These are lovely little dogs, they look so playful and mischievous- I particularly love the rearing up pose- it adds to their playfulness! The great thing about using the stocking forВ the pellets (besides the fact that it contains the mess) is that it becomes kind of like a really flexible stress ball-you can form it into the shape you need to perfectly fill the hole youвЂ™ve made in your animal.ДЄdd a bit of the extra stuffing to pad the bootyвЂ¦ДЄnd then-starting from the inside so that the end of your thread will be hidden-sew the seam closed again.These Scotties are great!! I've seen bronze, brass and cast iron, but these are the first glass Scottie bookends I've ever seen. Tie a knot in the top of the pellet-filled stocking, and squish, push and stretch it until it fits inside your animal. And keep in mind that slow and steady wins the race when youвЂ™re pouring-I learned that the hard way. Cut one leg off of a pair of stockings, and carefully pour in your poly pellets (or weighted material of choice).В These are very small, round pellets, so please keep the bag away from little hands. Set your not-so-stuffed animal off to the side so you can prepare its new filling. For reference, I took out about half of my birdieвЂ™s filling. Remove some of the stuffing, and set it aside. Use a seam ripper to open a seam along the bottom or the back of your fluffy friend. The first step is to create a hole so that you can remove some of the stuffing and replace it with your weighted material. Start with theВ stuffed animal of your choice-I purchased this cute little birdieВ from TargetвЂ™s new Pillowfort collection, but you could even give new life to an old friend by choosing from your little oneвЂ™s stash. Materials: stuffed animal of your choice, seam ripper, coordinating thread, needle, stockings, poly pelletsВ (or other weighted material, like dried beans or rice)

And you know what? It was so easy, and by making it with a few simple supplies that you probably already have around the house, this DIY stuffed animal bookend isВ practically free. Bookends are hardly an innovative solution, but I got to thinking-what if the bookend was just as enticing as the books it held up? I had seen animal-shaped bookends before, butВ I decided to try my hand at making one myself. I know I should pare down our library a bit, but to be honest, every time I think my daughter has lost interest in a book, sheвЂ™ll rediscover it and it will become her story of choice for the foreseeable future.ДЄs our collection has grown, IвЂ™ve been brainstorming ways to store and organize our books while keeping them accessible to the four little hands that reach for them constantly. Our collection of books is, well, extensive, and our bookshelves are just about full.

I know IвЂ™ve mentioned this once or twice (or fifty times) before, but my littles-especially my daughter-love to read.

Animal bookends