Turn an old sock into a darling DIY no-sew sock bunny for pretend pet play or a cute handmade spring or Easter kids’ craft activity.
Here’s an incredibly cute way to reuse a gently used sock (or the one remaining sock when the other’s gone rogue!). You may have made a version of this as a kid for a spring decoration, but this take is purely for play!
It’s a straightforward and fairly quick process that doesn’t require any sewing, which means kids can make these on their own or with a little help. And when finished, it makes a wonderfully low-maintenance pretend pet.
So you have a new play pet bunny, how about giving it its own comfy home? Grab a shoebox and make this fun cardboard play bunny hutch (with accessories from recycled supplies). Or visit our whole collection of DIY pet play projects!
To make your own DIY no-sew sock bunny you’ll need:
BASIC SUPPLIES:
- One sock (I used an adult small)
- Roughly 3 cups of dry rice, beans, or similar supply for the stuffing
- Twine or embroidery floss
- Scissors
- A fabric marker
- A pom pom or cotton ball and fabric glue or hot glue gun
OPTIONAL SUPPLIES:
- A large empty jar or cup
- Puffy paint, felt, buttons, mini wool felt balls, or other craft items to create the features
- A small clothespin
- A ribbon, leather cording, bell, hangtag, or other supplies to create a tag or bow
Safety Note: As this is a no-sew project intended for kids to make or help with, we recommend this as a pretend play toy for kids ages 5 and up.
How to Make a No-Sew Stuffed Bunny – DIY Instructions:
Grab a clean sock.
We wanted our bunnies to be able to fit in our shoebox bunny hutch, so we made them a little smaller than the real deal. The bunny you see here is roughly 6 inches long and 6 inches tall from the bottom to the top of the ears. An adult-size small sock worked perfectly for this baby bunny.
If you want a larger bunny, simply use a larger sock and another 2-4 cups of rice!
Stretch the top of your sock around an empty jar or cup.
To make filling the sock easier, stretch the top over a large empty jar or plastic cup. An empty peanut jar worked perfectly for me!
Fill the sock with three cups of rice.
Pour three cups of rice into your sock, occasionally pausing to push the rice down into the sock.
Lay the sock flat and tie it off right above the heel of the sock.
Once you’ve poured in all of the rice, lay your sock with the heel facing the ground. Gather the sock together just above the heel, wrap with a piece of twine, and tie it tightly. Double or triple-know the twine, then trim off any excess thread.
Tie another piece of twine below the heel.
To form the head of your bunny, wrap your fingers around the sock about an inch below the heel, and tie it securely with another piece of twine.
Cut the top of the sock to create ears.
To create the ears, cut the top of your sock in half. You can leave it as is, or round off the edges to create a bunny ear shape.
Secure the head with a small clothespin or thread.
Because this is filled with rice, you can pull the head back and squish it into place so it’s resting on the body.
This is an optional step, but if your bunny’s intended use is play, you’ll want to secure the back of the head to the body so it doesn’t fall forward every time it’s moved. You can use a small clothespin under the back of the head to secure it to the top of the body – it will be completely hidden between the two
If you don’t like the idea of using a clothespin, you can sew a quick loop of embroidery floss through both pieces and tie it tight to secure.
Add bunny features.
I had some black felt sitting out, so cut a quick set of eyes and a mouth/nose out of the scrap, then glued them on with fabric glue.
Instead of felt, you could draw the features on with a fabric marker, paint pen, or puffy paint. You could also glue on buttons or little wool felt balls.
I used a cotton ball for the tail (a pom pom or wool felt ball would work too!) and secured it with fabric glue. Since this bunny will be used as a pretend pet, I also added a small bell, tied around the neck with leather cording.
And that’s it! Your sweet little baby bunny is ready to play with, pose on a shelf, or set out as part of a seasonal display.
For more simple fabric animal friends, try making an easy upcycled crab plush or a sleepy felt baby dragon.
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