Quick & Dirty Tutorial: Fur Pom Poms

My cousin gave me the cutest knit cap for Christmas. A knit kitty hat with black tassels hanging from each side. It seems like tassels and pom poms are showing up all over the place in the stores recently, and I am particularly enamored with fur pom poms. My boyfriend asked me last week if I knew where to get them, and I had no idea, so I decided to pull out some scrap fur and experiment, and I got something usable on my first try! The only difference between the method below and my first try is that I realized that sometimes the pom pom needs a bit of stuffing to round it out. These are adorable, cheap, and super easy to make!


What you need:
Fur (You can find faux fur at most fabric stores, or you can sacrifice a teddy bear)
Some strong thread or embroidery floss in a color that blends into your fur
A tiny bit of stuffing (either fiber fill or a cotton ball or two)
Needle
Scissors

A note on thread choice: I used 3 strands of black embroidery floss. I used black so you can see it clearly in the photos, but you should try to use something that blends into either your fur or whatever you plan to sew your pom pom to. I wouldn't recommend using all-purpose thread for this, since just one line of stitches is holding the pom pom together.


1) Cut a 3 1/2" square from your fur. When you cut fur it is important to cut just the backing and not the pile, AKA the furry bit, especially if it is very plush or long. I think short skinny scissors like the ones in the picture or little embroidery scissors make this easier.

2) Snip the corners off of the square. Don't forget to just cut the backing, not the pile.

3) Start a running stitch on the right side of your fur, about 1/2" from the edge of your fur. Run the stitch all the way around the circle, making sure to end on the right side.

4)Start pulling the ends of your threads, so the fur begins to close up line a drawstring bag. Use your fingers to tuck the raw ends into the pom pom, and then pull it closed. Don't knot anything yet!

5) Look at your pom pom. Does it look full and happy or shriveled and emaciated? If you used a realy plush fur, it is likely that you pom pom will be nice and round thanks to the stuffing supplied by the raw edges of the fur fabric, but if you used a shorter fur, you should add some stuffing. Just loosen the threads and shove a bit of stuffing in there. Mine took a jumbo cotton ball's worth of fiberfill.

6) Pull the ends of the thread tight and use a square knot to keep it closed.

7) Use the ends of your thread to sew or tie your new pom pom to anything you like!