"Spring Chick" by Barbara Prime FO

In case anyone's interested...the details on the little knitted chicks from yesterday's post...

Pattern: "Spring Chick" by Barbara Prime

Source: Free Ravelry Download

Yarn: Remnant Worsted

Needles: 4.0mm

Start: March 24 Finish: March 26, 2016

Modifications: None

Fantastic little pattern with clever use of shaping - especially around the chick's head and shoulders. The worsted weight yarn also yields something just the right size too.

My sister's cat "Olive" enjoys the catnip-stuffed "Bunny Nuggets" I knit for her a couple of years ago so I thought I'd knit for her again this Easter...

I only put catnip in one this time so my nephews could play games with her "nose"...

She instantly recognized the "good" one.

Then, turned her back on the whole works and set about "enjoying" the tissue and purple paper ribbon...

This project also reminded me of two things...stuffed animals get most of their personalities from the addition of "eyes"....and there is no such thing as saving a piece of felt that is too small. The little scrapes of orange felt I had stashed among bigger pieces were still much more than I needed to finish these off.

Hey thanks for dropping by!

"Chocolate" Bunny FO by Jackie Erikson-Schweitzer

Pattern: "Knitted Bunny" by Jackie Erikson-Schweitzer

Source: Free Ravelry Download

Yarn: Remnant "Chocolate" Worsted

Needles: 4mm straight

Modifications: None

Just in time for Easter a one evening project (despite being "chocolate" its even zero calories!) to get this knitter in the mood despite our "little boy" being across the ocean and no reason for the Easter Bunny to visit our house! :(

This ingenious little pattern has you start by knitting a square. Using either the knit or purl side up you gather a section in the middle of one side and stuff it to make a head.

Then stitch the corners together so the section in the middle becomes the body and the sewn corners the legs for this wonderful crouching bunny shape.

The final touch is also an excuse to make a pom pom!

We're meeting the new baby today - the one for whom I knit the most recent Tomten (here). This little bunny is for her. We'll take it along tucked into this giant basket of goodies Darling Daughter assembled for her.

Hope you're having a great weekend too, whatever you're up to! Thanks for dropping by!

Gus in his Doghouse FO by Susan B. Anderson

Pattern: Dog in the Doghouse by Susan B. Anderson

Source: Topsy Turvy Inside Out Knit Toys (from Local Library)

Yarn: Mondial Merino Special and Remnants On Hand

Needles: 3.75

Start: January 19 Finish: January 22, 2015

Modifications: Changed the Dog's Face and Used His Name Over the Doghouse Door

First a small disclaimer - I am not in love with how the doggie's face looks. The one in the pattern is much cuter but I'm going for something that looks like their dog "Gus" rather than a generic doggie face. Their pooch is a beagle/pug cross that has a very "puggish" puss. Much like this. So that is what I tried to replicate.

The instructions in the pattern stipulate that the head of the dog should be placed forward of the top of the body - likely to ensure it fits inside the doghouse so I did that but again, it creates something less than appealing to my eye at least.

I added this embroidered tail after the fact - again attempting to make it as "Gus-like" as possible.

The house has a kind of sloppy look about it - I think the designer's idea was to invoke something knocked together by a kid for his dog rather than a pristine puppy palace so I went with that too - right down to a kind of scrawled lettering over the door.

Whatever the details, the idea is super cute and making it look like their dog was fun to do and will no doubt be a great hit when its opened but also, I hope as baby grows.

I haven't made a toy in ages. I do enjoy all the quick shaping instructions and seeing how the designer uses them to invoke the image of something or someone. Fun! Just like knitting should be. Thanks for dropping by!