Over-sized Plush Flash Drive

USB flash drives are getting smaller in size and larger in storage capacity making it easier to move and store more data and with all the great mods, such as Lego, chewing gum and whiskey bottle flash drives they are easier to conceal. 

This instructable, however, does not make your USB more portable or discreet,  in fact it does the opposite. It's a giant plush flash drive!

Well at least it would be hard to lose or misplace it!

• 20x20 inch plush fabric
• 11.5X6 inch silver fabric
• black and white felt
• small piece of shear fabric
• USB flash drive
• USB extender 1-2ft long (has a male and female end)
• matching thread
• craft poly-fill (stuffing)

Tools:

• scissors
• pins
• needle (for hand stitching)
• sewing machine

I made the USB connector (the metal part of the flash drive that plugs into the computer) using a silver colour fabric and some black felt. 

• To start, cut the fabric to a length of 11.5 inches and a width of 6 inches.
• Fold in half lengthwise and pin together.
• Sew the two edges together with a seam allowance of ~3/4 inch forming a tube.
• This will give the USB connector a length of 4 inches and a thickness of 1inch (once it is sewn onto the body of the flash drive the connector width will be 4 inches also).

I used black felt for the end piece of the connector and to make the rectangular "holes" on the top and bottom of the connector.

• Cut a 5 X 1.5inch piece of black felt
• Make sure the tube sewn in the previous step is inside out and the seam created should lie in the middle.
• Take one end of the tube and fold an inch of fabric down.
• Pin the felt to the folded edge and sew in place.
• Turn the fabric inside out.
• Cut 4 pieces of felt 1 X 1/2 in.
• Pin two pieces on the front and two on the back (for placement see images below)
• Hand stitch the rectangles in place.

I found the easiest way to cut the fabric to the right shape and size is measure it out on some paper first using the dimensions below.  Cut out the paper pattern, lay it over your fabric and pin it in place.  Now cut the fabric.

Fold the fabric in half as shown and pin together.  I left a 1/2 inch seam allowance and drew a line along it to make sure that I sew straight.  Once it is sewn together take the 3x6 inch flap on each end  pin and sew (see images below) forming a rectangular box. Leave one end partially open so that you can turn the fabric inside out and stuff it with poly fill later.

To get the light of the LED of the flash drive to come through the fur I cut a hole in the top of the main body. I used a bottle cap to trace the size and shape.  I then covered the hole with two layers of shear fabric, since I found that the light diffused best through two layers. The shear fabric that I used was organza which you can get from little gift bags at dollar stores. I had used another square of the organza underneath the top two to form a pocket for the flash drive to sit in.

To make the plush flash drive more realistic I added the storage capacity.  You could add brand logos as well.  I sketched the lettering on paper and then cut them out of felt and hand stitched them onto the main body.

Now we connect the main body to the silver connector.

• Make sure that the main body piece is inside out.
• Cut a 4 inch horizontal slit in the centre of the front end piece
• On each end of the slit cut 1/2 inch vertical slit above and below the horizontal slit on both sides.
• With both pieces right side out.  Tuck the connector piece into the main body, leaving 4 inches sticking out.
• Hold the connector in place while you turn the main body inside out again and pin to hold it in place.
• Sew the two pieces together.

Now to add the real flash drive.  What we need to do first is to make a holder for the end of the USB extender cable.

• Cut  a square of black felt large enough to wrap around the male end of the extender and part of the cable (see image below).
• Fold in half and sew along the edge.
• Place the male end of the extender into the holder and sew around the bottom end tightly around the cable.  (This will allow you to pull the extender out from the top, and prevent it from being pulled in through the bottom of the holder).
• Now sew the holder (with the cable in it) to the bottom inside of the silver connector.  I sewed this to the fabric overlapping the seam so that the thread doesn't show through to the outside of the fabric).
• Make a slit in the black felt of the end of the USB connector so that the male plug can pass through.
• Sew the edge of the holder to the inside of the slit.

I really wanted to have the little light that comes on when you plug your drive into a computer on my plush USB too.  That's why I made the hole covered in shear fabric in step 6.  Now we need to place the flash drive right under that hole.  The flash drive that I was using had a black cover which blocked some of the light from the LED, so I decided to chip away some of the case and put clear tape over (this is optional).

• When you flash drive is ready plug it into the female end of the USB extender.
• If the extender is long, coil it around a few times and use a twist tie to hold it together.
• Stick the drive in the pocket of shear fabric over the hole and sew in place.  Make sure the side with the LED is facing the hole.

Now with the real flash drive in place, turn the fabric right side out and begin filling it with the poly-fill.  Start by filling the USB connector first, give it a squarish shape and try not to overfill it creating bulges.  Continue filling the rest of the body making sure that you get into the corners.  Remember, it should look squarish.  Once it is stuffed, hand stitch the opened end closed.