Tiger Finger Puppets
Create some exciting pretend play with this streak – or ambush – of tiger finger puppets! If you recall, about a month ago I shared this parliament of paper owls craft as part of a group sharing ideas based on collective nouns. These adorable tiger finger puppets are a continuation of that theme – and you get a free pattern to go with it. Disclosure: this post contains affiliate links.
Little felt finger puppets are one of the easiest sewing projects you can make for your kid – they are perfect for hand-sewing using embroidery floss, so you don’t REALLY need to sew.
And they are highly entertaining for kids who love to pretend. M couldn’t wait for me to finish – and photograph – these tiger finger puppets so that he can get his paws on them…
I made a few versions as you can see – with the white patches and without, with more stripes and fewer. I glued the parts on using fabric glue which can get a bit messy, so I decided to go with fewer parts. I was thinking of embroidering the stripes on one of them, but I honestly didn’t have the patience.
The pattern is the perfect size for little hands (make sure you print at “actual size” and not “fit to page”). I had to work a little harder to get them on, but they were great for M.
While tigers normally live alone, somehow there is still a collective noun for them. That’s where your kids’ imagination comes in. These 3 friendly tiger put on a puppet show together and become a streak…
On the first one I tried to blanket stitch around the entire edge. It got a bit difficult at the more complicated points so I kind of “winged it”. Thank goodness I was working with orange floss…
After that, I decided that I’m best off just gluing the top down, since it doesn’t really get much pressure. I sewed the bottom section using a whipstitch in black floss. I didn’t put stripes on that part and let the stitch serve as the stripes.
On the last one I did, where I left out the white, I gave the blanket stitch another go, in orange, but I only sewed the bottom – and I glued the top. Either way works, but I definitely recommend going with the “glued top” route.
While the pattern does have the black around the eye, it might be a bit redundant when you’re using googly eyes – put it there only if you like it!
What you need to make tiger finger puppets:
- Orange, black, and white felt. I actually used fleece scraps for the white. You’ll want to make sure your main/orange felt is a good, soft one (this is the one that I used).
- Black or orange embroidery floss
- Embroidery needle
- Scissors for paper and fabric. I also recommend having a good pair of detail scissors handy.
- Fabric glue
- Googly eyes
- Straight pins
- The free pattern, printed. Download it by entering your email address below and you’ll get it right into your inbox:
How to make DIY tiger finger puppets:
Watch the video, or scroll down for the written photo tutorial:
1. Cut out the outline of the pattern.
2. Trace it on felt, and fold your sheet over so that you’re doubling the pattern. If you want you can pin the layers together.
3. Cut out two tiger outlines.
4. Now cut the white parts – the tummy and nose area – out of the pattern.
6. Pin those to white felt and cut out.
7. Do the same with the remaining outlines. Cut the nose out of what you used for the white section of your pattern, and if you want “cat eyes” do the eyes from the pattern as well. Cut them out of black felt.
8. Glue the pieces on one side of your tiger as pictured (make sure any pen markings face inward).
9. If you want, sew on a few whiskers using black embroidery floss.
10. Add your stripes – just cut random “long triangles”/ stripes with one flat edge and one tapered edge out of black felt. Glue them on as you wish.
11. Pin the two sides of your tiger back to back.
12. Whipstitch up the two sides of your puppet, leaving the bottom open. Stitch until you reach the head – then glue the head together, ensuring you tack down the ears.
Try a few different styles and see which you like best!
Now it’s time to pretend and put on a show! Get dramatic!
These DIY tiger finger puppets are so doable – and make a wonderful DIY gift for preschoolers!
Check out some more creative collective nouns by some talented crafters! You’ll find an adorable idea for a cast of crabs as well as a playful glint of goldfish.
I am trying to download the pattern for the tiger finger puppet
Hi Jennifer, I apologize, some of my older forms were broken. I updated the form now so you can try again – or just email me at menucha@momsandcrafters.com and I’ll send it right over. And feel free to reach out if you have trouble with any other forms.