Simple Simple Bees

Someone wanted a bee toy for her kitty.  Trying to get inspiration from cat toys online wasn't helping much.  Neither was the fabric store - no yellow and black striped fabric available.  So I went with a black and white stripe.

 

Easy pattern ---- Cut 4" by 4" squares of the black and white striped fabric. Cut 2" by 4" rectangle of black polar fleece.   Set both to the side.  Take yellow polar fleece and cut one pair of a 3" long, curved-back letter B.  You will need the two layers.

 

Take black thread on the machine and sew a curved line along the back of the letter B about 1/4 inch in, continuing around the B letter shape..  This locks both layers together for the wings.  Take a scissors and cleanly trim around the stitch line.

 

Set one striped square in front of you so the stripes are going side to side.  Lay the wings on the top about 1/4" down from the edge.  Use your sewing machine to stitch vertically down the short center of the wings to attach it to the square (you go down, then back stitch back to the top, it saves thread).  Then attach the 'head' area, the black strip of polar fleece. It lays on top the upper edge of the body (parallel to the black and white stripes).  Sew down the length to attach it.  Remove from the machine.

 

Now take your bee body and fold it in half the long way. Tuck in the wings so you don't catch them on the stitch line.  Sew from the bottom side up the length and across the black head, rounding as you do the head. You don't want it square at that end. 

 

Turn right side out, stuff the body with fiberfill and catnip.  Do a gather stitch on the butt end of the bee, pull tight and tuck in the rough ends. Close.  Use 8mm beads for the eyes on the black head.  You can take a stitch for the mouth to make the bee 'smile' too. 

 

I did them in batches of 10.  From start to finish it took maybe an hour at most.