Dipping My Toe in to the Baby Yoda Craze

April 26, 2020Leave a comment

I’m finally able to peek out and post a completed project after a couple of really crazy months, and I’m not even talking about the pandemic. I hope each of you are doing well and staying safe and healthy. What a scary time this is with so much unknown. On to the post…

Firstly, a confession: I have never been able to get into Star Wars. I know it’s one of the biggest movie franchises of all time and has a lot of merit. For whatever reason, it just never spoke to me, although that’s not to say I can’t appreciate aspects of it, and certainly some of the characters.

After The Mandalorian came out and it was revealed there was a Baby Yoda character, I “Awww!”ed at it just like the rest of the globe, even without any context. I waited a pretty long while, comparatively speaking, but finally decided to try my hand at making an amigurumi doll. I have at least one friend who is obsessed and when I started out, I knew I would ultimately give her the doll if it turned out decently.

Fortunately, it did!

I started this little guy back in February and due to all sorts of craziness in life, I was only able to pick it up and work on it a teeny part at a time. Mid-April, I forced myself to figure out the coat and finish it so I could give it to my friend (curbside drop-off with proper distancing, no less).

I did end up tailoring the coat to fit my doll the way I wanted it to–I did not end up doing the folded down collar for the coat that the pattern will yield. There are more detailed dolls and patterns out there but for an initial project, certainly, but all in all, this free pattern from Bee Friends Crochet works really well for anyone who just wants to dip their toe in, as I did.

If you want to see the in-progress photos, you can go to my Instagram page where I have a saved highlight in Stories of the doll coming together.

My favorite details about the doll are the eyelids (chained 6 for the upper and another 6 for the lower and carefully sewed them on) and giving the doll a bit of fuzz on top of the head for a bit more authenticity. That’s why you’ll see a close-up of the top of his sweet little head.

After I posted the photos of the doll on social media, I had a few friends ask me to make them one, so now I have three going at one time. (I do not have this available in the shop at this time.) I know I will burn out after a while but for now, the Baby Yoda Machine is in full swing!

Are you a fan of Star Wars? Or just along for the ride on the Baby Yoda bandwagon like I am?

Sweet Little Tree of Mine

December 23, 2019December 23, 2019Leave a comment

Happy holidays, everyone! I know not everyone celebrates Christmas or is into Christmas trees, but if you are, this is the post for you!

I finally delved into my pattern trio from Lalylala (Lydia Tresselt) and made the Christmas tree (the other two are angel and candle)! It’s amazing how when I buy patterns, I have every intention of making the item RIGHT NOW and it rarely ever happens. Timing is important when it comes to crafting, it seems.

Anyhow, I decided I would make up a little tree for my office’s holiday gift exchange and thought it would be festive and cheery enough that most people would like it, whoever ended up with it.

I’ve made enough amigurumi that the actual doll itself didn’t take too long – a handful of hours. The sewing of the beads with invisible thread was the task that took a lot of patience. Thankfully, if you do it while you’re watching holiday movies or something, it doesn’t feel like a chore. So I would say this pattern is advanced beginner, depending on your sewing skills. Of course you don’t have to sew anything onto it. The tree itself is adorable as is.

Here’s my first little tree doll — I bought more beads so I can make more of these cuties. Makers, have you tried this pattern yet?

Happy holidays to you, whatever you celebrate! (Or don’t! Merry Whatever!)

Pattern Overview: Robot from Amigurumi Today

June 10, 2018June 10, 2018Leave a comment

I received a request to make a couple of little toys for two small boys who were going to be traveling. They had their own unique interests so I worked with the client to try and find patterns that would sync up to their particulate tastes.

For one little boy, I made a butterfly, the pattern of which is from Theresa’s Crochet Shop. She designs “affordable cuteness” and is very talented. For my version, I added a little sparkly white color for the inside of the wing and used a teal color for the rest of the butterfly. S/he turned out super cute! I’m really happy with this pattern, despite the vast amount of hand sewing involved, and will make more.

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When it came time to find a good robot pattern, I landed on this free one from Amigurumi Today:

Image courtesy of Amigurumi Today

I really had to work to get the head just right, because when working in continuous rounds and making a square shape, you’re actually creating a parallelogram, so it’s pretty slanted and not a decisively straight-edged square.

Image courtesy of Twisted Turns Rebooted

Because this is whimsical and for a little boy, I didn’t think he would mind, but the perfectionist in me was struggling a bit. I used a 3.5mm hook and light worsted weight yarn so the stitches would be nice and tight. Between the head, the face, and embroidering, those alone took a couple of evenings.

The head is oversized compared to the body. When I sewed the body to the bottom of the head, it looked centered in the front and completely wonky in the back; something I had to live with. Here’s the back:

By the time I got to the arms and legs and got them sewed on, the doll looked less crooked. But there is definitely a reason you don’t see the back of the doll on the pattern page. 😉

Ultimately, I made a couple of variations to my doll that strayed from the pattern but nothing major. I would probably make another of these if I could figure out some better techniques for embroidering the face. While I know how to cross stitch, embroidering faces onto a crochet canvas is not something I’ve completely mastered.

Skill level: experienced intermediate | Pattern rating: B+

Here’s my very sleepy looking robot doll — or maybe he’s rebooting?

Without the bottom legs, the robot isn’t really taller than the butterfly!

Puppy Love in Shades of Teal

May 28, 2018May 28, 20182 Comments

Hello, friends!

Earlier this month, I received a custom order for a puppy dog in shades of teal. The customer wanted whimsical–I think this little guy delivers!

If you’re interested in trying out this puppy pattern for yourself, look up “Scout the Puppy” from Little Muggles; it’s also available in the Zoomigurumi 5 book.

I used shades Tidepool and Cornflower from KnitPicks Brava Worsted. For a couple of the pictures below, I thought it’d be cute to show him next to the Easter egg bunny I made in similar shades.

Please feel free to contact me here or through the Etsy platform if you are in the market for a puppy dog of your very own!

😍

IMG_1698 zvc IMG_1699 zvc IMG_1702 zvc IMG_1706 zvc IMG_1707 zvc

Recent Cutie Patooties

July 3, 20172 Comments

I have been on a bit of a tear lately finishing (and starting) various projects. I even started a knit dishcloth the other day, but it’s TBD on whether it’ll be a useful item or be wound back up into a yarn cake.

But here are a couple of recently finished (crocheted) items, both of which turned out SO well and are so freaking cute!

The first is a paper boat amigurumi from the talented designer Lalylala. The other is a standing bunny rabbit from the designer StufftheBody. Both can be found on Ravelry and Etsy.

The bunny I decided to list in the shop. I have plans for the paper boat, but likely I’ll make that a custom listing down the line.

Happy Fourth of July weekend, everybody!

❤ ❤

Finished Orders from DioneDesign Patterns

April 27, 20161 Comment

There are a few “go to” amigurumi designers I keep at the top of the list when I receive custom orders and need to find that perfect animal for a baby shower gift.

One of those designers is DioneDesign, who has a shop on Etsy. She has a fabulous array of animals and does a terrific job of using increases and decreases to achieve specific shapes that make her animals more lifelike (her hippo is one of them and I have made countless of these).

My two most recently completed orders were requests for the triceratops and the bear (sans flower) from Dione. I was a little nervous about the triceratops because it is a more advanced, sewing-heavy project, but I was ready to roll up my sleeves and try it–it was just too cute not to go for it.

I don’t make a lot of bears, teddy or otherwise, so I was hoping that my experience with Dione’s patterns would carry me through the execution. I was not disappointed.

I took my time with both of these projects, as they were larger and more detailed, and particularly when there is a lot of sewing or you’re going for a specific look that the design calls for, exercising patience wins the day.

In the end, I was thrilled with how both of these turned out. Keep in mind, there are so many factors as to why dolls turn out how they do in each particular crocheter’s hand, be it tension, the type of yarn, placement and/or size of eyes, etc.

My tweaks were using slightly smaller eyes on the dinosaur and not putting spots on its back (I liked the blue body on its own), and then not adding eyebrows or paw lines on the bear. Just my personal artistic style.

If you have been making amigurumi for a while and want a fun (and slightly challenging!) animal to try, I highly recommend finding something in Dione’s shop. If you are also a fan and have made some things, I’d love to hear from you!

Bear with Balloons

Sunnyside Preschool Halloween Carnival and Auction

September 28, 2015September 27, 2015Leave a comment

It’s autumn. At last! Probably the most favorite season of all seasons. With it comes the cooler temps, the leaves bursting into color, sweater weather, the smell of wood smoke in the air from fires being lit, hot beverages (with marshmallows), Pumpkin Everything, crocheted accessories like scarves and fingerless mittens, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and the pre-Christmas festivities and anticipation. Oh and don’t forget the millions of pins that will be pinned on Pinterest with all the autumn excitement.

There is a lot packed in to three months!

Autumn also brings fun festivities, like Halloween carnivals! A friend of mine who lives in California reached out to me to ask whether I could donate some items for a Halloween carnival and auction to raise money for her son’s preschool.

I was delighted to help out and checked my stores for some things I could give away. I happened to have some things that I thought would make someone very happy if they bid on them; I also added an amigurumi to round out the package.

So here is what will be up to win and/or bid on!

Starburst blanket
Stuffed whale
Striped baby hat

In addition to the items, I also included a card with a special discount code for any purchase in the shop.

If you have any questions or comments about the items I donated, please leave me a comment below.

Happy autumn and Halloween season!

Recently Finished Amigurumi

August 4, 2015August 3, 20153 Comments

When I last left off, I was amidst a frenzy of untying a bunch of knots and completing amigurumi orders. I took a breather on Saturday when I finished the last item….before another sprinkle of orders came in on Sunday. August is turning out to be quite the month of amigurumi!

The first part of one order is this sweetie, called Sam, the Big-Bottomed Bunny from Crochet One-Skein Wonders.

He had such a sweet face and I loved the idea of making something that could sit on a big bottom. His floppy ears are also pretty dang cute. He’s very huggable and snuggable.

Sam 2

A biggie that I wrapped up earlier last week was this sweet dinosaur. Holy sewing, Batman! This took a lot of time to carefully sew together all the parts that make up this creature but in the end, it was worth it. He came out super adorable and is intended for a couple who is having a baby boy.

Lastly, I finished an order for an elephant for a baby girl, so her paws are pink. I couldn’t resist adorning her with a pink ribbon, as well. The trumpeting snout just kills me, it’s so cute.