Bats!

Bats are cool, lots of people like them I do at least five versions – this was my belt bat, they come in different colors and have a jump ring attached to their butts for using as a keychain or for hanging, or even worn as a ‘ring’ with the bat hanging below your palm.  Most were made in black or gray but the white one here shows the detail of how the wings are sewn.  It’s just two pieces of fabric, countersewn and stuffed.  The ears are felt, the eyes are black beads, and the rings came 6 to a pack for 59 cents at the craft store.  I sewed a metal jump ring to the butt so the bat can be hung up on things, or even used on a keychain.

                                   

Basically the pattern is a silhouette. You sew both sides together leaving the opening at the bat’s butt, turn, sew from wing tip up around the bend in the wing and down the side of the body.  Do the same on the other side.  Then fold the wing and sew the ‘bone’ section in the center.  Stuff the body, close the opening on the butt, attaching the ring there.  Squeeze the head where the eyes go and sew them in, attach the ears, viola!

                                     

You can go one step further and leave the eyes off, sew down a band where the eyes are and attach a tiny jewel in the center and two or three feathers under it facing back. These are HUNTING BATS with their hoods on.  Since the hoods can’t be taken off they just stay like that (you only hunt at night anyway).  I carried those for a while.  The plain bats sold faster though.  This green bat is the other style I was trying, with separate wings added to a body. The white one and the black one are just two pieces of fabric sewn silhouette style, and are made in half the time and use half the stuffing.  The green bat type is one that will sit up on it's own when put down on something.

 

 

Here's one of the 'Hunting Bats' with just the jump ring sewn on the butt, I used a 1 1/2 inch metal key ring on them because they were made to hang.  This one doesn't have the 'hood' on it.