Kuki 18cm Needle Keeper

Kuki needle keeper teddy bear has magnetic hands to hold your scissors and her body opens to reveal a needle book for your needles and pins. This pattern is suitable for all bear maker skill levels.

I designed Kuki needle keeper teddy bear in 2007 in honour of a bear maker and quilter, Kitty, who is also a friend and at the time was a tremendous help in my studio when I needed an extra pair of hands. Kitty is practical and organized, serene and funny, and I think Kuki portrays those qualities beautifully.

At the time, I used the Kuki pattern to teach bear making at a craft fair and over the course of two years, 600 students became the proud owners of their own teddy needle keepers. Kuki was so popular that I decided to publish the pattern so that bear makers all over the world can make their own.

I hope that you will enjoy making Kuki as much as I enjoyed designing her.

What Fabric is Suitable to Make this Bear?

We made our original Kuki using short synthetic fur. The later version is made of 7mm sparse mohair. You can also use slightly more furry mohair, long pile miniature bear fabric, or upholstery fabric. Cotton fabric would also suit the bear, just be sure to use iron-on interfacing to stabilize the fabric.

Full Supplies List:

• 25cm x 42cm short pile mohair or synthetic fur
• 11cm x 35cm Felt
• 12mm safety nose
• 8mm or 9mm safety eyes
• 2 x 75mm wooden discs or circles cut out of cardboard
• 2 x round 18mm magnets for paws
• Ribbon in a colour to compliment the felt

Sewing Tools and General Supplies:

In addition to the items in the supplies list above, you will need:

• Template plastic or thin card to make sturdy pattern templates.
• Small sharp scissors for fabric cutting and paper scissors to cut out the templates. Fancy scissors or pinking shears to cut felt edges, if you have a pair.
• Pins with glass or plastic heads. Not steel dressmaker’s pins, they can become lost in the fur.
• Sewing needles and sewing thread to match the colour of your fabric.
• Awl or other sharp tool for making the eye and nose holes.
• FrayStop.
• Fabric glue.
• Clothes pegs to hold pieces together while the glue dries.
• A plastic thread spool (the kind that ordinary sewing machine thread comes on) to use as a tool to make inserting the eyes and nose easier.
• Hemostat and stuffing stick for turning and stuffing parts of the bear.
• Fibre fill stuffing.
• Gel pen for tracing out the bear on the fabric.

Hand Sewing or Sewing Machine?

We prefer to sew our small bears entirely by hand. You can save time by sewing the seams using a sewing machine. However, you will still need to do some hand-finishing.

Looking for more inspiring teddy bear ideas? Visit our Pattern Page. If you don’t want to wait for your patterns to arrive in the mail or to receive the download link, or if you are you are an overseas customer, PDF patterns are available for instant download in our Etsy Shop.