How-to: Felt Whale Dresser Storage

I’m excited to share these adorable felt whale storage boxes that you can make yourself.  With some stiff felt, these storage totes are super easy to whip up with your sewing machine.  They are great in a room for baby or any of the kids.  Store baby supplies, toys, and more!

Supplies needed to make your own felt whale storage:

• 9×12 Stiff Felt Sheets in Royal Blue (three sheets for the large whale and two sheets for the small)
• White Felt
• Black Dimensional Fabric Paint
• Fabric Glue
• Marker
• Scissors & Thread
• Sewing Machine

I am going to start with the tutorial for making the larger of the two whales.  You can find the differences for the smaller whale towards the bottom of this post.

Cut a whale like shape out of the sheet of royal blue stiff felt.  NOTE:  It is important to use a stiff felt so your storage containers stand up.  You will need to cut two whale like shapes out of two different sheets of felt.

I sort of free handed the tail.  You can see a closer detail below.

Over lap the two halves slightly and sew with a zig zag stitch down the center.  I used white thread on the entire project because I liked the look but you can choose to match the thread to the felt.

Cut a strip of felt about 5 1/2 inches wide.  You can vary this width depending on what you will be storing in the whale.  Sew that on the “front” side of your whale as shown below.  Center over the line you just sewed above.

Lift the sides and sew up each side.  Note how I left this piece long until I was finished sewing.

Trim off the top with your scissors to the desired height.

Next sew down the bottom of your whale on both sides.  Stop approximately where the “back” will be.

When sewing on the back piece it is important to sew down both sides FIRST!

Then trim to length at the top if needed.

Then sew across the bottom.

Take the ends of the tail and sew those together as well (see image below).

For the eyes and mouth, cut pieces from the white felt.  Apply the dimensional fabric paint to your eyes as shown below.  Set aside and allow to dry completely.

Use the fabric glue to add a mouth and eye on both sides of your felt whale storage.

If you want to make the smaller version of the whale, fold one sheet of felt long ways as shown below.  Make the “bottom” as wide as you want your storage container.

Then draw on your whale shape and cut out of both “sides”.

Sew similarly to the way you did for the large version above.  Be sure to still sew down both sides even though it is just folded on those lines.

Again, glue on eyes, your mouth pieces, and sew the tail at the end.

He is just perfect for tons of small storage needs.

Grab your supplies and make your own felt whale storage today!  You can make as many of these little guys as you would like.  They would also look amazing in a nautical themed kids’ bathroom.  How many whales will you make?

Angie Holden

Angie blogs at The Country Chic Cottage where you can find creative crafts, vintage finds, home decor, and DIY all with a little farmhouse flair. Angie has been blogging for over 2 years and is married with three kids. Stop by her blog where you will find everything from small, quick crafts to major furniture and home makeovers.