Loki got a new bed today and the weather held out for photos, so you all get a new tutorial! Read below to learn how to make this cute fluffy fleece dog bed!
You’ll need 1 1/4 yards of fleece. (This is Debbie Mumm fleece from JoAnn, so it’s a little nicer than their standard fleece.) I cut TWO 26″ circles. His little butt won’t hang off of this one! Then, I did a little math. After a 1/2″ seam allowance, the circle is 25″, so 3.14*25= 78.5. 78.5/2 is 39.25 + another 1/2″ seam allowance = let’s say 40. That means we need two pieces that are at least 40″ long. I cut mine 9″ high by 44″ long to make sure I had enough.
This should help explain how I cut it out:
I cut the 26″ square first, then folded in it fourths. I measured 13″ from the center point in several places and marked it with chalk (or a sharpie, I can’t remember…) Then I used my super-sharp Ginghers to slice through all 8 layers of fleece. It doesn’t have to be perfect! And I say that being a perfectionist. But seriously, if it’s slightly oval or choppy or whatever it doesn’t matter as long as it’s consistent top and bottom. Any choppiness will end up in the seam allowance, and a wonky shape won’t be noticeable once it’s stuffed.
(If you buy 1 1/3 yards, you can squeeze out 28″ circles, but not much more than that.)
Now, sew the long pieces together on the short side, right sides together, to make once long piece. I used a 1/2″ seam allowance and my walking foot for the whole project.
Now mark the halfway points on both circles. I folded them in half and marked each spot with a pin.
Now take one circle and place it right sides together with the long piece, matching the center seam to the center point.
Sew in both directions starting from this center point/seam to 4″ from the other center point. 
This diagram will help:
Sew the other circle in the same manner. You should now have the top and bottom attached, and 8″ open at the center on the top and bottom.
Now pin the seams all the way up to the center point, then fold the excess back and pin it in place. Sew all the way across the top and bottom seams.
This should give you a finished bed with a hole in the middle where you will turn and stuff the bed.
Turn it right sides out:
Now you’ll need two pillows. Pillows are cheaper than stuffing! I get them for $3-$4 when I can combine sales and coupons. Target and Kohl’s are good for cheap pillow deals.
Perform some surgery on your pillows. Try to fluff up the stuffing as best you can and stuff it into the bed. Keep stuffing! It will smoosh down, so while you are going for more “disc” than “ball” keep in mind you may need to over-stuff a little bit. A lint roller and vacuum are helpful for cleanup after this step.
Add a minion to check for fluffiness. This one couldn’t wait to try the bed! He actually jumped OVER me to get to it.
Now you need to hand-stitch the opening closed. You could machine stitch, but hand-stitching will look more seamless and it will allow you to open the bed back up easily should you need to add more stuffing. (For washing, I just shove the whole bed in my front loader. If you can wash two pillows, you can wash this.)
Insert your needle back behind one of the folds and push it through at the top seam. Use a ladder stitch back and forth, taking big stitches – about every 1/4″-1/2″ all the way to the bottom.
Pause to pet the doggie who is sitting on the bed while you do this. (Partly because he likes his new bed, but mostly because I have the camera and he knows he gets to pose for the camera… and get treats.)
Keep sewing…
Tie off the last stitch a couple times and bury the thread:
Done!
I made this the day after I found the tutorial! Was SO easy and my doggy loves it!! I bought my polyfil at Hobby Lobby, it was only $2.99/bag and was on sale for 30% off! And if it wasn’t on sale they usually have a coupon! Thanks so much for the great how-to!!! :)
That’s great!! And you got a really good deal on poly-fil! :)
I love love love this pattern and will be making it or my yorkie :) xxxx
Ooh pics please when you’re done! :) Love those Yorkies.
Thanks so much! I used this pattern to make a bed for my fur-child Rat Terrier and just tweaked it to have a “burrow blanket” attached to the top. You made it simple to understand and for my first project with my new sewing machine I was impressed with myself, Thank You!
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Its made out of old fleece blankets they had as a practice bed, now I will go get nice fleece to make a better version =)
It’s cute (the dog and the bed! heehee) Good job and thanks for sharing!!
Trying to add a photo….
Erin, This is adorable. Love the fabric and the dog. Now I just need a dog or two so I can make some beds..
I purchased and made your Two Zip Hipster and it went together like a dream. You are a talented pattern designer.
I love the dog bed (and the doggie). I am so going to make this for my dogs. For stuffing I plan to use the stuffing out of the old yucky pillows I’ve been storing in my basement for too long. Thanks for the great idea!
Oh my god, I absolutely love this! I have to make one for my dog ASAP!! He will love this bed so much.
Thanks so much for this DIY.
PS. Your dog is adorable!!
Love this! Can’t wait to make one for my grand-doggie!
Can’t wait to try this for our Shi Tzu. Will this be washable?
The ones that I’ve made are all washable. I have an older, very basic front loader and even the blue one fits in fine. I wash them all the time.
I would say if you can fit a Queen size comforter or two pillows in your machine, you can fit this.
[...] when I shopped for dog beds. One big fluffy pillow was marked $46.99! Then I found this tutorial for a fleece dog bed with very simple sewing instructions. The author uses new pillows for the stuffing but I would [...]
Great pattern! I have two lhassas I will be making this for. Love the pillow idea for stuffing. I actually recently made a bed for my mastif (she’s 150 lbs!) by sewing the edges of four old pillows together to make a big square, then I made a grime-proof cover with an old vinyl/plasticky tablecloth, then I made a fabric cover with a zipper to go over it because washing is a must with that drool-Meister.
Very cute!! Dog beds are expensive! The best deals for a quality one is usually at Costco, but sometimes the fabrics are blah boring. I will definitely try making a couple of these (slightly bigger) for my two pit bulls :)
How much does the fabric cost? Does anyone know the price difference between this and a store bought one? Thanks for posting, we have two big dogs and seem to go through beds just from wear and tear. I really want to make some of these, they would also be great for gifts for dog lovers!
The fleece I used for this was $15/yard, but I’m sure I used a 40% off coupon. It’s the JoAnn premium line of fleece. Designer fleece/minky is around $15-$18/yard. You can buy very inexpensive fleece but I find it more difficult to work with and the quality poor. The pillows I used were $4-5 each. So total I spent less than $20 on it.
I can’t wait to make 2 of these for my little buddy’s…thank you for the pattern
Oh man I LOVE this pattern. We have 2 gigantic dogs so I am going to have to play with the size and may end making an oval shape because of space limitations but this is AWESOME! Thanks!
great tutorial, I love this bed and your lovely dog. hugs
I soo want to make this but not for the dog this is gonna be a bean-bag type chair for me!
Awesome :) Let me know how that turns out!
Thanks so much for the tips on getting stuffing CHEAP, since I’ve got projects done but balked at the price of filling them. Bargain Pillows!! Brilliant.
I know! Stuffing is so expensive. I do find that the “down alternative” pillows that cost a couple dollars more seem to work better than the ones that are a rolled wad of stuffing, but I’ve had success with both. I’m glad you can finish your projects now!
I make and sell petwear and accessories for a living and have made these type of beds and stuffed them with my fleece scraps instead of throwing them out! I make them with a removable cover with just a bit of velcro at the closure seam instead of stitching. My non-front loading customers seem to appreciate that :)
Your Loki looks just like my Mugzy who just turned 15!!!
Great tutorial, LOVE the puppies!!!!
I’m going to try a scaled down version of this for my cats!
LOVE this! Perfect birthday idea for my sister-in-law who just adopted a new ‘fur-child’ (love that too!). Great idea with the pillow stuffing. Have to remember to check at the dollar stores.
Thanks so much for this tutorial! I’m getting a puppy at the end of the week and wanted to make him something to lay on around the house ~ this pillow is just perfect. And, using an old pillow (or new) is a fab idea! Ikea is a great place to get pillows too.
Thanks for the tip about the stuffing!!! I got a 1 1/4 yards of fleece for $4.99 at Jo-annFabrics with a coupon and went over to Big Lots and snagged two pillows for $4.50 (they have a deal for BOGO 50% off). So total price to make this bed for me was $9.50 and my pugs love it a million times more than their twenty something dollar bed!!!
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The first photo is our younger guy Marcus who was thoroughly enjoying the bed through the night. The second photo is our older gal Tily who immediately knew what I was up too once I started stuffing the bed :P
Oh my gosh, they are adorable! Thank you for sharing! :)
Also, I have two requests already for cat beds! I have a feeling all of the animals in my family will have their own beds! :)
[...] pattern is this super cute fleece dog bed by Erin over at Dog Under My [...]
I made these and im only 14! Im selling them, BUT I am doing them differently! :D I am adding a slip on “Pillowcase cover” with a zipper :)
what size would i make this for a 7 year old?
thanks!
Oh gosh, I don’t know. The circle size is probably fine, but you could make them taller so you could really stuff them. Keep mind my dogs only weigh 6 & 12 pounds, so sinking in they still don’t squish the stuffing all the way to the floor. A kid probably would. You’d have to stuff it really full and it would be more like a floor pillow than a beanbag chair, if that’s what you were thinking. I would probably use 3 pillows not two, then let them sit on it a while to smush it down :) Good luck!
i should clarify – a 7 y.o. child!