Tag Archives: bunny

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit

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It’s the first of the month!  Time for rabbits!

What? You don’t do that in your house?

OK, well, that doesn’t surprise me, because it’s a really weird superstition.  Supposedly, whoever is the first to say “Rabbit” or “Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit” on the first of the month is supposed to have good luck.  (Or, if you’re super competitive, like my husband and I, the first one to text/say/leave a note saying “Rabbit” gets to “win” for that month.)

I’m not sure where we picked up this habit, but we’ve been doing it for years.  It wasn’t from when we were kids (because when I was a kid, my brother and I would to do “A pinch and a punch for the first of the month,” until our mom had to ban it because we kept trying to beat each other up).  According to Wikipedia, it’s a British superstition from around the turn of the century, but that doesn’t shed much light on where I picked it up.

Anyway, let’s try to get extra-good luck by starting off this month talking about rabbit-themed patterns!

I love these wee little rabbits- look at their adorable little ears!  How cute!

Dutch Rabbits by Rachel Borello Carrollimg_8726_medium21And this blanket is unbelievably sweet (and probably lucky, too)!

Bunny Blanket by Martin Storeybunny_20blanket_20255x340_medium1This little bunny is just full of personality- I think he looks like he’s plotting some mischief.

Boy bunny with a piebald patch by Julie Williamsboy_bunnyetsy_medium21Do you have a silly first-of-the-month superstition?

Pattern: Bunny and Bear

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Last week, I told you about the kids I teach in my knitting class.  They are all doing an amazing job, and they all like making different things.  Some want to make tiny little projects they can finish in a day, some want to spend weeks working on a single item.  Some only want to make garments for themselves, and some make garments for their stuffed animals.

But all kids love a new stuffed animal. (Or “stuffie” as my students say.  Is that a regional thing?  Or is it a generational thing.  I never called them “stuffies” when I was a kid.”

So, I designed a pattern for two new stuffies, a bear and a bunny, that is easy enough for even an early beginner knitter.  img_3474These two little guys are totally adorable (if I say so myself), and are made without any shaping, purling or other “complicated” knitting.  If you can knit garter stitch, you can make yourself a new little friend.  And, I’ve included step-by-step instructions, including pictures!img_3442But, I think my favorite part of this pair is their tiny little tails!  (The bunny has a teeny pompom and the bear has an even tinier little nubbin.  Adorable!)img_3489Are you a very beginning knitter looking to make something more fun than a potholder or a scarf?  Do you have a kid itching to take up needles and yarn?  Give these two a try!

bunny-and-bear

Inspiration: Small Projects

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I feel like I’ve been working on giant, slow projects for the last three months.  My cable sweater is just about done (finally).  And, I’ve been working on a couple secret projects (designs that aren’t quite finished yet), and they’re all HUGE!  I guess I just have a thing for oversized sweaters, blankets, and anything that takes more than a dozen skeins of yarn. And, I’m thinking my Ravellenic Games project is going to be pretty big, too!

But sometimes you just want to knit something quick.  Something fun and easy.  And since I’m not “supposed to” be spending my knitting time on fun little things, let’s look at adorable pictures instead.  (OK, I might take a break this afternoon and make up a tiny something… don’t tell my boss.)

These tiny bunnies are too cute.  I love their two-tone fur, and their teeny pink noses.

Dutch Rabbits by Rachel Borello CarrollIMG_8726_medium2[1]Little House on the Prairie was one of my favorite books when I was a kid, and these Half-Pint inspired mini mitten bookmarks are too perfect for words.  (Pa called Laura “Half-Pint,” which in my opinion is the sweetest pet name in the world.)  I usually read on my kindle or listen to audio books, but I think I still might need a pair of these mittens.

Half Pint Mittens by Susan B. Anderson1427650926147_medium[1]And, these bracelets are so cool!  I’m not really a bracelet person (I feel like they get in the way), but I might knit up a handful of these beauties.  So simple, and such a great way to use up those pretty leftovers that you can’t bear to get rid of.

easy knitted bangle by Ambah O’Brienbangels_8_medium[1]What do you make when you want some instant gratification?

Inspiration: Valentine’s Day

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It’s Valentine’s Day this weekend, and I haven’t gotten my husband anything.  To be fair, we said “no presents” this year, but I always have trouble with doing “no presents.”  I think it must be a knitter thing.  Or maybe it has something to do with my Midwestern upbringing.  Either way, I feel a compulsion to make something. It’s a problem.

And since I’ve only got a couple days, any gifts I make will have to be very small.

I could go completely silly (yet adorable), and make a herd of these tiny heart-carrying bunnies.  But, I don’t think I can translate this pattern before Sunday.  If only I’d taken French in college, instead of German!  Dang.

Valentin by Anisbee Anisbee20_medium2[1]Or I could make something marginally more useful (again, the Midwesterner in me is showing- I love a useful gift!), like these adorable nesting baskets.

Heart Nesting Baskets by Sonya BlackstoneHeart_Baskets_3wm_medium2[1]But my husband is not the kind of guy that likes cutesy little things like heart-shaped baskets.  Maybe he’s the kind of guy who likes miniature little cupids on strings?

I could knit up one of these guys (sans halo):

Teeny-Tiny Mochimochi Angels by Anna Hrachovecangels2_mail_medium[1]and add a teeny bow and arrow:

Valentine Cupid Bow and Arrow by Linda DawkinsValentine_medium2[1]And, hey presto!  Cupid!

Oh, I don’t know.  That’s probably too silly a gift for my husband, too.  I suppose I’ll just get a bottle of something yummy and make him dinner.  You know, like a boring grown-up.

(But that doesn’t mean that I won’t make a teensy Cupid for myself!)

Do you have any Valentine’s Day knitting plans?

Pattern Spotlight: Mini Mochis

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I love my job.  Working with little kids is the greatest, and my students are so smart and goofy and interesting.  I could hang out with them all day.

Except for one thing.

They are little germ factories.

I’ve been sick more days in the last year than in the last five years combined.  And I 100% blame my students.  One of them literally sneezed directly into my face two weeks ago, and another put both her fingers up her nose mid-sentence as we talked about her sewing project. Working with kids a glamorous job.  That’s for sure.

Long story short, I spent the weekend holed up on my couch, drinking mint tea, going through boxes of Kleenex and binge-watching Parks and Rec on Netflix (which is a totally amazing show that I had somehow forgotten about).

I was half-drunk on Dayquil, and couldn’t muster the concentration to work on my husband’s sweater for more than a half a row, so I decided to do something fun, goofy, and above all else, simple.

So, I got out my sock needles, scrounged up a box of leftover yarn bits, and pulled up the MochiMochi Land website.

MochiMochi Land is the ridiculous (and awesome) brainchild of Anna Hrachovec, who spends her time designing tiny, goofy knitting patterns and making amazingly detailed art installations.  She’s basically my hero.

She has dozens of tiny patterns available on her website.

My personal favorites include:

Snowmen!

snowmenBunnies!  (These are free!)

tinybabybunnies2[1]And gnomes!

untitledThey’re perfect sick-day knitting.  They’re small enough you can completely finish one in a single sitting.  They’re so adorable that you can’t help but smile when you see them.  And, they have no discernible purpose (other than to make you feel better).

Hopefully, I’ll feel better soon.  But if I don’t, at least I’ve got my tiny knitted minions to keep me company!

What do you work on when you don’t feel like working on anything?

Inspiration: Tiny Stuff!

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I’m a fiend for tiny things.  It’s been that way since I was a little kid.  (Mom loves tiny stuff, too.  So maybe it’s genetic?)  But, basically, the smaller, the better, and the more useless the better.

Here are a couple fun (and tiny) little projects for you to try out.  They’re great for using up little bits of extra yarn you might have laying around.

Adorable!

Teeny Tiny Knitted Toys by Little Cotton Rabbits

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Chichester the Pig by Helen Apocalypse (FYI, this little piglet is knit in the round
with no seaming!  No arms or legs to sew on!  That means you have
time to make a whole drift (Drift is the technical term for a group of pigs.  Now you know!).)

IMG_8632_medium2[1]

Mini Christmas Stocking Ornaments by Little Cotton Rabbits

IMG_8107_medium[1]Wee Twee Tiny Acorn Tutorial by Pamela Wynne

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