So given this is supposedly a crafting blog I thought it was about time I actually wrote about a project!!
As I mentioned in Maternity Leave: Imagination vs. Reality I have had very little time to fulfill my crafting dreams over the last year. However this has started to change over the last month or so and I have been spending more time in the Inner Sanctum.
When I was reorganising my supplies and stash I came across the worst of my hoard. I have a ridiculous addiction to craft magazines, particularly knit-alongs. I have knitted copious amount of blanket squares over the last few years, however I’ve never got round to making the squares into a blanket. So I started pondering what other uses I could put these squares to.
There are a number of charities out there that take blanket squares however in a lot of cases they need to be a certain size, so those that I cannot donate I wanted to make into something other than a throw or cushion that won’t really have a place in our home (and I hate sewing up!). Check out the link to Eparenting which details a number of knitting charity campaigns: Bliss, Keep Britain Warm are a couple I have been stockpiling for.
So what are my options? I do have plans (in my imaginary idea book named the Best Laid Plans of Unicorns and Fairies (that won’t come to fruition)) to make some tactile pillows for Small, but with the number of squares I have I could fill a soft play centre with pillows!
And then inspiration came from the very source of my addiction – I found Mollie Makes Mama magazine! Within its pages was Amber Van Andel’s pattern for a sock teddy. This pattern stitches and cuts knitted fabric without the fabric fraying and falling apart. This got me thinking, I could use the same technique to shape my knitted squares into toys!
And my monster prototype was born (in a non-Frankenstein kind of way!)
Materials:
- 2 blanket squares (ideally same yarn weight and size)
- Thread (for sewing body and features)
- Felt scraps (for features)
- Toy Filling
- Yarn scrap and knitting sewing needle
- Drafting paper (for drawing your design)
- Pins
- Scissors
To make your monster
- Place you blanket squares right sides facing and pin on your design. NB:Blocking your blanket squares first will make pinning and sewing much easier (particularly if knitted in a stretchy stitch – naturally I realised this after I started stitching 🤦🏻♀️).
- Sew around your design using a zigzag stitch leaving an opening for stuffing. It is easier if your opening is along a finished edge of your square to prevent fraying.
- Cut away your excess fabric, remove design and turn right side out. Stuff firmly but avoid stretching the stitches in the fabric.
- Sew the stuffing gap closed using the yarn scrap. I found mattress stitch was the best method.
- Prepare your features and sew to the body
And you’re done!
I have been experimenting with the design and style since this prototype and found the neutral squares make great teddies (or animals), where the more zany and colourful are perfect for monsters. They can also be accessorised with ribbons, and I have also fitted squeakers in my most recent model! Bells and rattles would be just as effective, but bells would need to be fitted inside a casing to allow them to ring properly.
