#securityblanket

The Best Bear

Posted on July 30, 2022July 30, 2022 by aboutyarntime

Okay, so, another order for a new baby arriving soon, and this time I needed to do a teddy bear.

Que Pinterest and YouTube search!

I found this fantastic free tutorial for the bear on YouTube. The original creator used chunky velvet yarn, but I knew I was going to go with this soft chocolate brown color for mine. She also used articulating connectors for the arms and legs, but I just sewed mine on.

Then there were the eyes. Okay. So this bear is a deep chocolate brown, so my usual embroidery route was not going to work here. The black cotton yarn I typically embroider eyes with just did not show up at all on the darker brown.

Que second Pinterest search!!

I found what I was looking for here. This handy video tutorial takes you step by step through how to make these eyes. I am so glad it exists! I am always looking for ways to make baby toys as safe as possible, and even though safety eyes are supposed to be safe, I always feel much better about crocheting or embroidering eyes on baby toys.

The blanket is a fantastic pattern by Yarnspirations and The Crochet Crowd called “From the Middle“. I LOVE this pattern for 2 different reasons:

1. It goes round and round in a square shape the whole time and is an easy repetitive pattern so I don’t have to think too much about it.

2. I often do projects to fit my yarn supply vs. buying yarn specifically for projects. That being said, this is a great pattern to use when you’re not sure how big your blanket can get with the amount of yarn you have available. No need to play yarn chicken! This blanket can just end when the yarn runs out. You may have to frog a bit at the end to get back to the beginning of a round, but that’s 100% better than having to go out and try to match your yarn.

I hope you’ll give this guy a try, and if you just want to order one instead of trying to make one for yourself, reach out to me and let’s talk about it!

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Crochet Portfolio

Cuddly Fox Lovey

Posted on July 19, 2022July 19, 2022 by aboutyarntime

So this project was inspired by and produced for my next great nephew who will be joining us soon. His older brother received an arctic fox lovey from me when he was born, and his mom is continuing with a forest theme for her second boy.

I did not know just how well this new fox lovey would match her new nursery theme – but it turns out that it matches perfectly with the bedding she has chosen.

I present to you: Chubby Cheeks Lovey Fox:

I think he just turned out so cute! He reminds me a little of the gopher from the movie Caddyshack, to be honest 🤣 but that’s okay!

So for the little blanket, I just did a granny hexagon and went round and round until I started running out of yarn. Then I finished off with single crochet all around the border of the blanket.

The free pattern for the fox is provided by YarnSociety and can be found here.

With a super helpful video tutorial here.

I hope you’ll give this little guy a try!

Crochet Portfolio

Bunny Luv Lovey

Posted on March 29, 2022March 30, 2022 by aboutyarntime

I felt like Spring would be the perfect time to design this pretty little Bunny Luv Lovey. She turned out so cute! I used the same Lotus Blanket pattern from Hooked by Robin that I used on my Unicorn Lovey This blanket pattern is so handy, and whips up very quickly. Again, I only did about 20 rows, but that’s the perfect size for a little security blanket.

I make these little blankets when I have found some cute yarn at a thrift store, but I don’t really have enough to make a whole afghan or big amigurumi project. Usually I’ll make the little blanket and then decide what kind of animal to put on top. I recently started a Facebook page: “About Yarn Time Shop” for my crochet shop and sometimes I’ll post my newly constructed blankets and let my followers vote on what to put on top!

My Facebook followers also get to have first dibs on any of my creations posted there before I post them to Etsy 🙂

The bunny topper pattern for this little luvvy comes from Alanna O’Dea and was shared on Bella Coco Crochet here. The pattern is very easy to follow, and the author also has other variations of the pattern to create different animals to top the blanket.

Their bunny did not have bows for embellishment, so I had to design those myself. Just chain 11, turn, *sc in the second loop from the hook, sc 9, Ch 1, turn* and repeat for 5 rows. Ch 1, cut the yarn and pull through. Weave in ends, and then scrunch the center and secure with yarn looped about 6 times around. Sew to each ear, and there you have it! Little Bitty Bows 🙂

I hope you will give this Bunny a try. If you just want one and don’t want to have to make it, you can always order one from me directly – colors may vary depending on yarn availability – or you can order custom colors!

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