Squishy Bear

 Squishy Bear.

It has a name!

See previous posts for the evolution of this squishy snuggler. 

Post 1: design phase

Post 2: better bears and lots of photos

Here is the pattern in brief and you can get it with construction photos from Ravelry.

Eyes.

I like the look of button eyes and feel they are easier to secure than so called safety eyes. Especially here where we use hdc stitches. The safety eyes would be very easy to wiggle out.

I use 2 separate pieces of yarn to attach each eye and knot each one, so even an avid chewer would have to get through both bits to get the thing off.  

And it's acrylic - that ain't a nice chew!

Alternatively, you can make a crocheted eye, with 8hdc in a magic circle and sew on. So that's a nice soft eye.

I did that on Raspberry Squish.

If you want the full pattern with photos and explainers:

Buy now from Ravelry

Final Bear

I made and undid a couple more and then made 3 with the final pattern.

First post Design phase

So I'm happy with how it works now.

Photo shoot time!

                    Mocha Bear                    &  the well known WWW unit of measuring

 this is the drifter yarn I mentioned last time 

I tried a different mouth - I need to not do that one ever again. :(

 

Two pals playing around! 

Drifter is the same size as mocha. It just squunched up.

 

 

This is Raspberry Squish! 

Sooo Squishy and snuggly and cuddles!

 

Pattern links:

Brief Pattern

Full pattern

more pictures and info

New teddy! - in design phase...

 I saw this really soft looking teddy bear the other day, but the pattern was knit. Not just knit but knit in the round! I used to knit but only small things, I just don't have the patience for it. and I never got the hang of knitting in the round, I always ended up with laddering.

So, right, I thought, let's make a crochet version.
I decided to use HDC as the stitch as it's softer than SC and less holey than DC.

Here is my first go in copper Stylecraft DK. (4.5mm hook)
Hmm, needs longer legs and maybe a bit longer arms. I like the built in snout. That worked out well. 

Go number 2.
This one is in King Cole Drifter. It's very soft. But the colour changes are actually a pain.
I had to snip a bit to get it even-ish.

Well one leg went wonky and his head looks weird even though I didn't change that bit. His snout is a bit off to one side, too. I had thickened up the neck so his head didn't flop so much but I think I'll leave the neck and just stuff it more.

Ooops, undid it before taking a photo!

I'll make something else in the meantime while they sit there and get thought about.

Frisbee's!

Ages ago I made a Frisbee or 5... they're quite addictive as they don't take long to make and everyone steals them, or they go behind a thing and get lost for a while.

So while I had my new cottons out I thought I would make a cotton one to see how it compares to the acrylic ones.

Despite using the same hook, it came out smaller and although cotton has a heavier feel, it was lighter.

It still flies though, and that's all it needs to do!

It wouldn't be as easily washable as an acrylic one, they can just go in the laundry. A cotton one would best be hand washed, I think.

Anyway here is the link to my pattern:

Frisbee---2-triangle-design

The cotton one.

 

Front and back

 

 Acrylic ones.

Diddle Dum Dolls

A bit daft to look at but they’re quick and simple to whip up.

Worked in the flat with a centre back seam, I can knock out a small one in about an hour and a half now.

This pattern is available as a free PDF at Ravelry

Contents:

Notes

Written pattern - Small Written pattern - Medium Written pattern - Large

Photo tutorial

Graph - Small Graph - Medium Graph - Large

Notes:

4mm hook with dk/8ply yarn

The arms are worked into the row before the neck.
I’m finding that easier than sewing them on afterwards, and they are centred to the side just right.
But you can sew them on if you prefer.

Approximate quantities/sizes:

Small Medium Large

15g of yarn 30g of yarn 90g yarn

5g of stuffing 15g stuffing 35g stuffing

15cm (6 inches) high 20cm (8 inches) high 28cm (11 inches) high

Written Pattern for Deedee Diddle Dum (Small)

Arms x2

1) ch9, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 8st

2-8) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 8st

Fasten off with a long tail for sewing 

Fold in half, sew down the side and along the bottom. Stuff just a wee bit.

Legs x2

1) ch13, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 12st

2-8) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 12st 

Fasten off first leg with a long tail for sewing.

For the second one continue:

Body

9) attaching in first leg: ch1, sc to end of second leg, and then along the top of the first leg to end = 24 st

10-17)  ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 24st 

18) Attaching the arms: ch1, 3sc. Over the next 4 sc also work through the first arm top as well.

Sc8 st, over the next 4 sc also work through the second arm top, sc 4 to end. = 24st

Neck

19) Ch1, dec x 11, 1sc = 13st

20) ch1, inc x 11, 1sc = 24st

Head

21) ch1, sc 4, inc,(sc5, inc)x3 = 28st

22-30) ch1, sc to end = 28st

Fasten of with long tail for sewing.

Sewing

I find it easier to first sew one leg.

Then I sew down the centre back and on down the second leg.

Stuff 

Re attach yarn at stitch 7 of the last row with a slipstitch and work in sc through both layers to the end.

Hair

Make 13 lengths of yarn and tie onto each stitch of the closing row.

The colourful one below is about 5 inches long and the shorter black hair is about 3 inches.

Face

Use a contrasting yarn to stitch some features on.

Done!

Written Pattern for Daffy Diddle Dum  (Medium)

   

Arms x2

1) ch13, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 12st

2-12) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 12st

Fasten off with a long tail for sewing 

Fold in half, sew down the side and along the bottom.

Stuff just a wee bit.

Legs x2

1) ch19, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 18st

2-12) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 18st 

Fasten off first leg with a long tail for sewing.

For the second one continue:

Body

13) attaching in first leg: ch1, sc to end of second leg, and then along the top of the first leg to end = 36 st

14-26)  ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 36st 

27) Attaching the arms: ch1, 5sc. Over the next 6sc also work through the first arm top as well.

Sc12 st, over the next 6sc also work through the second arm top, sc 6 to end. = 36st

Neck

28) Ch1, dec x 17, 1sc = 19st

29) ch1, inc x 17, 1sc = 36st

Head

30) ch1, sc 4, inc,(sc5, inc)x5 = 42st

31-44) ch1, sc to end = 42st

Fasten of with long tail for sewing.

Sewing

I find it easier to first sew one leg.

Then I sew down the centre back and on down the second leg.

Stuff 

Re attach yarn at stitch 11 of the last row with a slipstitch and work in sc through both layers to the end.

Hair

Make 22 lengths of yarn about 3- 5 inches long and tie onto each stitch of the closing row.

Face

Use a contrasting yarn to stitch some features on.

Done!

   

Flat hair, or spikey cool hair!

Or no hair at all.    

Written Pattern for Dappa Diddle Dum  (Large)

     

Arms x2

1) ch17, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 16st

2-16) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 16st

Fasten off with a long tail for sewing 

Fold in half, sew down the side and along the bottom.

Stuff just a wee bit.

Legs x2

1) ch25, turn and sc in second from hook and along to end . turn = 24st

2-16) ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 1sst 

Fasten off first leg with a long tail for sewing.

For the second one continue:

Body

17) attaching in first leg: ch1, sc to end of second leg, and then along the top of the first leg to end = 48 st

18-35)  ch1, 1 sc in each to end = 48st 

36) Attaching the arms: ch1, 7sc. Over the next 8sc also work through the first arm top as well.

Sc16st, over the next 8sc also work through the second arm top, sc 8 to end. = 48st

Neck

37) Ch1, dec x 23, 1sc = 25st

38) Ch1, inc x 23, 1sc = 48st

Head

39) ch1, sc 4, inc,(sc5, inc)x7 = 56st

40-60) ch1, sc to end = 56st

Fasten of with long tail for sewing.

Sewing

I find it easier to first sew one leg.

Then I sew down the centre back and on down the second leg.

Stuff 

Re attach yarn at stitch 14 of the last row with a slipstitch and work in sc through both layers to the end.

Hair

Make 26 lengths of yarn about 3- 5 inches long and tie onto each stitch of the closing row.

Face

Use a contrasting yarn to stitch some features on.

Done!

   Mr Stripey! Sitting in a bowl to get weighed- cute!

Mr or Miss Not-so-cute!

Photo tutorial for the small doll.

The other sizes are constructed in the same way.

2 Arms: 8st x 8rows square               fold in half               sew down side and 

    across the bottom

     Wee bit of stuffing in each 2 arms done.

Leg 1: 12st x 8 rows   Leg 2: 12st x 8 rows

Fastened off with tail       Not fastened off…  

Row 9)  Work across both pieces = 24sc

Row 10-17) work 24st, straight.   

Row 18) include the arms row. Stitch markers indicate the stitches that will be used with the arms just sitting there to show you where they will go.

Row 18) ch1, sc3, then insert the hook through the arm first (shown with my blue needle here) then through stitch number 5 (first green marker) and complete that sc. Do 3 more times to finish that arm. Sc the 8 in between markers and repeat the arm attachment procedure over the next 4 stitches. And then it’s just the 4 sc to finish the row. 

Row 18 done.

Close up of arm bit.

Row 19 & 20. Close up of the decrease for the neck followed by the increase back to where you were.

This pulls the neck in nicely without having to throttle the poor wee thing!

Then just finish up the head rows working straight again  …

   

And now the crocheting is done! Doesn't look much..  

  Fold it in half and it looks a bit like a doll.

Now for the sewing up.

 

If you do the one leg first (blue squiggle) then it’s easier to 

see where the centre back becomes the second leg.

Yellow squiggle is the second line of sewing.

Back and Front.  

All sewed up and looking more like a doll!

 

   

I find it easiest to do the face now.

Although I’m really not very good at faces!

     Stuff, then complete row 31 to close.  Add some hair if you want and DONE.

Charts

These are useful if you want to work out a particular colour scheme.

1 square = 1 stitch/row. Dashed line is the fold line

HAVE FUN!!!