This basic tooth pillow pattern includes a loop to hang from the bedpost, doorknob or night table drawer knob, so the Tooth Fairy doesn't have to do that hazardous groping under the beneficiary's pillow. This is pure gold. Pure GOLD, people. It also has a built-in pocket in the mouth for receiving teeth and coins. So I finished my oldest's tooth pillow (Ballerina Fairy, photo above) and side sleeper relief I thought I'd repost the basic pattern with a better tutorial to go with it, because I made a couple of adjustments to it. The basic pattern does not include the crown, wings or skirt. You could make those parts pretty easily on your own if you like. The basic free pattern now includes the cheek and teeth shapes. I'm also developing a retail version of the pattern that includes lots of accessories and a better way to sew the mouth pocket. 1) You've downloaded the new and improved pattern and printed it out twice at actual size (no scaling) on letter sized card stock, right?

Alrighty. Cut out the teeth and cheek shapes if you want to use them. Cut out the large tooth body piece from one sheet and the pocket piece from the other sheet. Also punch small holes in the main pattern piece to mark the ribbon placement, the mouth slit, the top corners of the pocket placement and the eyes. I use a 1/8 inch hole punch and it works great. 2) Trace and cut out the tooth pattern twice on felt. The pattern is now symmetrical so you don't have to worry about flipping it. Mark a vertical slit on the back piece and on the other piece mark all the placement holes you punched in step one. Trace and cut out the small teeth shape and two cheeks if you are going to use them. If you are using the teeth shape, go ahead and glue it to the center top of the pocket piece.

Set the cheek shapes aside. Note: If your tooth is a light color felt, avoid choosing dark colors for the pocket piece -- it may show through and give your tooth five o'clock shadow. Not good, especially if you are a girl tooth pillow. 4) In matching thread, machine sew around the mouth line and also the line on the back piece before you cut them. It will look like a box of stitches around each one. It's to stabilize the felt and keep it from stretching out of shape. Use an Xacto knife and a ruler to cut the slits, being sure not to come too close to the stitching. 5) Add dots of fabric glue around the edges of the right side sleeper relief of the pocket piece to keep it in place for sewing. Place it on the wrong side of the front piece behind the mouth using your marked dots for placement.

Be sure the teeth are centered and showing through the mouth slit. With thread or floss that matches the outside of your tooth, hand sew wi added on the back (girly overload), so you can see there are many possibilities. I've made a few improvements to the pattern since I made mine. What's really weird is at the time I was making it, I found out my good friend Jessica's daughter requested her own tooth pillow Ballerina Fairy at the same time, so our kids must've been channeling from some snaggle-toothed girly collective unconscious. Which is creepy. In a good way.