That's right - I've actually finished something in 2012!
Pattern: Loch Ness Monster by Hansi Singh (ravelry link)
Yarn: Malabrigo Rios in Azul Profundo (less than half a skein, I'd guess) for the back, tail, and flippers. Tosh Merino Light in Moorland (held double) for the belly. Assorted pink leftovers for the innards, er, stuffing.
Needles: size 4 47" addi lace circular - magic loop for all of the fiddly bits
Mods: I worked french knots for the eyes (this tutorial was great)
I suppose this tummy shot is like the inside-out view of a stranded color work piece - it's what keeps the knitter honest. Nessie is worked in a single piece from tail tip to nose. Then you pick up and knit stitches along one side of the body, work a bunch of short rows, and graft those stitches to the other side of the body. That pick up and knit step is where your technique needs to be spot on, otherwise things start to look a bit wonky.
I didn't pay close attention to the directions for the edge stitches when I started knitting this project and ended up working a basic slipped stitch selvedge rather than the garter stitch selvedge in the pattern. When I knit this again (yes, I said "when" not "if"), I'll be sure to work the garter selvedge.
I will definitely be knitting more toys. The next one will likely be a seal, since my favorite almost-five-year-old has requested one for her upcoming birthday.
Since I'm browsing ravelry for pattern ideas, I thought I'd share a list of fun toys I'll want to come back to later:
Big Snowy Owl
Deadliest Crab
Dragon
Garden Snail
Octopus
Peabey the Polar Bear
Praying Mantis
Sophie
Tree Frog
I ran a quick search for seal patterns on ravelry and wasn't thrilled with the options there. But I think I can use them as guides for morphing Nessie into a seal. That will be exciting And I'd better take good notes!
4 comments:
So, so cute! I love his jaunty look, and what a treat to have a Malabrigo knitted toy.
The big snowy owl is on my to-knit list, too. It looks very plush and huggable.
I finished my shawlette with your yarn! I had about 5 inches to spare at the end -- very, very lucky.
I love knitting toys too...all that clever shaping - pure fun!
Oh, so cute! You're making me want to try. I do think it would be a Sunday afternoon language kind of project (I still laugh when I think of your term!).
I miss chatting with you, Rue! And I am finally, finally about to get down to business on your gift. It's top priority!
I'm with Jacey -- I miss chatting with you and seeing your presence around the blog world (I'm ignoring that I still have emails to respond to...).
Okay -- now I can see why finishing skills were so important...wow, that's sort of complicated. But you did an amazing job (I LOVE the little green belly!). I'm so glad you want to continue to make toys! Thanks for the list...I had already marked the big owl as something I will do in the future (for me!) but I'm going to have to look at a few of the others (I had a crochet octopus I favorited this week but since I can't crochet, I should look at the knitted version you linked to!).
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