Bunny Cottage

I metioned yesterday that I preposted my 2022 Easter projects last June to post in 2023 as I missed the chance to post them in 2022 and still wanted a record of them to return to later.

When I send holiday boxes I love sending items that can create creative play with different kinds of items. One type of crochet patterns I've pursued are house patterns that can be used with little amis to make crochet play sets. I found this pattern on Ravelry as part of a online magazine In the Round Issue 15 Realm of the Faires. The pattern is called Cottingley Faire Cottage. You can purchase the pattern here.

This was a fun learning experience as the designer used some techniques I wasn't familiar with to create the fairy cottage look. As this was being created for kids to play with and not just as a decoration I did omit some of her decorative elements. For fun I also dug through my button collection to add decorations to the project rather than crocheting everything.

Octopus

The Octopus is one of the sea creatures included in the Ocean Tower pattern I wrote about previously. You can purchase the pattern here.

I've been trying to keep the animals small so while I did use worsted weight yarn but I went down to a D hook. I also used saftey eyes rather than the eye pattern suggested. I experimented with the eyes, but I couldn't get them to look like the pattern so I moved on to safety eyes.

This is a really quick ami to make and he's a great additoin to any sea/ocean set. I was looking at the one from Bathtime Buddies but after thinking about it I decided he's a bit intimidating for the age group I am making the set for and opted for the friendlier octopus from this set. Nothing says the more detailed, realistic one can't be added at a later date.

Island Play Set

I've been writing about this project for a while now. I started it at the beginning of my ocean/sea birthday project. It has been finished but for the paracord for some time. I even had the paracord threaded through but was contimplating the best way to use the paracord locks. I finally decided it was time to push through and finish this project so I could focus on finishing the Ocean Tower that I hope will accompany the play set.

The Island Play Set is a free pattern and you can find it here.

I found paracord at Hobby Lobby. I looked around at different types of cord locks and decided on an oval cord lock that I found at Paracord Planet. I ordered a few as I can't imagine this will be the last set I make.

This play set is a double thick mat. This means does allow it to lay down flat, it holds up the island, and you get to hide all the ends from changing colors and sewing on the island. The downside to this additional bulk is it is harder to close. However, while not being the ultimate bag it still provides storage for the ocean/sea creatures.

The original pattern does come with a selection of creatures for the play set. As I've written about I've been using this as an opportunity to explore a range of books and patterns to create my own selection of amis for the project. As I was putting the creatures back after their photo shoot I noticed the dolphin had avoided the picture taking but he will be headed off with the birthday box. He's already back in the bag.

Mermaid in a Shell Playset

This is another Laura Sutcliffe playset. You can purchase the pattern here.

This pattern is designed so you can make your mermaid as a doll dressing up as a mermaid or as a mermaid. I opted for the mermaid as there are fewer pieces to lose later. I have been making more of my ami sets with sport cotton but my hands needed a break so I wanted with worsted weight and a g hook. The designer suggests DK weight but I didn't have any suitable colors in my stash so I went with worsted 4. If I make this again I would think about the sport cotton and a smaller hook size. I like the finished set but I think it would be cuter if smaller and the shell would be sturdier in cotton.

One of the reasons I don't make many "dolls" is I really don't enjoy making hair. This was a fun wig that is sewn on and it is a great altenative to trying to "root" hair.

If you choose to go with the doll that dresses up as a mermaid there is an additional dress pattern for the doll to wear.

This set works up quickly and was a nice additional playset to add to my ocean theme birthday box.

Beehive Playset

When I went looking for ideas to make bee and honey themed items for this project I was thrilled to discover one of my favorite play set designers Laura Sutcliffe had a Beehive set. You can purchase it here. I've collected quite a few of her play set patterns and if you follow this blog you will have noticed she figures quite prominetly into holiday and birthday boxes. Her patterns are fun to make and always add a little extra fun play to a gift.

While this play set comes with a bee, for this project I already had my bee design. I finished the first one back in March using a free pattern from another favorite designer Aradiya Toys you can findt the free pattern here. The bee was a huge hit and there was a request for a second.

This set also comes with a flower blanket for the bee. I'm working on that now and will post it when I finish the last bee.

If I make this set again I might use Sugar and Creme cotton or use two strands together to give the hive a little more sturdieness since you can't stuff it and it isn't well suited to adding plastic canvas or another type of interior support to make it stand out on its own. Other than that I think it is adorable and honestly if a child was playing with it I don't think they'd care. Since this is designed to be displayed I'd consider stuffing it if I didn't think they'd want the bottom to open.

Notes:

I used the suggested g hook for this project with the exception of the bees. The bees were made with sport cotton and a c hook.

Manatee

When I was thinking about creating an ocean play set I never thought I'd find a manatee or a stingray pattern to include in the set. I was quite pleased to see the range of sea creatures I've been able to find crochet patterns for as I've proceeded with this project.

This is another pattern from Bathtime Buddies that I still have on loan from the library. I do have the PDF to work from once the library book goes back, but for the moment it is easier working from the book.

The manatee works up quickly. As I mentioned before I'm trying to keep my animals small for the play set. If I had to do this again I'd have used sport yarn, but grey is in short supply in my yarn sport section so I used a D hook with worsted weight 4 yarn.

Three Little Pigs in a Bag

Once again I've fallen behind on my posting. This was part of a July birthday present. I love presents for kids that connect to books. I found several copies and versions of the book to add to the gift. You can purchase the pattern here.

This was one of my stash busting projects which is why one of the pigs is a different color. I thought I had enough of the dark pink for all the pigs, but I didn't. Time being what it was I chose not to remake the pigs so they'd all be the same shade of pink.

This was a fun project and one I'd make again. The bag makes a great storage holder for the toys.

Crochet Tea Set

I started this tea set back in April and finally decided I needed to finish it off so it didn't become one of those unfinished projects at donation time. I was determined to add a tea set to the donation this year and I found this one worked out well for me. As I mentioned before this comes from one of my favorite out of print Amigurumi books Amigurumi Two!: Crocheted Toys for Me and You and Baby Too that I keep hoping will come back into print.

Once I had some time to focus, the set finished quickly. It is one of the easier patterns I've located.

Crochet Toy Sugar Bowl

I've been continuing on my donation tea set project. I finished up the sugar bowl from Amigurumi Two!: Crocheted Toys for Me and You and Baby Too but I made some adjustments. I find hollow toys tend to collapse which is why I stuffed and closed the tea pot.

However, I didn't want to close off the sugar bowl. Instead I crocheted a white circle and sewed it into the sugar bowl to hold in the stuffing and to create the illusion of sugar in the bowl. I've done this when making play toy drink cups for younger family members when they went through their toy food phases. It is an effective strategy for giving some strength to the item and providing a little extra imaginative fun with an inserted color for milk or juice. I like the way this worked out. I have the tea cups, saucers, cookie plates, and cookies still to make.

This set will be a fun addition to my annual toy donation.

Little Baker Set

My thanks for today go out to Melissa Mall at Inner Child Crochet for her free pattern for this set which you can find here.

I've been looking for small projects to do while watching the Olympics that can be completed while still getting to see most of the events and getting some of the items on my to do list for gifts and donations completed, too. This was Tuesday night's project. Why pink?

Well I was in a hurry as the skating feed was beginning and I was unclear about how much yarn I needed and I knew I had 2 skeins of pink kitchen cotton in case I needed more than the one skein I thought I'd read I needed. I'm always paranoid about running out of yarn. Pink was the only color close to hand as the deadline approached so pink is the kitchen color this year I guess. Another item ready for the toy drive. I seem to be in kitchen mode at the moment. I will get back to the dolls eventually. I've got a doll carrier almost finished. Then I need to pick a doll clothing pattern once the Olympics is over. It's too hard to crochet and try doll clothes on to make sure they fit while watching sporting events.

Until then I'm thinking Easter Eggs wouldn't be a bad Olympic viewing project. I need to get about a dozen of those finished and they are a great scrap project, too. We will see what works for me.

Note to self, I did follow the directions for joining each round on the mitts. I'm thinking I might experiment with one the next time where I don't and see how it all works out. The don't always leave a great look.

Annie's Released Down on the Farm as an e-Pattern

Back in 2010 I picked up this pattern from a used pattern site and found out it was rare and hard to find a copy. People have asked me about my posts about it over the years but I don't violate copy rights to patterns to send out copies of stuff. The good news is Annie's is starting to recognize the value of their old patterns and is starting to release some of their older patterns that are incredibly hard to find as e-patterns. I came across this pattern while trying to link to another blog. I just had to post to let people who have wanted this pattern know it is now in reach and without the crazy second hand price costs for original print patterns. I love the old Annie's patterns, but not for the collectible value of them, but for the patterns that I want to make. Hopefully, they will continue to release more of what's in the vault.

It's funny because this is on my list of patterns for the same child that has been getting the holiday packages. It made me so glad to think others can enjoy it too.

Now for the link.You can find the pattern here.

Crochet Plates

After making all the breakfast food, the kids need plates to put the food on in their play kitchen. I found many tea party plates, but I could not find a pattern for dinner sized plates. After searching through many resources, I decided to adapt the cookie plate from Amigurumi Two!: Crocheted Toys for Me and You and Baby Too. I made the plates larger and chose a solid color for my set instead of mixing colors.



I decided on a set of four. This would allow the kids to play together, have friends visit, or invite stuffed animals or dolls to the table to share a pretend meal. This was Bernat yarn left over from a previous project and is heavier than the normal Red Heart yarn I generally use for my toy projects. It has a soft texture and an interesting color blend.



If you arrived here looking for free toy patterns please see the following pages:

Crochet Amigurumi Animals and Stuffed Animal Free Patterns

Knit Amigurumi and Stuffed Toys

Crochet and Knit Amigurumi and Other Dolls

Knit and Crochet Toys

Dinosaurs and Dragons

Hello Kitty

Crochet and Knit Puppets

Teddy Bear Patterns and Clothes

Knit and Crochet Food Patterns Great for Play Food


Pictures may not be used without permission.