Dachshund-ing through the Snow: Under $10 DIY Christmas Gift for Dog Lovers

This week I had a $10-limit secret santa gift to make for one of my teammates. Knowing her love for her dachshund made the idea process a bit easier. I contemplated these felt dachshund tree ornaments by Kristina Sloggett at Spabettie, which are super cute, but I'm not really a fan of ornaments as gifts. Go big or go home, right? I eventually found these super cute but atrociously overpriced pillows and knew I could make my own Christmassy version. Other animals/breeds could definitely be used as well, but the dachshund is particularly suited to the two-pillow format.

The inspiration (£60):

My version (about $6):

My dachshund is a little chubbier--I think he's been sneaking some Christmas cookies.

The pillow cases are made of super cozy cotton flannel in contrasting Christmas colours (50% off sale). To make the dachshunds I first drew out my pattern and copied it onto the flannel, then I machine stitched around it. I ironed under the seam allowances along the row of stitching, and slip stitched them by hand onto the simple pillow cases I'd made. Pillow forms would have blown my $10 budget, so I made my own out of some leftover polyester quilt batting and polyfill--and you really wouldn't know the difference. Considering that my giftee teared up at the sight of them, I think it was a successful last minute DIY Christmas gift.