How I Made a Faux Fur Muff with Quilted Lining & Pockets

My favorite sewing projects are often those spur-of-the-moment ideas that end up becoming very useful pieces in my wardrobe. That's the case for this faux fur muff, a one-day upcycle project that I will use for many cold-weather historical outfits.

About 5 years ago, I stitched together two faux fur cuffs removed from a thrifted coat - in the car, on the way to an event. The almost-muff was serviceable, but without a warm lining or place to hide my phone and gloves, I didn't reach for it much.

With a historical ice skating outing coming up, I finally finished the muff with some useful hidden features.

For extra warmth, I created a quilted lining for the muff. The top layer is a black polyester satin from my scrap basket (with 0.5" + seam allowances around), and the bottom is cotton batting (cut to the exact size of the muff interior). I quilted these layers together by hand, which only took a few hours. 

I decided to add a phone pocket to the lining before stitching up the bottom seam.  The phone pocket is a hemmed rectangle, with mitered corners. The bottom edge of the pocket was left unfinished, as I would enclose it in the lining seam. I sewed the sides of the pocket down with a simple running stitch, and basted the bottom of the pocket to the lining seam allowance.

I added a small snap to the top of the phone pocket to help keep it securely closed, and a ribbon loop in the seam so that I could hold the muff on my wrist.

I still had room in the muff and scrap satin fabric, so I added another pocket (for my gloves or wallet) to the side of the muff. 

The final step was to fold down the half inch seam allowance along the side of the muff lining, and whip stitch the lining in place. I added a small amount of polyester fiber fill between the lining and faux fur for a rounded shape to the muff.

The finished muff is very cozy and warm, and the hand quilted satin lining feels great against my skin. The pockets are easy to access and pleasantly roomy, so I won't need to fuss with pockets or a handbag. I hope this project inspires you to create your own cozy muff!