Yeti and Bigfoot pattern - new method to make arms

I recently had a message from someone who was having problems making the arms for the Yeti from my Yeti and Bigfoot pattern, They are made from the fingers upwards and the technique can be quite fiddly to get to grips with. Otherwise the pattern is quite a straightforward one for people fairly new to making amigurumi, so I thought it would be good to try to make the arms easier to crochet. 

So, the pattern now includes the additional information on how to make the arms from the top down, which makes the fingers much easier to crochet. I still slightly prefer the way the original method looks, but there's not very much in it. If you've already bought the pattern you should be able to download it again and get the new version of the pattern. Contact me on the site where you bought it if you have any problems with this.

The new versions of the hands, small at top, big at bottom.

Knitwits Exhibition

Where I live, in the market town of Horsham, West Sussex, we have a lovely little local museum that regularly puts on all sorts of exhibitions. I recently saw a notice saying that they were planning an exhibition about knitting, crochet and other yarn crafts, and they were asking for items that people had created to include in the displays. I sent them photos of some of my things, and they asked if they could borrow a few, including my Daleks, alpacas, bigfoot and yeti, and my Roman soldier. I took them in a couple of weeks ago, and the other day I went to see the exhibition.

It was very entertaining, with a variety of items on display, but here are the things that caught my eye. They had four copies of famous artworks recreated using knitting, crochet and fabric, created by a group called The Materialistics. The group had made Klimt's The Kiss, Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe, The Great Wave by Hokusai, and The Scream by Edvard Munch. They all looked amazing, each was made by several people, and it made me wonder if I could create something similar.

There was a collection of beautifully detailed moths, knitted by Max Alexander, which must have taken forever to complete. Much as I'd love to own one, they're a bit out of my price range, but she does make some lovely jewelry at more affordable prices, which you can find on her website Maxsworld.

The museum had various vintage items on display, ranging from booklets about knitting and crochet, patterns, gadgets, and pieces that had been made through the years. I particularly liked this coat which had been crocheted from raffia in the 1950s.

Of course, it was fun to see my items on display (even though my alpacas needed their hair sorting out!), along with other knitted, crocheted and needle felted pieces, including the traditional knitted toilet roll cover!

Fantasy Creatures Design Contest

Amigurumipatterns.net are holding a competiton to find the best cute fantasy amigurumi, and I've entered several of my patterns. I'd love you to vote for any of them that you like (or any of the other designs in the contest if you like those better). You get 10 votes so you don't have to choose just one.

Here are the designs that I've entered, just click on the 'Vote' link below each picture to go to the voting page with that pattern as the first one listed. If you want to vote for more than one of my characters you will need to stay on the same page and scroll through all the patterns. Voting ends at midnight on 10th December (UTC + 1), and everyone who votes gets entered in a raffle to win 100 Must-Have Minis yarn balls by Yarn and Colors.

Yeti and Bigfoot Families: Vote

Cuddly Dragons: Vote

Little Dragon Hatchlings: Vote

Tiny Baby Dragons: Vote

Chubby Gnomes: Vote

Bumble the Brownie Troll: Vote

Yeti and Bigfoot Amigurumi Pattern

When I first started designing patterns I often made things using fuzzy mohair type yarn, which I then brushed to make cute, furry creatures, including my Adorable Monsters. Unfortunately, mohair yarns have become a lot less fashionable since then, and you can often only find very lightweight ones, which are no good for making amigurumi at a reasonable size. I did make some Adorable Monsters using normal yarn, but I decided to have another go, and make a little Yeti and Bigfoot.

I still wanted to give their fur a bit of texture, so this time I used Stylecraft Alpaca DK, an acrylic yarn with 20% alpaca in the mix. I find it works well for amigurumi animals as it has a really nice, soft and furry feel to it - I used it for my Alpaca Family and Bracken the Fox.

I made a little Bigfoot, tweaking the pattern slightly to give it a thumb, and I was really happy with the way it looked. I then thought it would be nice to have a larger version, something it would be a bit easier to cuddle. If you want to make a larger version of an amigurumi, there isn't any formula to do it. You just have to work your way through it, with an idea of what you want it to look like, and use trial and error to get it right. And some things don't scale up easily - it took a while to work out how to make the bigger fingers and toes when the popcorn stitches I used were just the right size for the original. I decided to make the big version with proportionally longer legs, but otherwise they're very similar.

 

 

Once I was happy with both the patterns, I made a pair of Yeti to go with the Bigfoots (Bigfeet?). As I was making the little one, I decided to see what the feet would look like sewn to the front, so it's sitting down, and I thought it looked really cute. The standing version of the little Bigfoot is only 6 inches tall, so the little sitting Yeti fits in your hand rather nicely. The bigger versions are 9 inches tall, and definitely just right for a cuddle.

So, if you'd like to make yourself a cute monster family, you can get the pattern from Etsy or Ravelry. I think they're cute on their own, but even cuter together.