Unicorn Magic Blanket Tails

Pattern Markings 

Transfer all pattern markings and labels to the fabric using a disappearing ink pen or tailors chalk.

OPTIONAL Interfacing

Using the manufacturer’s instructions, apply interfacing to the Inner and Outer Ears and Horn.

Nose, Eyes and Heart Options

• OPTIONAL Embroidery – Use the pattern markings on the Body to embroider the Nose, Eyes and Mouth.
• OPTIONAL Cut Files – Use the cut files with a die cutting machine and iron-on adhesive vinyl. Place these at the pattern markings on the body and iron in place.
• OPTIONAL Iron-on Adhesive – For this method, trace the pattern pieces onto your fabric or iron-on adhesive. Apply the iron-on adhesive to your fabric pieces and cut out, making sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Iron these pieces onto the body in the positions indicated by the pattern markings.

Big Flower

Trace the Big Flower onto your fabric. Apply the iron-on adhesive to your fabric piece and cut out, making sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions. 

Peel the back off the Big Flower. Lay interfacing side down onto fabric. Press. 

Cut the Big Flower out.

Take a matching pair Wing Spine and Wing and place them together, right sides facing up. 

Flip the Wing Spine over onto the Wing, right sides together.  

Match the bottom corners of the Wing Spine to the top corners of the Wing. Pin.

Continue pinning the Wing Spine to the Wing.

Stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance.

Trim the seam allowance using pinking shears.

This will prevent the fabric from bunching up when turned out as the notches from the pinking allows the fabric to spread out. 

An alternative to using pinking shears is to clip or notch the seam allowance.

Repeat steps 1.1 to 1.3 for the other three Wing Spines and Wings. 

Place two mirror Wings right sides together. 

Pin together, leaving the long straight edge open.

Stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance. 

TIP – When you reach the corner, drop the needle into the fabric, lift the presser foot, turn the fabric and continue stitching.

Clip along the curve of the Wing. Clip as close to the stitching as possible without cutting into it.

Clip the corners to reduce the bulk. 

Turn the Wing right sides out and press the seams.

TIP – Push out the corner with a blunt object, like a chopstick, so that there is a nice sharp corner.

On the right side of the Wing, pin along the curved seam between the Wing Spine and the Wing.

Right sides facing up, ‘stitch in the ditch’ along the seam between the Wing Spine and Wing. The stitching will not be easily visible in the finished garment.

Stitch slowly and hold the Wing Spine and Wing flat on both sides of the presser foot to help stitch right into the crease so it is not visible on the finished Blanket. 

TIP – Use a matching thread and aim for a tiny fraction onto the Wing instead of the Wing Spine. This usually ends up fairly invisible.

Stuff the Wing Spine solid, but not too tightly, through the opening on the straight edge. 

TIP – Use a pointy, blunt object such as a chopstick or knitting needle to help push the stuffing inside.

Repeat steps 1.5 to 1.11 with the other Wing.

Place the top of the Wings at the pattern markings on either side of the Front Main Body, right sides together, matching raw edges. Pin. 

Baste using a ⅛ inch seam allowance.

TIP – Basting is just like normal stitching except the stitches need to be long and loose so that they can be removed later, if needed. Stitch within the seam allowance, so that the basting stitches are not seen in the final garment, while keeping the stitches loose enough to pull out just in case they are visible. The purpose is to hold a piece of fabric in place until that section is properly sewn. Set the machine to a long loose stitch. Test it on a piece of fabric first to make sure that the stitches can easily be removed. Do not backstitch at either end. Leave the ends loose, with approximately 1 inch of thread tails at either end of the stitching.

If you do not want to decorate your Horn, skip to step 2.3.

Lay a Horn piece facing right side up. Place the trim at the top of the Horn. Stitch in place, going back and forth a few times to secure.

NOTE – If you use a thicker trim here it may be easier to hand sew, than machine sew this on.

Place the Horn pieces right sides together. Pin along the outer edges, leaving the bottom straight edge unpinned. 

NOTE – Check the trim isn’t caught in the seam. The end of the trim will be poking out the top of the horn.

Stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance.

NOTE – Before you reach the top point, stitch straight across, then down the other side. This will ensure you secure the trim into the stitches.

Turn the Horn right sides out and press the seams. 

TIP – Gently pull on the trim to help pull the tip of the Horn out. Or use a blunt object, like a chopstick to push the top corner out.

You are going to twirl the trim around the Horn and stitch in place. However, if you have a preferred method to stitch the trim in place, do this now.

Thread a needle. Tie a knot at the ends of the thread.

Poke the needle up through the inside of the Horn and out the top. 

Stuff the Horn so it is solid. 

TIP – Use a pointy, blunt object such as a chopstick or knitting needle to help push the stuffing inside.

Wrap your trim around the outside of the Horn in a spiral, starting at the top and working around until you reach the bottom, pinning as you go.

Hand stitch the trim in place using the thread that’s coming out of the top of the Horn.

TIP – Keep your stitching very close to the trim, pulling it taut as you go. This will make it look like it is part of the twirl design.

Cut any of the excess off, leaving a tail of 1-2 inches. Tuck the tail inside the Horn and if needed, stitch so it does not fall out.

Tuck the bottom raw edge inside by ¼ inch and press.

Pin

Top stitch using a ⅛ inch seam allowance.

To achieve this look, we have layered a Big Flower, Big Circle, Little Flower, and a Little Circle.

We are going to secure it together by hand stitching a button on the top.

Starting from the wrong side, push your threaded needle through all the layers. Add a button in place and thread up through the buttonholes and back though all the layers, pulling the needle and thread all the way through.

Keep repeating step 3.2 until the button and all layers are secured in place.

Place the Inner Ear right side up onto the right side of the Outer Ear. Pin, or press in place if you are using double-sided interfacing.

Topstitch around the Inner Ear.

OPTIONAL – Use a decorative stitch around the Inner Ear, to stitch it to the Outer Ear, for a fun decorative option.

ALTERNATIVE – If you are using a fraying fabric for the Inner Ear, alternatively press the raw edges back ¼ inch to the wrong side first, then topstitch to the outer ear. This will make the Inner Ear slightly smaller but will stop it from fraying.

Place an Outer Ear on top, right sides together. Pin along the outer curved edges.

Stitch using a ½ Inch seam allowance.

TIP – When you reach the top point, drop the needle into the fabric, lift the presser foot, turn the fabric and continue stitching down the other side.

Clip the top point.

Trim the seam allowance using pinking shears. This will prevent the fabric from bunching up when turned out as the notches from the pinking allows the fabric to spread out. 

An alternative to using pinking shears is to clip or notch the seam allowance.

Turn the Ear right sides out. Press.

TIP – Use a point turner or a blunt pointy object such as a knitting needle to poke the tip of the Ear fully out.

OPTIONAL – Topstitch around the Ear using a ⅛ inch seam allowance.

Repeat steps 4.1 to 4.6 for the other Ear.

This step has a huge amount of creative license. Follow the steps below for the basic construction, but feel free to add ANY extra decoration, touches or changes you wish! This is your creation so have fun and use your imagination for the touches of magic you want… 

Cutting tips:

• If you are using multiple colors or materials in the Mane/Tail, divide the amount you will need by the number of colors you have.
• Use the Mane/Tail Length Guide provided in the pattern pieces as a length guide. You can make it longer or shorter if desired. 
• When you cut, the pattern piece says, ‘cut on the fold’. This means you cut the Mane/Tail pieces TWICE the length of the pattern piece guide. In the finished Blanket Tail, the Mane will be attached to the Blanket along the waist, so the mane ends up the same length as the pattern piece.
• If you are unsure, cut the Mane/Tail pieces longer than needed. You can always give your finished Unicorn a haircut!
• If you are using fabric, cut the strips approximately 1 inch wide.
• If you are using fabric rather than yarn and have a fabric that frays, cut it out using pinking shears to stop the edges fraying.

There is no right or wrong way to do this. It is just how you want your Unicorn to look.

If you are using felt, ribbon or another non-fraying fabric, cut your strips now and skip to step 5.4.

If you are using yarn you can either cut your strips using the pattern piece as a guide or get a piece of cardboard (this one is straight from my recycling/scrap pile!) and cut it the same length as the pattern piece guide. The width does not matter. 

Alternatively, you could use a book or any other item that is about the same length as the pattern piece guide (or if you are doing it longer/shorter, the length you desire).

NOTE – The number of strips/pieces of yarn you will need will vary greatly depending on what size you are doing, how full you want the Mane, and what you are using for it. You can use any mix of fabrics. A full Mane with lots of thin yarn and some ribbon mixed in can easily use 10-20x more strips than a less full Mane using just flat, thin ribbon. We purposefully have not given quantities so you can make the Unicorn you want. Use your imagination! The mane could be just 20-40 strips of ribbon, or 5 whole balls/skeins of yarn!

If you aren’t sure, start by adding a few strips and place them onto the tape/ribbon in step 5.4, stitch and then pin it to your Body. If you’d like it fuller, add more strips before continuing.

TIP – If you have a variety of widths and colors of trims that suit the look you want in your stash; this is a great way to use up leftover ribbon and trim from other projects.

Wrap the yarn or ribbon around the cardboard carefully (do not pull or stretch it as the strips will be too short when you cut them). 

TIP – If you find the cardboard starts to bend, fold it in half vertically or double it up for strength.

Cut the yarn/ribbon at the same end you started at. That way you’ll end up with lots of strips that are the same size as the pattern piece guide, cut on the fold.

TIP – If you are using ribbon, cut on an angle to give them an angled edge. It’s also less likely to fray this way.

TIP – If the ribbon you are using frays, use an anti-fray product such as fraystop, or singe the ends of ribbon carefully to seal them. Make sure to take appropriate health and safety care if you are singeing.

TIP – Try to keep the Mane pieces in a tidy pile of strips. Especially if you are using yarn, it can be a huge number of strips and is easier to manage if laid neatly.

Cut a strip of single fold bias binding the same width as the waist. It can be the same color or different. This will be hidden underneath the Mane. 

Alternatively, you can use a piece of tape/ribbon.

Lay the single fold bias binding out flat.

Spread the Mane pieces out along the binding, centering them over the binding.

If you are using different colors/materials, mix these up as desired. To get the look in the tutorial, we layered the mane strips, then mixed them up a bit to get the final look.

Again, the number of strips will vary depending on the material you are using, but a good guide is a solid fist full.

Stitch over the yarn at the bias binding, using a zig zag stitch.

If you’ve done a full Mane, this can be tricky. Go slowly, lengthen the stitch length, and use a walking foot if you have one. For this full Mane, we lengthened the stitch from 2.2 to 2.8 in the settings.

TIP – You may find it easier to stitch by rolling it up as it is sewn onto the binding.

Fold the Mane in half, right sides together, with the binding facing up.

Place the Mane onto the Front Main Body, matching the raw edges of the binding to the raw edges of the waist. Pin.

Stitch using a ¼ inch seam allowance.

Repeat steps 5.1 to 5.7 for the Tail.

Place one Waistband onto the Front Main Body piece, right sides together, matching raw edges. Pin.

Stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance. 

Press the seam allowance open. 

Flip the Waistband up.

Repeat steps 5.9 to 5.10 on the Back Main Body.

Fold the bottom edge of the Ears under by ¼ inch.

Place them at the pattern markings on the Front Main Body and pin.

Stitch using a ⅛ inch seam allowance.

Place the Horn at the pattern marking on the Front Main Body and pin.

Place the Flowers onto the Front Main Body, overlapping the Ears and Horn. Pin. 

Hand stitch in place. 

SERGER / OVERLOCKER OPTION – Follow steps 7.1 to 7.3. Then serge together using a ½ inch seam allowance. Repeat for Body Lining. Skip to step 7.6. NOTE – Take extra care with the seam allowance to ensure the Main and Lining pieces match up.

Pin the Wings to the Main Body away from the side seams.

Flip the Tail piece up towards the top.

Place the two Main Body pieces right sides together. Pin around the outside edge of the body. 

NOTE – Do not pin along the waist edge of the Blanket.

Stitch using a ½ inch seam allowance.

Turn the Main Body right sides out and remove pins from the Wings.

Repeat steps 7.3 to 7.4 with the Body Lining pieces.

Turn the Body Lining right sides out.

Place the Body Lining inside the Main Body, wrong sides together, matching the raw edge of the Lining to the Waistband seam allowance. 

Pin from the outside at the seam.

Fold the top of the Waistband to the wrong side ½ inch and press. This will create a memory hem. 

NOTE – A memory hem is where you fold and press your hem, but do not actually stitch it yet. We do this so that fold lines are pressed into the garment. It’s much easier to do this now, then to try and press the hem later. Some fabrics hold a memory hem better than others. If your fabric doesn’t hold it well, that’s ok.  It is still helpful to do this now.

Right sides facing up, ‘stitch in the ditch’ along the seam between the Body and the Waistband, keeping the Mane flat against the Front Body to prevent it getting caught in the stitching. The stitching will not be easily visible in the finished garment.

Stitch slowly and hold the Waistband and Blanket flat on both sides of the presser foot to help stitch right into the crease so it is not visible on the finished Blanket. 

TIP – Use a matching thread and aim for a tiny fraction onto the Blanket instead of the Waistband. This usually ends up fairly invisible.

Fold the Waistband down to the Lining, placing the folded edge just over the stitching from step 7.8. Carefully pin from the right side of the Blanket.

TIP – If you are adding optional elastic to the waist, mark a 1 ½ to 3-inch gap with pins. This is where the elastic will be inserted.

With the right sides facing up, ‘stitch in the ditch’ along the seam between the Blanket and the Waistband, keeping the Mane flat against the Front Body to prevent it getting caught in the stitching. If you are adding the OPTIONAL elastic, leave a 1 ½ to 3-inch gap. If you are not adding the elastic, stitch all the way around the Waistband.

Stitch slowly and hold the Waistband and Blanket flat on both sides of the presser foot to help stitch right into the crease so it is not visible on the finished Blanket. 

If you are adding OPTIONAL elastic, follow below. If you are not adding OPTIONAL elastic your Blanket Tail is finished!

Thread the elastic through the opening from step 7.10.

TIP – Before threading, match up the cut ends, with no twists in the elastic and mark them with a pen/pencil/marker. When you’ve threaded the elastic through the casing, this can help verify there are no twists before the next step.

Overlap the ends of the elastic by ½ inch. Pin.

FIT CHECK – If you have your model available, check the elastic is the correct size before stitching together.

Use a zig zag stitch to sew the ends together.

Slip the elastic inside the casing. 

Topstitch the gap closed, using ⅛ seam allowance.