Ivy, the Christmas Hooligan

Last week I told you about the Single Ornament Swap on the Itty Bitty forums.  While what I shared wasn't a fail, it certainly did not conform to my standards for the swap.

So I chose a different pattern.  Still a toy pattern, perhaps a little larger than the usual Christmas ornaments, but perfect for what I was looking for.

I chose to knit Ivy, the Christmas Hooligan.  Now, Ivy is not an only child.  She actually has a sister, Holly, and a brother, Steve.  They're mischievous monsters according to Rebecca (Rebecca Danger, that is...more about her in a minute.).  I've been wanting to knit one of these happy hooligans for quite some time and this gave me the perfect excuse.

I chose Ivy because I liked her hat.  Between the hat and the scarf, I didn't feel the need to add a mouth.  I intentionally didn't make a mouth because I felt that it gave her an air of secrecy and magic.  With her hat pulled low and her scarf slung high, she's looking out for dear Old Santa Clause - she doesn't want to get caught being naughty! :)

Ivy was a treat to knit.  She is small and straight-forward.  I had her knit up in no time (which was good because it was getting down to the wire - I had already attempted one ornament, picking another took me awhile!).  She's knit with Cascade Fixation in green and red.  Fixation is a combination of 98% cotton and 2% other.  I believe the "other" is an elastic of some kind.  The yarn has a bit of sproing to it.  It's not my favorite to knit with because of it.  The strand is a bit too coiled for my taste.  But, for toys, I really appreciate the density of the fabric.  When knit on small needles, it pulls in nicely, leaving no chance for holes.

This was my first time trying "safety eyes."  I've seen them used before in toys but never purchased any myself.  I've always just embroidered the eyes.  But I felt the need to stay true to the pattern this time.  I found these in a JoAnn's in the doll section.  I'm sure Hobby Lobby or Michaels sells them as well.  I've also heard mention of purchasing them on Etsy or look them up on Amazon - the internet can be a wonderful resource for these types of things.  I know that at one time Rebecca Danger had them in her store, I'm not sure if she still does.  They're a useful notion, although I can see times where I wouldn't want to use them.  Using safety eyes requires placing the eyes before you're finished creating your toy.  Because you need to push the backing onto the eye, behind/inside the knitted fabric, this cannot be done once the toy is sewn up.  Personally, I like to see the toy finished and faceless before I decide on a personality for him or her.  And if I have to place the eyes ahead of time, if I mess up on placing arms or legs, my poor toy may be a little cockeyed.  But it's always good to add a new tool to your belt, so I tried them and will use them in the future, just not exclusively. (I think Ivy looks pretty smashing with her little belly-button and little black eyes.)

And finally, I just have to mention how much I love Danger Craft patterns.  Rebecca puts out such beautiful patterns and all her monsters have such unique personalities.  I've favorited nearly all her patterns and even purchased her book - the Big Book of Knitted Monsters,  and yet this was my first pattern to knit.  She's got a wide range of toys - animals and dinosaurs, monsters and friends - they're all so cute!  She has a new book, Knit a Monster Nursery that I really would like to own.  Her patterns are quite popular.  After knitting Ivy, I'm sure to knit more.

And once I got Ivy outside and strung from the tree, I realized how perfect she would be on a Christmas tree.  She looked quite at home in my backyard, although perhaps a little lonely without her friends.  Inside, where it's cozy and warm is certainly the best place for her to be!

Tiny Snowy Owl

On the Itty Bitty forums, a new swap idea has taken hold.  The group is growing, faster than I can keep up with.  I'm trying to remember the new members but I have so little time on Ravelry any more to peruse the forums, I'm having trouble with that.  A lot of people are coming out of the woodwork because of this new swap trend.

The big swaps that Mel organizes each month are awesome.  People put a lot of thought and care into their swap package and really try to personalize it to the person who is receiving.  But for some, especially newer members of the group, these swaps are a bit intimidating (they are a very friendly, welcoming place, but I can see their point of view).

One member of the group has taken it upon herself to organize mini-swaps.  These are called the "Single Ornament Swaps."  The idea is that you get your partner's name (it's kept a secret), and you're allowed to create one ornament for your partner and ship it off to him or her.  You're allowed some leniency if you choose to add an additional small item, but it's not supposed to be a really big package.  It's meant for the swaps to be approachable, especially to those who are new or don't have the time or money to dedicate to the larger swaps.

That's where this knit came about.  I was trying to find a pattern that I could knit as an ornament.  At the time, I wasn't feeling any of the holiday ornaments that were on Ravelry.  There are some great patterns but you know when you get in that mood or funk that unless it's exactly what you're looking for, you really just can't knit something else?

Enter the Big Snowy Owl.  This is a free pattern from The Purl Bee.  The original patterns calls for bulky weight yarn and is intended to be something like a pillow-sized owl.  I've loved the owl on their site for a long, long time and thought it would be perfect as an ornament.  And I was especially drawn to the colors they chose for their owl.  I looked through other project pages and nothing called to me quite like the soft gray owl with giant blue eyes.  :)

I searched my stash (no need to buy new when it takes so little yarn!) and came up with sport weight yarn in the appropriate colors.  Knit on US 2s, I had hoped this would be a sweet little owl that would hang happily on a tree.  Well...the thought was good, but my execution was a little off.

My version is much smaller than the original.  This sweet fowl is about as tall as my hand is long, and perfect for little hands.  But, in my opinion, much too large for a tree.  So we kept him at home, Lovebug is quite attached. (I think it's the eyes...)  I am in love with how he turned out, just bummed he wasn't small enough.  I am planning to attempt this again, but with either fingering or lace weight yarn. And tinier needles.  Eventually I'll get it right.

So what else is good about this pattern might you ask?  It's incredibly fast.  Even if you knit the larger size, you're using bulky yarn and big needles.  This was two days tops and only because I had to tend to the kids. :)  The stitch pattern adds visual interest, but plain stockinette would be just as cute.  If you made the larger version you'd need a lot of fiberfill.  Even this little guy took a lot because I wanted him to be firm - too squishy and he wouldn't hold up to being played with or squooshed.

There are actually three patterns in this series.  A pig, a bunny and this owl.  I want to knit all 3.  I'd like to knit them in bulky weight, but I may just see what's in my stash and find the appropriate needles.  I think that Lovebug and Squishy need the full set. :)

As an aside, the eyes are crochet.  It's very simple crochet, but I know a lot of knitters are intimidated by the crochet hook.  So if you like the pattern but don't want the crocheted eyes, you should be able to find a pattern that tells you how to knit circles.  Honestly, it's the eyes that really make this pattern.  (The beak construction is pretty neat too.)

This is an idea I encourage all knitters to explore.  Is there a toy pattern you really like but it's too big or too small?  Consider adjusting your yarn and needle sizes accordingly and you have a whole new outlook on a project.  I'd really like to try this idea on some of Susan Anderson's patterns - specifically the Giraffe.  I'd love to make it in lace weight and see what size he comes out.  I may even have something perfect in my stash....

Sheldon, aka "Tommy"

Recently, while I was knitting a toy, Squishy asked me if I was knitting the toy for him.  I had to tell him, no, not for him, but for someone else (this was during the hippo/hedgehog swap).  He was bummed.  So I asked if he wanted me to knit him a toy, to which he promptly answered YES! 

When asked what he wanted knit, he said he wanted a turtle.  I said OK and it was left at that – he ran off to play.  I looked on Ravelry at all the turtle patterns out there.  So many cute ones, how would I choose?   In the end, I marked those that I would want to knit and showed Squishy the choices.  He picked out Sheldon.

This is a pretty popular pattern on Rav.  Sheldon has a removable shell, which is awesome.  This also means that it wasn’t long before Sheldon got more “outfits.”  But that’s another story for another time.  I only knit the shell that came with the original pattern.

You all who have been around for the majority of my knitting know that I rarely stick to recommended, or even the norm when it comes to color choices.  It’s no secret that I favor blues and teals and such.  So I wanted to do something a little different, with some contrasting, but complimentary colors.  Squishy would have none of it.  When I asked him if it was okay to use this or that color, he would say, “No, green, Mommy.”  I guess he knows what he wants and he wasn’t going to settle.  (I’ve come to decide that green is his favorite color at the moment…)

Allllllright…I guess I can knit a normal, green turtle.  (And I’ll admit it wasn’t that bad…lol)

This little guy came out pretty cute.  While I was knitting, I kept thinking I wasn’t doing it right because it felt like the pieces weren’t shaped right, but all worked out in the end. 

This was knit from Tahki Cotton Classic Light in Moss Green and Bright Green.  I would have preferred wool, but I didn’t have the right colors and I’m really trying not to buy any additional yarn.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Tahki yarns, but I believe that wool, or a blend would have looked better.  To me (and this is just my unprofessional opinion), it seems that wool would “bloom” or something to fill in empty space, while the cotton didn’t – I didn’t block this at all, but the cotton just seemed to stay where I put it… 

The removable shell is extremely cute and I love the ability to add additional outfits later on, but the shell was a little fiddly.  I don’t mind fiddly.  If I did, I wouldn’t knit toys.  But I found myself only knitting a portion of the shell pieces and putting it back down again because I just didn’t want to knit it. 

I also think my i-cord edging on the shell was too tight, but that’s not really a big deal.

My one suggestion would be – be sure not to stuff the shell too tight.  If stuffed too tightly, the shell doesn’t seem to sit right on the turtle body.  It gets a bit poofy.  The body is difficult at first to get in and out of the shell, but I think that might loosen up a bit over time.  My little man doesn’t really want him out of his shell anyway…

If Squishy asks for extra outfits in the future, I’d be happy to knit them, with my new understanding of how the pattern works. 

And if anyone asks, his name is “Tommy.”