Add Animal Ears to ANY Hoodie Pattern

After making the Chromium in my last post for my daughter, my son was adamant that he needed a cat hoodie, too…specifically a black cat. I am a big fan of using patterns I already know fit my kids, so instead of having to sew a muslin of the Chromium, I decided to just pull out the Oversized Tee from Ellie and Mac* and hack that to have ears, instead. If you saw the photo on my last post, that was actually the pattern I used for my daughter’s first version anyway. This hack is fairly simple and straightforward to do. The most complex part of it all is the sewing, particularly since sherpa or faux-fur fabrics are most often used with animal ear hoodies and they are a little annoying to sew with (in my honest opinion).

To start, you will need to edit the hood. We will make it into pieces so that you have a seam to sew the ears into. I have seen versions where you cut a slit and stick the ears into, then stitch in place, but I feel like the ears don’t stand as well that way. If your hood has any extension at the front (like the Oversized Tee), you can choose to keep it or get rid of it. If you get rid of it, you will need to add more width to the hood to keep your finished neckline of the hood the same circumference. It’s not fun seam-ripping sherpa…I had to remove the hood, cut + sew a new one and re-attach after my son wore the hoodie to the pumpkin patch. No fun at all! if your hood has a typical crossover at the front, you can skip adding the width, as it will still fit once complete. Once you have the overall hood shape the way you like, measure back 2.5″ from the front opening and make a parallel line 2.5″ all the way from the top to bottom. This will become your front hood band. Do not cut apart on these lines. This pattern will be used for your liner hood. Instead, trace the front part to other paper + add seam allowance. Make the top part squared, if needed, so you can cut it on the fold. Trace the back part + add seam allowance. Measure 3″ down from the top on the back part of the hood (or your preferred distance, depending on your finished ear shape/size) and make a notch. (Sorry for my crude drawings…one day I’ll learn how to do this in a very digital, professional manner 🤣)

Next, play around with the shape of your cat ears (or whatever other animal you want to make). I just sketched it onto the finished pattern piece until it looked the right sized, then traced it onto new paper. I then drew in the inner ear shape and traced it onto paper. The last step was to add seam allowance. Note: the inner ear should extend down to the bottom into the seam allowance. I show it that way in a later photo. I also notched the middle just to denote where they attach. If your ears are larger or smaller, you may need to move your notch closer further from the middle seam, for whatever look you’re going for. The pieces you will need to cut are the hood main, which consists of the front and back hood, so cut front hood (on the fold at the top), two back hoods mirrored, two liner hoods from your full pattern piece, two inner ears, and four ears (mirrored, if the shape isn’t symmetrical). This is, of course, in addition to whatever pieces you need to construct the rest of your hoodie 😉

Sew the inner ear onto one piece from each set of your mirrored ears. Next, sew that ear right sides together with the other ear from that set. Turn right side out. I don’t bother snipping/clipping with sherpa as it’s very lightweight and malleable and doesn’t really need that to look good. Place your back hoods right sides together and pin or clip, then sew the outer curve. Mark the center of the front hood with a pin or clip. That will match to the center seam of the back hood. Position your back hood right side up, as shown. The notches are where you will attach your ears. Place them so that the inner ear is showing and pin or clip in place. Flip it out and check that you’re happy with the position. Once you are, baste, if desired. Match your front hood right sides together with the back hood and match the center pins or clips from the previous pic, and all the raw edges. Sew. Again, I don’t trim anything as I don’t find it necessary with sherpa. When you turn your hood right side out, your ears should look the way they will when you are done. Attach the liner hood right sides together with the main along the front edges. Have your model try the hood on because it’s hard to resist seeing how adorable it is at this point. Continue on with normal hood attachment (right sides together around the neckline with whatever overlap your pattern has). You’re done!

I hope you loved this tutorial and find is useful to add some animal ears to your kiddo’s (or even your own) next hoodie. Check out my other post to sew some paw print fingerless gloves and a tail to complete the ensemble.

Any links in this post containing asterisks are affiliate links. That does not change the price of the product for you, but I do earn a small commission when you shop through the link. Thank you for your support!