on the fabric and focus on staying away from the presser foot — which is easier because it doesn’t move, unlike the needle. If you’re not touching the presser foot then you know you’re safe from the needle.
• If you need to guide the fabric closer to the needle, many people use a chopstick, tweezers, or similar tool to push the fabric along.
September 28, 2018 at 10:40 AM
Hi! It wouldn’t let me leave a comment:Thank you for the free pattern â¤ï¸ These are adorable!! Next year is the year of the pig though. The year of the r
September 28, 2018 at 10:44 AM
Oh no! I was given misleading information! Haha 😀 Thank you for letting me know! We’ll be set for the year after next I guess ♥
September 28, 2018 at 12:59 PM
Hmmm…
Turns out I don’t know anyone born in the Year of the Rat (Pig either)
But I do know plenty of Harry Potter fans…
September 28, 2018 at 2:40 PM
Wow! I love it very cute, thank you for the free pattern.
September 28, 2018 at 3:02 PM
This rat, is absolutely adorable! I love it. Thank you SOOOOOOOOOO much!
September 28, 2018 at 4:56 PM
who knew rats could be so adorable?! Must make these little darlings for sure.
September 28, 2018 at 5:23 PM
These are adorable! Thank you.
September 28, 2018 at 5:33 PM
Oh my days, thank you so much for this pattern! I love rats a lot and this is just so cute, I’m already planning on making a few of them!
September 28, 2018 at 7:30 PM
Too dang cute to resist! I love your patterns! Thank you!
September 28, 2018 at 7:39 PM
Thank you so very very much for this fantastic freebie! Love it!!!
September 29, 2018 at 2:05 AM
so cute, thank you
October 1, 2018 at 3:14 AM
Merci pour ce joli petit rat !
October 2, 2018 at 1:39 AM
Wow!! I love all your designs!! I was wondering if it would be possible for me to use the free patterns to make plushies to sell? I’m trying to raise money up for college and I promise to credit you of course!! Ahh once again I love your designs!!
October 2, 2018 at 8:13 AM
Of course! You are more than welcome to sell items you’ve sewn using my patterns 🙂 A credit back to me would be very much appreciated. I wish you luck in your selling!
November 13, 2018 at 5:48 PM
Wow this has to be one of my favorite patterns. I love that they are free because I just print them out and spend hours on my sewing machine working. You are incredible for doing this.
November 14, 2018 at 5:14 AM
I’m so glad you like them! Thank you! ^_^
March 17, 2019 at 1:05 AM
This pattern is so adorable! Thank you for sharing it with us. I just lost my two precious little ratties and making this plush has helped me a little to get through the pain. Thank you.
November 7, 2019 at 8:43 PM
can you make a guinea pig? me and my sister want to adopt a fake one if not a real one.
November 8, 2019 at 6:49 AM
I’ll definitely look into it! 🙂 Thank you for the suggestion!
November 9, 2019 at 4:05 PM
Love your patterns I have another suggestion. Since it is near thanks giving what about a turkey? And for Christmas a reindeer?
November 11, 2019 at 7:10 AM
Thank you so much! I haven’t gotten many requests for those yet, likely because many other patterns already exist for them. But if I should get more people asking I’ll certainly consider it! Thank you for the suggestions! ♥
April 16, 2020 at 6:32 PM
Hi, I don’t think my sewing machine can do embroidering. Is it be possible to do the embroidering by hand? Thanks so much for the pattern. I love rats and have been looking for a plush everywhere, turns out I have to make one. ♥️ 🐭
April 17, 2020 at 8:16 AM
You definitely can do it by hand! The original pattern has applique templates, so you can stitch the faces using small pieces of fabric like felt, cotton, or flannel 🙂 And it shows options for both machine or hand stitching the applique.