Child Size Bean Bag Chair -DIY Video Tutorial

by on in Sewing (General)

I’ve had this project on my mind for a very long time… just never set aside the time to figure it all out and do it.  So when a new sponsor- Shannon Fabrics reached out to me about trying out their Cuddle Fabric I knew this was the perfect project for it!

I also provide you with the template you need to create the bags for FREE! Just click HERE to access it.  Make sure you “download” the project before you try to print it.  It needs to be printed while it’s open in the Adobe PDF reader. The full template is 3 printed (8.5″ x 11″) sheets of paper and I included a 1″ x 1″ square for you to make sure your printers settings are printing it correctly. Do not adjust the page settings to “fit to page” for printing.
I wanted to make these specifically for our homeschool classroom for the kids to “read” on. As you can see they love ’em! I especially like that they are light enough to be moved out of the way or stacked in a corner.

No matter your sewing skill level I think you will be able to easily finish this project with the help of step-by-step video tutorial. It’s 15 minutes long but I did my best to cover as much info as I could. Trust me when I tell you it is NOT easy to edit down hours of footage into 15 minutes. Phew!

The outer shell of the bean bag chairs is made of Cuddle Fabric (affiliate link) by Shannon Fabrics. It is sooooo soft and as the name suggests- Cuddly! It’s machine washable/dryable and they make it in dozens of different colors, prints and textures. You can find Cuddle Fabric HERE (affiliate link), at your local fabric/quilt shop, or at a number of other online retailers.

To fill the bean bag chair I used Fairfield’s Poly-Fill® Bean Bag Filler. Which you can get at 20% off if you use our exclusive code: CG13BB and order from HERE.  This code is valid until September 1, 2013 and is limited to one use per customer.

For the closure I tried two different methods and they both worked fine: For my daughter’s bean bag I used my handy plastic snap kit {get it HERE} (affiliate link) which I show you how to do in the video and for my son’s I used hook and loop tape.

These should last us a good long time.  Just remember to keep flipping the bean bag around so the Poly-Fil® Bean Bag Filler doesn’t get compressed over time.

Materials used in this project:

• Print out pattern template for FREE here.
• 3 yards of exterior fabric- I used Cuddle Fabric by Shannon Fabrics (for retailers see list above)
• 3 yards for lining fabric- I used 100% cotton scraps I had
• 2 of the 2.5 lb bags of Fairfield Poly-Fil® Bean Bag Filler
• less than 1/4 yard of lightweight or mediumweight interfacing
• a CD (to trace a circular template for the applique)
• closure of your choice- you can use hook & loop tape or the snap kit I have
• a marker
• pins, thread
• rotary cutter + mat or scissors
• sewing machine
Shop sewing tools and notions at The Crafty Gemini Shop: https://craftygemini.com/product-category/toolsnotions/

Hope you enjoy the video tutorial and thanks for following my crafty projects!

22 replies on “Child Size Bean Bag Chair -DIY Video Tutorial“

  • Helen from AhhProds Custom Ordering

    Hi Vanessa,

    Very cute bean bags! Bravo!

    You are definitely crafty – In case your readers may decide that they would rather either buy a bean bag already made, or want to send their fabric to have one made for them, they can check out ahhprods.com – there are a ton of them to buy, as well as a custom ordering program! Just send in fabric and the bean bag will be made complete with the removable cover with your fabric (with zipper to make washing easy), an inner liner that is water-repellent and super strong, and of course the filling inside the liner.

    Hope this info is helpful for people that can’t quite get the sewing done themselves! (you can call 888-244-6818 for more info too)

    Thanks for the post!

  • Anonymous

    Great videos!! I’ve sewn with cotton for years for quilting and crafting. I’ve really wanted to try stretch knits but I knew there were things I needed to know before venturing into the unknown. After watching your videos I feel so ready to jump into a new sewing world! With two little girls that I am eager to sew for, you have opened a great big door of opportunity for me! Not only are your videos educational and informative, your personal communication style is pleasant and entertaining. I sew on an old Singer so I am not sure if I can find a walking foot but I will sure be looking for one. Thanks for the fabulous videos!

  • nancy smith

    Thank you for sharing valuable information. Nice post. I enjoyed reading this post. The whole blog is very nice found some good stuff and good information here Thanks..Also visit my page bean bag chair Ella Vickers produces high end, designer tote bags for all sorts of uses. The tote bags are made from recycled sailcloth.

  • Anonymous

    I love this tutorial. I am in the process of making three of them for my children. The tutorial has been perfect and they are turning out gret. However, I am wondering how to do the velcro closure. It is a curved edge I will be sewing it on. How does the velcro curve?
    -Laura

  • Eve Apollonio

    I loved this tutorial and it was my first time creating something real on the machine! Very easy to follow however I don’t think my printer printed the correct size as the bean bag seems to have come out slightly smaller than the one in your pictures… I believe it’s because I’ve used cotton rather than stretch material? And I think the sizing you are using is U.S. Is there a way of getting exact measurement in metrics? I would like to make more for my friends but slightly bigger this time. One other problem I seem to have is the seam with the fasteners. Even though the outer layer seems slightly bigger than the inner one, as soon as my son (he’s only 3) sits on it the poppers open… It doesn’t seem overly stretched though.. What can I adjust?

  • Jennifer Maudlin

    Thanks for this awesome video! I am super excited to make these. I can’t get the PDF to pull up though. It keeps telling me “Page not found”. Am I doing something wrong?

  • julie cattell

    Vanessa, we use your videos to teach my 9 yr old to sew and she found your beanbag video but we can’t download the pattern. Can you please help.thanks.julie

    • julie cattell

      Vanessa, have tried all the links you sent, have joined robora and I still can’t get the pdfs. I also need the child and adult hats but to no avail. what can I do please.

  • Darlena

    Wish I had found your pattern before I tried to make mine from an old beanbag. It had circles at the top and the bottom and took much longer than 30 min. If I make another one I will use your pattern. Thanks.

  • Elvira

    Hola,
    Love your website!
    How many many pounds of bean bag filler goes into each bean bag?
    Thank you

  • kooka7

    Hi there, thanks so much for this fantastic tutorial. As far as filling the beans goes, I ended up retro fitting a 3lt milk jug (cut the bottom off and the spout) and pegged the fabric to the inside of the jug and had hubby hold the bean bag while I poured the beans in. Worked a treat. I decided to use zips on both the liner (pinwale corduroy) and cover (zigzag pink/white fleece)…. I don’t think there is anyway to get away from spillage as the beans just stick so whilst I had the funnel – some still escaped!. I also used 1 and a 1/3 bags of beans. Not sure what size the ones are that you used, the ones I used from Walmart in Canada were 100 litre bags. We have 5 little ones and I made this for our eldest who turns 8, the others already want one so I have said ‘sure – for your birthday’ LOL… blessings…

  • sana farrukh

    Please tel me the size of the pattrn as I m going to make it directly on fabric…I want the measurements

  • maggi

    I tried to download or to get the template send to my email. but I can get it to send or email ir. is there another way to get the template..
    thanks very much

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