One of my intentions (see how I cleverly avoided the R word there? ;) this year is to start knitting toyz. I bought my first pack of stuffing about a year ago, with the same intention, but nothing came of it for a long time. Well things are about to change! One of the impeti (impetuses?) was the realisation that there are going to be many babies popping up around me quite soon. Another was this adorable little feller published in Ysolda’s new installment of the Whimsical Little Knits publications. And guess what – he’s already under way!
He may not look like much yet, but he’s already capable of making a big mess!
Yes, this project involves a tiny little bit of intarsia, which is a completely new thing for me, so things have been getting a little tangled. But nothing too bad! I’m certainly emboldened by the pace at which this little one is growing and there will most definitely be many more to follow him. When you think about it, knitted toys are really just like very very small garments – the outer shell itself is really rather small, it’s the stuffing that gives them the image of being large projects.
If you are interested in what other toy patterns I plan on making, you can take a look at my toy queue on Ravelry. And if you have favourite knitted toy patterns that I have missed, please do let me know about them!
I was going to say Rebecca Danger’s monsters, but I see you’ve already got there! I recently made Zeke the aloof alpaca and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience (even the sewing thanks to the instructions in the first Mochimochiland book) and loved the finished alpaca, was so hard to give away http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/zeke-the-aloof-alpaca Have fun!
But how about a teddy bear? http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/teddy-bear-3
I don’t know what it is, but I have BIG problems knitting at the tight guage toys seem to require…although I can do socks like a pro, so I don’t know what’s going on…
That is indeed curious! I wonder why! I do keep fearing that my gauge won’t be tight enough, but the stuffing I have seems fairly compact so I hope it won’t create problems…
Adorable Trinket so far! Can’t wait to see how your robot finally turns out. I love making toys as baby gifts since they are one thing kids don’t grow out of right away. Have you seen Susan B. Anderson’s Itty Bitty Toys book? There are some incredibly cute things in there. I’ve also been contemplating Emily Ivey’s downloadable “C is for Cat” pattern.
How nice to knit toys! I have the “intention” to knit some too! I particularly love Bill & Ben Twin Bears and Sheep in Sheep’s Clothing. Too cute!!! :D
How about a Totoro? He’s on my list for the year. I love that little Robot in WLK3, but I think I’m going to do a Lovebot before that :) Hopefully I’ll get it done before V-Day.
It already looks cute! I don’t have suggestions for your queue, maybe Sheldon if you’re into turtles. That was one of the first toys I made way back when I first started knitting. It turned out so great, it made me think I was some knitter extraordinaire ;-)
Thanks for reminding me of Sheldon, I can’t believe I didn’t have him on there already! I think it does make you quite the knitter extraordinaire! :)
Bravo :) Kazu da je bas ova Nova Kineska godina – Godina Zmaja – vreme za promene i nove stvari :)
Od kako sam pogledala film “Totoro” … ne mogu da zaboravim taj lepi, nezni i smireni lik, pa bi to mozda mogao da bude dodatni projekat u tvojoj listi …
Vec druga osoba koja ga spominje! Morat cu ocito pogledati film… :)
“Intentions” eh? I see what you did there ;)
I never really got the point of knitted toys, being a big believer in “there’s a time and a play for everything, and this isn’t knitting’s moment”, but if you like it, I say go for it :D
Hamsterbeans! They’re super quick and easy. I wouldn’t suggest them for younger kiddos unless you knit them with a heavier weight yarn, but they’re excellent for the ones who won’t shove things in their mouths. My sister is almost 12 and I still catch her playing with the ones I knit her. I also loved knitting this giraffe, but I knit mine with a variegated yarn and skipped the colorwork. It was a really interesting construction and involved minimal seaming. Finally, I also loved Elefante. Again, I skipped the colors and used a knit pattern for the ears. All of these projects turned out to be adorable. I like toys when I’m in the mood for something quick- I’ve yet to run across a toy pattern that takes more than a day or two if you just sit down and work on it.
What’s up with babies popping up everywhere? There must be something in the water. (I originally typed “What’s up with babies pooping up everywhere” which would also be appropriate).
Have not knitted some yet, but have crocheted several….have fun!