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Last year, I saw all the cutest Halloween project ideas around October 29th, and didn’t have time to gather supplies and make anything.
It haunted me, and this year, I finally remembered to start looking for inspiration early! Here’s your gentle reminder to think ahead if you’d like to decorate with more than just produce.
I have been absolutely beside myself excited to make this Mr. Bones Jr. stuffie using a Riley Blake panel. But when I got an email from Sewing Parts Online a few weeks ago about glow in the dark thread…yes, you read that right…my brain exploded. 🎃🧵🤯
Ahrora glow-in-the-dark thread from Wonderfil comes in 8 colors. I got white, but you can browse the others.
I decided to use my free-motion foot (which I had never used before) to essentially trace inside the edge of the bones on each piece with my glow in the dark thread so that at night, in the dark, Mr. Bones can still give a little "Peek-a-Boo!"
This is one of those projects that turned out even better than I was expecting! I am thrilled with it, and so excited to decorate with this little guy for years to come! Plus, the kids LOVE it! (Ok, Jack cried when he first saw it, but after a little get to know you period, they became friends)
The supplies I used are all linked below, and hurry…it's nearly October, y'all!
If you want to check out the instructions for Mr. Bones to get an idea of what you'd be getting into, read them here.
Just know that the glow in the dark thread step is something I decided to add to the basic instructions. Read on below for my full how-to and level up your Mr. Bones stuffie!
What You Need:
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Regular Thread, white and black
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Black Thick Thread such as DMC perle cotton
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24” Dowel Rod (I liked a square one because it had less bend)
How to Make a Glow in the Dark Mr. Bones Stuffie
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Cut the Mr. Bones panel into two pieces: one for front, one for back.
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Line the front side pieces with tear away stabilizer. You’ll have to overlap two pieces of stabilizer if it’s not wide enough.
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Thread the top of your machine with glow in the dark thread, regular thread in the bobbin.
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Put a free motion foot on your machine and drop the feed dogs.
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Test the tension and speed by stitching a few circles in the scrap portions of the panel). Mine took a tension of 7 (I normally use 4.5 when piecing or general sewing). Also adjust speed to your liking if you have a setting for that. I set mine to about 40% of full speed. This helps because you can push your pedal all the way down to achieve a consistent speed while free motion sewing.
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Stitch inside each bone shape and around holes on the skull and pelvis. I went around each shape 3 times for extra glow. I only stitched the front pieces with the glow in the dark thread.
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Remove all stabilizer from the back.
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Trim threads.
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From here you can just follow the Riley Blake Mr. Bones panel instructions, but for your convenience, I’ll include the basics here if you want to stay on this page.
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Cut on the dashed lines.
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Stitch the front head to the front main body at the neck with a ¼” seam, RST. Repeat for the back head and back body.
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Stitch the front head/body to the back head/body, RST.
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Stitch all other front/back matching pieces in the same way.
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Clip all curves and corners (concave and convex), being very careful not to cut your stitching.
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Turn all pieces right side out using a point turner as necessary. (I recommend turning on some Hocus Pocus to get you through this step and the next.)
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Stuff each piece with Polyfil or similar, using hemostats to push stuffing into all curves and create a uniform firmness throughout.
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Insert dowel through the head/body piece for support.
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Close each piece with black thread by hand with a whip stitch.
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Connect them bones (don’t you have that stuck in your head, too?) with a thick thread like DMC perle cotton. Leave a little slack between joints if you want him to be extra positionable.
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Set him in the sun, and let him soak in some rays so he'll glow through the night!
I wish I could get a good photo of it glowing in the dark, but my camera just can't quite capture it! You'll have to trust me and make your own to get the full effect! You can see the full spool of thread glowing in the dark, here.
I hope you enjoy this project! I am totally obsessed with this glow in the dark thread now! I'll try quilting with it next. Stay tuned!
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