Stitch an egg basket

1. Download the templates. Use to cut one body, then reverse to cut a second. Place the head shape on a grey print, remembering to reverse the template for the second side. Choose the placement of the pattern carefully so that they will match.

2. Pin each head to a corresponding body and stitch together with a 1cm seam allowance. Press the seam open. Lay each body right side up onto green petal print fabric which is wrong side up and cut out. Trim wadding the same size. Repeat for the other side. Place the wadding, then the lining right side up and finally position the front wrong side up and pin all three layers together.

3. Using a 1cm seam allowance, stitch all the way around leaving a gap at the bottom for turning. Trim away any excess and clip into the curves. Turn out and hand stitch the opening. Repeat for the other side. Machine or hand stitch some detail to the ‘feathers’ and stitch the word ‘eggs’.

4. Cut out two combs, two wattles and two beaks, reversing the template for one of each, then trim one of each from wadding. Cut two bases from green petal fabric and another from wadding. For each section, pin the front and back right sides together with the wadding at the bottom, stitch with a 1cm seam, trim the excess fabric and turn out. Iron, then set aside.

5. Pin the two finished chicken sides with the lining fabric on the inside together, and ladder stitch from the tip of the tail down to the bottom. Then hand stitch around the head and down to the bottom, trapping the comb, beak and wattle in between the two sides as you sew them together. Pin the green fabric base in place, then hand stitch to secure. To finish, stitch two black button eyes.

Create a chicken-shaped cosy

1. Use the chicken cosy template to cut two outer pieces and two linings, plus two from wadding. Reverse the template for one of each. Stitch the two sides separately, laying out the wadding, then the lining right side up, followed by the outer fabric wrong side up. Pin together, leaving a gap at the bottom for turning. Trim any excess, clip the curves, turn and close the opening. Quilt two straight lines to add detail to the tail. Set the two pieces aside.

2. Make a beak by folding a yellow ellipse shape in half, point to point and stitching a triangle. Use the comb template to cut two from spotty fabric, reversing one. Stitch right sides together, trim, turn and press. Make two small wings by stitching together two pairs of semicircles. Turn right sides out, press with an iron and hand stitch to each side of the chicken.

3. Pin the front and back wrong sides together and ladder stitch all the way around, leaving the bottom open. As you stitch around the head, trap the beak and comb. Trim around the bottom of the cosy with bias binding.