5 Little Monkeys Teasing Mr. Alligator (FREE Pattern)

Remember that song?

5 little monkeys swinging from a tree,
Teasing Mr. Alligator, "You can't catch me",
Along came Mr. Alligator, Quiet as can be.
And SNAP.

Mr. Alligator eats that monkey...

and keeps going until all those poor monkeys are devoured.

Well, I have been wanting to make some props to go along with the song.  I came across this pattern on the blog 'homemade by jill'.  I loved her blog and her little monkeys!  Here's mine:

Her alligator is super cute too, but I was envisioning a bigger puppet that would chow the monkeys (those poor monkeys!). I set to work and designed an alligator puppet. 

(I swear the back of the neck doesn't look funny in person...I lose points for poor prep work before taking the picture.  That's what I get with a toddler pulling at my pant legs).

My little one LOVES it!  He brings it to me all the time.  I played it with another dozen kiddos at work, and they all loved it too.  And they ask for it to come back (as I've been leaving it at home for my little guy).  Definitely a hit!

Keep reading....here's your  Free Pattern.

And here's the instructions (Seam allowances included for 1/4 inch seams and I used a thicker canvas type material for the alligator): 

1) Cut out all pattern pieces, mark the X in particular.  With close zig zag stitch, make the eye ball in the middle of the alligator eyes and make the noses.  Applique the eye on the Alligator Face.

2) Pin the alligator top to piece above, right sides together, starting at bottom left, going up and around, and finishing at bottom right.  With pins, ease around the curves.  Stitch in place.   The very bottom of the edge will not be stitched.

3) Repeat same process with the other side of the alligator face. Turn right side out and press.

4) Place 4 strips of batting that are about the dimension to the top of the alligator's jaw (doesn't need to be perfect).   Stitch it in place as shown.   You now have the alligator head. Turn wrong side out again.

4) Fold on the alligator teeth pieces on diagonal twice to make a triangle.  Baste bottom edge in place. Make 8. 

4) Pin the pink alligator tongue piece and to the front half of the alligator head, right sides together.  Important:  The fold of the alligator tongue must be pinned at the X on the alligator head.  Add half of the teeth, pinning between the two layers (I did two teeth on top, one on each side). Stitch in place, beginning and ending at the X.

5) Pin bottom jaw of alligator on the bottom portion of the alligator tongue.  Right sides together.  Place remaining teeth in between the two layers before stitching (again, I did two on the bottom, one on each side). turn right side out and press.

6) Pin the alligator neck to the alligator head.   Start with the fold of the neck in the middle of the alligator jaw and pin around to the back. It's okay the pieces don't line up perfectly, we'll take care of that in the next step.   Now, this is the trickiest part out of the whole project, as you have to stitch around the edge, being careful to not sew the alligator mouth shut.  

7) Pin the back of the alligator head together, right sides together.  Gather the remaining fabric from the back of the head of the alligator and pin.  Stitch a dart at an angle from the head of the alligator, continuing on to finish the alligator neck seam.  Hem the bottom of the alligator neck.  Press.  I stuffed a bit of stuffing in the alligator's eyes  to make them stand out better (the dart helps keep it in the right place). 

And there you have it:


Happy crafting!  Let me know if you give it a go...I'd love any feedback, as I'm new to creating patterns.

This project joins my others for a naptime song bag project:

Remember that Naptime Bag project I was working on?  Well, here's the latest softie.

It joins:
The Puppy Crinkle Toy for "How Much Is that Doggie in the Window"

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

The Wheels on the Bus