Tag: amigurumi

Oh look – A Snowbird …

Em … to be honest, I had no idea what kind of bird a snowbird is as we don’t have them in Europe. I had to ask Google and the answer was that nowadays many different birds in Canada are called snowbirds and indeed, Google showed me a lot of different pictures. But originally “Snowbird” was the name for a Junko. Do you know them?

However, I would like to introduce you to my new flatmate: little Snowbird.

This cute snowbird is part of the pattern Winter Birds 2 from @natura_crochet. I spotted it on Instagram last year. It was sometime before Christmas, so I got it myself as a present.
The pdf is more like a booklet than a single pattern. It is beautifully designed and contains patterns for three different birds: Kingfisher, Waxwing and a Chickadee – plus the Snowbird as a bonus pattern. All birds are very colourful and wintery styled with hat and scarf.

I used Schachenmayr Catania and Wenco DIY (a German brand) with a 2,25 mm hook. Both are 100% Cotton sport weight (#2) yarn with a yardage of 125 m / 50 g.

On my desk: ready to assemble

My colours are:

  • 429 – Anthrazit / Catania
  • 434 -Nebel / Catania
  • 258 – Erdbeere / Catania
  • 206 – Honig / Catania
  • 51, blau / DIY
  • Head – Anthrazit
  • Body – Nebel, Erdbeere
  • Wings – Blau, Nebel, Anthrazit
  • Tail – Blau, Nebel, Anthrazit
  • Legs – Anthrazit, Honig, Erdbeere
  • Beak – Anthrazit
  • Hat / Scarf – Honig

I made some small adjustments to the hat and the scarf. I made the scarf a little shorter and narrower and the hat a little wider – it just worked better with my yarn.

I have to confess, I was a little hesitant about sewing the parts together. I don’t have much experience in assembling such small parts. So they So they have been lying in my basket for days (weeks?). But the placement etc. is well explained in the pattern and all went well!

I am absolutely happy with the result. Just started the Waxwing …

Have a lovely time 💕

Old photos and a lot of Dudes

Unfortunately, I still don’t spend much time crocheting – most of the time I sit at the computer or tablet.

During the last weeks I have translated Ana’s Go with the Flow pattern, did some kind of tech editing on another pattern .
Besides I wrote down a pattern for a shawl I made for myself some time ago. The pattern is currently in the testing phase and of course I will present it here as soon as it is ready.

And every spare minute – and I definitely have too little of that – I am sorting through my old photos and revising some of the older blog posts here.

When I started with this blog I didn’t think of putting a watermark on my photos. From a legal point of view, watermarks are not really necessary, because every photo I have taken belongs to me and I have all the rights to it. No one may publish it without my permission!

Unfortunately, some of my photos have already been found on other, sometimes dubious, websites where people try to earn money with patterns that are not theirs.
This is so annoying, especially for the designers concerned!!
I know that a watermark on the photos won’t save me from that in the future either. But it makes it easier to prove and I just feel safer doing it. Especially as some of my photos – mainly with blankets – are not so unique. I have seen photos from Winter Wonderland blankets, done in my colourway, where I first had to think about whether they were mine or not. So I just make the effort!

But I digress!

Dudes, Dudes, Dudes

While sorting my photos I realized how many of the Dudes patterns I tested during the last years. The Dudes are very, very cute Amigurumi designed by Dana from missBerlin.

She writes about these patterns:

The little Dudes live among us, but only a child at heart can truly see them. They are bald and shy, so they cover their heads and half of their faces with whatever they find in their surroundings.
These endearing amigurumi/crochet dolls are faceless little fantasy creatures. They are educational dolls for learning and for play-therapy, as well as unique collectible decorative figurines. The Dudes’ minimalist features, inspired by the Waldorf approach, are designed to stimulate the imagination, and their pocket size is suitable for those little hands to make the perfect companions.

I think it was back in 2019 when I fell in love with her designs, discovering the Pumpkin Dudes.


Maybe you have already seen some of the designs I tested for Dana here on my blog – the Succulent Dudes, the Suga’ Dudes or the Carnival Treat Dudes.

All the others I never wrote about, because I tested them before I started this blog. It’ a shame! So I thought I could at least share some photos here.

Here my collection – so far …

Theses cuties are all made with #2, Sport weight yarn and around 10 cm tall. I mostly use a 2,5 mm hook, sometimes a 2,25. My favorite yarn for the Dudes themselves is Scheepjes Catona in the colour 505, Linen. For the caps I either use Scheepjes Catona or Schachenmayr Catania. But any other yarn works as well.

The first Dudes pattern I tested were the Woodland Dudes.

The Cap of the PineCone Dude is still one of my favorites.

But I also love the Cactus Dudes, the little Pumpkins, the Seashells (which I haven‘t made yet) and well … all the others. Each one of them was so fun to test!

Each pattern has instructions for the Dude and comes with 3 different, themed caps. Some of the caps are really easy to make, for others you will need a bit more concentration, but every step is explained very well.

In case I could inspire you: the patterns are available in Dana‘s Ravelry or Etsy shop . Or just have a look at my Ravelry projects where I have partially listed additional info.


Some Easter decorations

I am sure you all know the times when suddenly ‘life happens’. Well, it just happened to me – a bit unexpectedly! So during the last two – almost three -weeks I had only very little time to crochet and, to be honest, only little desire to do it.

Nevertheless I’d like to show you some of my Easter decorations that are really quick and easy to make.

I made these back in 2021. Patterns are The Easter Dudes, a paid pattern by missBerlin and Easter Eggs, a free pattern by Tatiana Saienko from Planet Piu.

You can read all the details in this post.

And – as a kind of return to the world of crochet – I am just working on a 2023 edition.

As usual my Dude is made with Scheepjes Catona in the colour 505, Linen. But this time I decided to use the same colour for the Dude‘s Cap and the Easter egg – it is Schachenmayr Catania Trend in 507, Salbei (Sage).

I hope to get the Dude assembled today and then I will have to think about some embroidery. Still not my best discipline … so I guess it will be something simple and easy …

Have a lovely week 💕

Mellow Fellows – Cruciferous

Have you already seen the new pattern by misssBerlin? The Cruciferous are part of her new Mellow Fellow series. A yummy cauliflower and broccoli.

I had the pleasure to test this pattern during the last days. As always it was a lot of fun. Dana‘s cute Amigurumi are always very inspiring.

My veggies are made with Catania from Schachenmayr and a 2,5 mm hook (my Clover Soft Touch). For the cauliflower I used the colour 130 Cream throughout. The little broccoli is made with 392 Lime for the stalk and 212 Khaki for the florets.
Both are crocheted more or less in one piece, only the little arms are sewn on.

Everything is explained very well in the pattern. If you know how to do chains, single crochet and double crochet (US terms) you are able to do it! Although I think that the placement of the stitches in the florets is a bit tricky at times and needs patience!
The skill level is rated as adventurous beginner/ intermediate.

The pattern is available on Ravelry.

You also should have a look at the other fellows of this series!

I already wrote about the little mushroom and the trees in this post.

But there are also little Acorns and Cacti available. Unfortunately I was not able to test these but here two of Dana‘s photos. Aren‘t they cute? I will have to make them to complete my collection!

Mellow Fellows

By now you probably know that Dana from misssBerlin is my favorite Amigurumi Designer. She has designed all the little Dudes you see here on this site. Unfortunately it’s been a while since I last tested for her, the Carnival Treat Dudes in April 2021.

Now she has created a brand new series, the Mellow Fellows and asked me at the end of April if I was able test them. Fortunately I could test at least two of the first four patterns that will be released over the next few weeks.

Mushrooms

First were the Mushrooms. Aren’t they cute?

The pattern includes the instructions to make these little mushrooms in two different sizes – about 8,5 and 10 cm tall. There is only little sewing as they are made more or less in one piece. As always Dana’s pattern is very detailed and easy to follow.

The pattern is written for a level 2 mercerized cotton yarn but I think you can also use any other yarn you like. I made my mushrooms with Schachenmayr Catania and a 2,5 mm hook. The colours I used are Natur and Red. I used the same colour to embroider the little dots on the Cap and a leftover of Black for the eyes.

They are really fun to make and I am absolutely happy how they turned out!

Trees

The trees pattern contains the instructions for an approx. 8.5 cm high Pine Tree and a Fruit Tree which is about 10 cm tall. Only the arms are sewn on for these two as well, the rest is crocheted in one piece.

I used Schachenmayr Catania in the colour Teddy for the bodies / trunks of both. The treetop of the Pine Tree is made with Khaki. The crown of the fruit tree can be varied depending on which fruit it is to bear. I made mine with Scheepjes Catona in the colour Forest Green, combined with Woll Butt Camilla (a German brand) in Hellgrün. It is an apple tree with green apples.

The pattern are available in Dana’s Ravelry Store.
Just have a look at the Mellow Fellows Mushrooms and
the Mellow Fellow Trees.

I hope you will enjoy making these little creatures as much as I did.

Carnival Treat Dudes

The Carnival Treat Dudes

Another pattern test for misssBerlin

The Carnival Treat Dudes is the new pattern by misssBerlin. Candy Apple, Cotton Candy and Popcorn Dude. Another lovely Trio!

It was a great fun again to test this pattern! And this time it was also very educational to me. But that’s one thing I love with testing patterns. I not only get new ideas, but also learn a lot and improve my skills – not to mention the exchange with other crocheters.

The Candy Apple

I started with the Candy Apple. It was love at first sight! I like the round caps anyway, but this one is not only round, it really has the bulbous shape of an apple. Even the small pit, where the stem and leaf normally sit, is shown. And of course the Candy Apple has a Candy Cane and a little leaf for decoration.

 

And sometimes you are lucky enough to have exactly the right color in your stash. My Candy Apple is made with Scheepjes Catona, no. 516 – Candy Apple.  

The Cotton Candy

The Dudes and their caps are mostly made with a Cotton sports weight yarn, but for the Cotton Candy it is recommended to use an Acrylic DK yarn. The instructions for the cap are specially written for slightly thicker yarn, using a slightly thinner hook. I used Stylecraft Special DK with a 3,5 mm hook. It worked pretty good and the cap fitted perfectly. But it was a personal drama to me in other ways: I wasn’t happy with the shape at all. In Dana’s (the person behind misssBerlin) photos the shaping was very smooth and soft and mine didn’t look like that at all. Dana tried to calm me down and told me that brushing will ease the shape …

… Well, she was so right! But I only got that after a series of tests of my own. 

As I know that the look of a crochet piece depends a lot on tension, stitch height and so on I tried to make little changes to improve the shaping of my Cotton Candy cap … I ended up doing three caps, but wasn’t really satisfied with any of them. So I took the chance to make another test.:

To get the fluffy look the finished cap is brushed with a pet slicker brush or something similar. Until now I’ve always been very cautious with brushing, being afraid to damage the whole item. Now, having three (unloved) caps to choose from I could be a little braver. So I decided to try how hard the yarn can be brushed before it breaks completely. What shall I say … it withstands quite a lot! The result is even better if you are not too careful …

Now, look at my finished cap…. I am so happy with it! Oh, do I have to mention that this is the cap I did first and the one I liked the least? Well, quite a learning curve I guess!
By the way, I used a small wire brush from the hardware store for “pre-brushing” and gave it a „finish“ with a hard clothes brush.

The Popcorn Dude

Making the Popcorn Dude needs a lot of concentration and some time. But it’s so worth it! 
As the popcorn box should fit snug I chose a smaller hook (2,25 mm) and went up to my regular 2,25 mm hook for the popcorn kernels.
Doesn‘t it look yummy?

In the picture the cap is worn by my new Dude that I made during the test. I think so far he is my best one! What practice can do…

For the yarn, colors and hooks I used in detail please see my Ravelry Page. And you also should have a look at the Ravelry page of one of my fellow testers. She tested two of the caps using a 0,75 mm hook and size 40 thread. So cute!

Easter Decoration

My brand new Easter decoration

As if I had nothing else to do I had to make a little decoration shortly before easter. I just couldn‘t resist when I saw this lovely animation of the Easter Dudes that Dana (misssBerlin) posted on Instagram. At nearly the same time I came across the easter eggs by Tatiana Saienko from Planet Piu and I thought both would go very well together. And voila!

 

The Easter Dudes

I had the chance to test the Easter Dudes back in 2019. I was – and still am – fascinated by the beautiful embroidery that Dana used to decorate the caps. I wish I could do that! Unfortunately, I never learned that and I have a really hard time doing it. So I am afraid, instead of pretty flowering branches, my embroidery will always be a bit more graphic and rustic.

The test for the Easter Dudes was about one Dude and one cap only.

I‘ve crocheted quite a few Dudes by now. And they all differ a bit. Although I – felt – always make them the same, they are always different. Smaller, bigger, thicker or thinner with different arms and / or noses. And there is Fred. 

Fred is my first Easter Dude and the only one (I hardly dare to say) that has a name. I made him as a part of the test and somehow he turned out very small. And with his cap on he seems tiny and shy to me. That‘s why I gave him a name. He only wears his Easter Cap and doesn‘t have to model for other caps.

However it was fun to dig out the pattern again and to crochet another Easter Cap. This time I tried a little embroidery and I think it worked out quite well. 

I used Camilla yarn from Woll Butt for the cap. That’s a German brand and I tried it for the first time. It‘s a cotton sport weight and has exactly the same yardage like Scheepjes Catona or Schachenmayr Catania. It‘s soft and easy to work with. For the embroidery I used Scheepjes Catona in the color Lavender. I just split the thread for it. 

I always find it surprising how fast some things can be crocheted if you are not currently testing the pattern. Maybe I should do a few more? Or do one every year, together with

The Easter Eggs

I discovered this pattern by chance on Instagram. It is a free pattern that you will also get on Ravelry. More precisely, there are two instructions, one for a small egg and one for a bigger one. Both are easy and quick to make and you can let your creativity run free.

I started with the small yellow egg. It is the same yarn and color like the cap for the Easter Dude. I wasn‘t sure if it was good to stuff the egg first and then to embroider it, but it worked out very well.


The other eggs are also made with cotton yarn but different brands. 

The big one is crocheted in one color as well and later embroidered. The blue yarn is from Wenco, also a German brand.

But at this point it was definitely enough embroidery for me! So I decided to crochet the other two small eggs in two colors.

The lavender egg has contrasting stripes in cream. (Lavender is Catona, Cream is Catania). The color changes are made in the rounds 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13. For the other one the main color is Cream and the green parts are done in rounds 5, 8-11 and 14.

I absolutely love the result!

 

The Suga‘ Dudes

Testing The Suga‘Dudes

I am happy that I had the opportunity to test for misssBerlin again! Also at the risk of repeating myself: I LOVE her patterns and especially her little Dudes. Meanwhile they are spread all over my house.

Her request came at just the right time for me.
It comforts me a little bit over the fact that our vacation, planed for mid-march, was canceled due to Corona. The test was about three new caps only. But of course the final pattern will also contain the instructions for the three cute little Dudes.

The recommended yarn for these little creatures and their different caps is mostly a level 2, or sport weight, cotton yarn. My favorite yarn is Scheepjes Catona, which is hardly available in Germany, or Schachenmmayr Catania. Due to the ongoing lockdown my choice of cotton yarn is slowly shrinking. And I noticed again that I seem to have only a small selection of red shades. But it always seems to me as if I don‘t have the right colors when starting a new project. Do you know this feeling?

I listed the colors that I used in detail on my Ravelry project page. My favorite color for the Dudes themselves is Catona, Linen No. 505, it is a bit lighter than Linen No. 248 from Catania. The Dudes on my photos below are made with Catona.

“They are bald and shy, so they cover their heads and half of their faces with whatever they find in their surroundings …”

misssBerlin

….. writes Dana, the person behind misssBerlin, about the Dudes in the intro of her patterns

This time you have to take care, that they don‘t hide on the coffee table. But that would probably not be a good idea. The Suga’ Dudes look so delicious that they definitely would fall out there.

They come along with some yummy decoration, like Ganache, Candy Sprinkles, Whipped Cream, and a topping of raspberries, strawberry and cherry.


Everything is explained very well in the pattern. But it‘s always advisable to read first, otherwise you will be like me.

The Cupcake Dude

…has a topping of Ganache, Candy Sprinkles and a little red cherry …

The Sundae Dude

… makes me drool with his fresh, velvety raspberries

The Waffle Dude

… comes with a topping of Whipped Cream and strawberry

and here the complete trio

Aren‘t they cute and yummy? I really love this pattern and enjoyed testing it!

The pattern for the Suga‘Dudes was just released in misssBerlins Ravelry store.

The Succulent Dudes.

My little Succulent Dudes …

Look at this sweet little Trio: Echeveria, Saguaro and Domino Cactus Dude. This is the latest pattern I was able to test for MissBerlin. Aren‘t they cute?

They are the newest members of her Dudes collection. All small, bald and just too cute. Only to differentiate at their different caps, which also give them their unmistakable characters.

I fell in love with this little creatures the first time I saw them 💕

That must have been the Pumpkin Dudes back then, sometime in 2019. Later I was able to test „my” first Dudes pattern – the Woodland Dudes. The Pine Cone Hat is one of my all-time favorites, although it has faced great competition over the years.

Here some more photos:

The pattern for these lovely Dudes is available via Ravelry.