Blog Post # 315: Knit with Love

In case you wonder what I do when I'm not painting, then this post will answer that question. The last few months I've been working on improving my knitting skills, and I've learned so much. One of my goals was to learn to knit 3-dimensional projects. It's fascinating to me to see how minor changes in the stitches create the different shapes. I am obsessed with creating these huggable toys! I don't have any little ones at home, so these are going to local charities. Hopefully they will brighten someone's day!

Big Sister Olivia

I've named my first bunny Olivia. She's the big sister because she is the first one I knit from this pattern (Little Cotton Rabbits on Etsy). I had the pattern in hand but didn't have the correct needle size. I ordered more knitting needles but couldn't wait to get started, so I used what I had. In the end Olivia turned out a little larger than the others, but that's OK since she's the big sister! Now that I have a set of multiple needle sizes I can switch up the needles to create various sized bunnies. (The affiliate links to the needles are the ones I actually purchased and were very affordable.)

The tights and shoes are knit as part of the pattern. The jumper and jacket are knit separately. I think it helps spark imaginative play for children to dress the bunnies.

(The toys don't actually stand on their own, so I had to carefully pose and balance them and then take a quick photo.)

Emily the Elephant

Now I will introduce to you Emily! She was knit from a second pattern which was similar to the first. Knitting the trunk was different for me, but it turned out fine in the end. Emily's panties and shoes are attached, but I knit a t-shirt and jumper for her.

Knitting the pockets on the jumper was a new technique for me. The pattern called for small buttons, but I was concerned about using them on a child's toy, so I knit my own buttons and they work just fine. Nevertheless I don't recommend these toys for children under three.

Emily also has a little toy bunny that fits inside her pocket. So cute!

Emily and her little toy bunny are ready for the day!

Little Sister Lily

And here is another bunny, but this time knit with the correct needle size. I am calling her Lily.

I think Lily has such a sweet expression.

Lily has a similar outfit as Emily. The t-shirt is knit in one piece with a small area in the back that was seamed.

I used a very small knitting needle (US size 1) to knit a button for the back of her shirt.

Lily's little pocket toy bunny is removable.

The toy bunny fits nicely inside the pocket of Lily's jumper.

Lily is all dressed and ready for her day!

Here are the three friends ready to go to a new home.

I mentioned at the beginning that knitting these toys is an obsession. You can see here that I wasn't kidding! This lot is going to a local charity, but I wanted to take some photos to remember them before I let them go.

Thank you for stopping by The Black Sheep Shoppe today. I hope you enjoyed the photos of the knit toys.