Go Gopher Amigurumi Crochet Pattern

Gopher Amigurumi Crochet Pattern by Awkwardsoul designs

I’m just a crafter and tea guzzler, whereas my husband is the smart software engineer guy. First, he asked for a Java Duke, which I quickly made (though it needs a revision). He then requested a Go Gopher to punt around the office. When I was telling some friends that I crocheted a Duke, they requested a gopher as well! Popular little rodent, isn’t he?

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Even if you aren’t familiar with Go, their Go Gopher mascot is pretty cute. Making a gopher was entertaining as I’ve been watching Great Horned Owl nest cams and often they are eating golf course “pocket gophers”, so now I got amigurumi gophers that my Tea Owl amigurumis can peck at.

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The pattern for Gopher Amigurumi is actually pretty straight forward, with shaping in the back to create an appealing bean shape. It was a refreshing break to work on a pattern that is easy going since the last few amigurumi I’ve designed have been on the complex side. I have also come to a mental block on the current, more complex, pattern I’ve been working on, so it was really cool to bang out a fun pattern.

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Gopher Amigurumi measures 4.5″ tall, 2.5″ wide if made with worsted weight yarn. I’d say my Gopher Amigurumi crochet pattern is a fun beginner project with little sewing on parts. If you mess up placement of the eyes or limbs, that is okay as looking silly is totally what this gopher likes to be! These gophers crochet up quick as well. After a weekend, I had a three line up of derpy looking gophers on my desk and a husband anxious to take one to work.

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To get this PDF format crochet pattern, purchase directly via Ravelry by clicking  which will take you through Paypal. You do not need a Ravelry account to purchase, though advisable as your pattern purchases are stored there forever.

Check out the Gopher Amigurumi Ravelry page for more information!

Don’t crochet, but want a Gopher? Check out my Amigurumi Commissions page and request to get one made!

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(The Go Gopher mascot design is by Renee French)

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Stegosaurus Amigurumi Crochet Pattern!

I am happy to announce a new pattern – Stegosaurus Amigurumi Crochet Pattern! My second dinosaur amigurumi crochet pattern to date!

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It seems with every pattern I post, I always say “This is the most complex pattern to date”. The Stegosaurus amigurumi isn’t any more difficult than my Triceratops pattern, however due to the large number of parts to sew on, this pattern is a little trickier. I dislike sewing on parts and I try and make sewing easier, however there is no way around making Stegosaurus plates one piece. I make lots of amigurumi, but after making two Stegosauruses, I got much better at sewing on parts!

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Designing wise, the Stegosaurus would of been fast if it wasn’t for me constantly changing stitch counter apps, so I was losing row counts thus had to work backwards, twice. I opted for a more “realistic” shaped body with a high tail, rather than the half circle cartoon-stylized dinosaur shape. I had some issues with the neck, but for someone working with this pattern, they can lengthen the neck if they wish.

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My husband, the aspiring dinosaur paleontologist in his youth, told me apparently due to their tiny tiny brains, Stegosauruses were just a little smarter than plants. I discovered the small brain in my Steggy didn’t stop him from having adventures in his favorite device in the house – the salad spinner. Who knew Stegosauruses liked salad spinners?

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The Stegosaurus amigurumi measures about 9″ from nose to tail tip, 5″ tall and 3″ wide. There is a bit of flexibility if you want to make a longer neck, legs and tail. I also listed different styles of plate layouts, so one can make as many or as little, Stegosaurus plates and thagomizers as they want or fingers would allow.

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To get this crochet pattern, purchase directly via Ravelry by clicking  You do not need a Ravelry account to purchase.

Check out Stegosaurus Dinosaur Amigurumi Pattern on Ravelry for more info!

The Stegosaurus Amigurumi Crochet pattern goes well with the Triceratops Amigurumi and pretty close ratio wise to size. Despite Stegosaurus died out 90 million before Triceratops came around, but they can still be buddies, right? I’m planning to get a few more Dinosaur amigurumi crochet patterns out this year!

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RAWR! Triceratops Amigurumi Pattern

My husband loves dinosaurs – as a kid he wanted to be a dinosaur paleontologist. I’ve been capitalizing on the idea by buying him dinosaur themed things. I eventually had the idea to do a Dinosaur amigurumi, which was well received.

I admit, the triceratops amigurumi came out pretty cute!

triceratops amigurumi by awkward soul designs

Thankfully, the triceratops took only 2 attempts on the body, head and tail to design. I constructed this pattern to try and keep the body shape “realistic” but also chubby cute. There is also subtle shaping on the legs so the dino can stand on its own and with no weird splayed out leggies. I included two instructions for the frill, but I’m sure one could play with it a bit more to get other styles of Triceratops. One could also easily adjust the length of the tail and horns.

triceratops amigurumi by awkwardsoul designs

The horn construction was a little tricky. As much as I wanted to keep it the same yarn weight, I couldn’t get the detail I wanted. If you are a seasoned crocheter, you know crocheting something tiny with fat yarn can be painful to do. With that said, while the body is crocheted in worsted weight, the horns are done in DK weight. I’ve included basic instructions for the horns in worsted weight, but only for people who don’t have the yarn on hand. I bet you could sculpt the horns with polymer clay for a nice effect.

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This pattern is one of my more complex patterns to date due to some of the shaping elements and more bits to sew on like the horns.

Finished Size: 8″ from tail tip to nose, 4″ tall, 3.5″ wide

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You can purchase my Triceratops Amigurumi Pattern at Awkward Soul Designs’ Etsy Shop

or

Purchase directly via Ravelry by clicking . You do not need a Ravelry account to purchase.

Check out Triceratops Amigurumi on Ravelry to see more information.

I’m planning to do a few more dinosaur patterns, though I’m unsure which dinosaur to tackle next. Maybe I’ll make a carnivore since all these triceratops are eating my herb plants!

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Until next time!

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Owl Amigurumi Crochet Pattern – Tea Mug Owls?

It’s done! This pattern is the answer to my teaser photo I recently posted here.

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OWL AMIGURUMI!

Phew, finally!

I’m a huge owl fan – right up there for my love of octopi! My other blog, The Oolong Owl, is my owl-themed tea blog. Lots of Owl and Tea!

Alright. This took around 12 attempts to get the pattern just right. I had an owl graveyard of crocheted owl parts that didn’t make the cut. I really wanted to limit the amount of parts I had to sew onto these guys.

After 9 attempts I had a better idea how to pull off the best shape. Annoyingly, it took 3 tries to get the neck right – all times scrapping most of the body.

What I love about my Owl creation is that they are ridiculously photogenic! I took LOTS of pictures, so this is a photo-heavy post!

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My Owl pattern features:

3 head shapes – Round, Easy Ears and Large Ears.

2 face construction options – Felt or Colour chart

Simple chest feather detail

I made five owls (whoa!) as demos for this pattern. Three of them are the more of the bright and fun colour variety. Two of them are more realistic type of owl.

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The first Owl, the prototype, is this green owl. His name is Laoshan. He likes tea, especially green tea. Any tea nerds in the house?

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Owl Amigurumi Crochet pattern by awkward soul designs (5)Owl matcha? I dunno….

My second favorite owl is my purple owl – she has no name yet. She was made last of the 5, so she’s the youngest. So far, I’ve just been calling her Attractive Purple Owl. I love the yarn I used here – the colour is great and was soft to work with (Craftsmart brand). Oddly, I stuffed her a bit too much, so she’s a little bigger than the other owls. Oh well.Owl Amigurumi Crochet pattern by awkward soul designs (12)

The second owl I created was the Big Blue Ear Owl. I was experimenting here with the chest feather detail and the colour chart. He’s got the tall “ears/feathers” on his head. I think he looks like a lot of fun.

The third owl I made is a more realistic type. I haven’t named him yet as I was planning on putting him up for adoption. I did an “x” felt detail on his face, and chest feathers to his chest.

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If you haven’t noticed, these Owls had a fun photo shoot with my teaware, LOL! I wanted to say they are “tea cup” owls, but they can barely squeeze into my tea cups! They fit into a matcha bowl fine, the rest of the teaware was a tight squish!

They sized up for me 5″ high, 3.5″ wide, up to 3″ long with worsted weight yarn and 4mm hook. Size will greatly depend on your gauge and yarn. Tea mug it is!  I’m sure if you made these owls with DK or sport yarn they’ll fit into a tea cup (and steal your tea).

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The fourth Owl I made.. well, he’s all mischief. I wanted to make a Snowy Owl, as that appears to be a popular type of owl. I prefer the Northern White face Owl myself (TRANSFORM!). Anyways, my Snowy Owl is very cute – my husband likes him the best!

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He looks like a well mannered Owl? Pfffft.

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Which Owl do you like more? Did I get your creative juices flowing? What colours or owls would you like to see or make youself?

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You can purchase my Owl Amigurumi Pattern at My Etsy Shop

or

purchase directly via Ravelry by clicking this  button. You do not need a Ravelry account to purchase.

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P.S. I will be listing 3 of the Owls for adoption on my My Etsy Shop. You may also check out my commission page if you’d like a custom made owl.


Cute Cute Crab Amigurumi Pattern!

Another pattern already? That was fast!

Introducing  Awkward Soul’s CRAB AMIGURUMI

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I have an interesting crab story from my childhood.

I was around 10 years old and was fishing off a dock. I caught something REALLY heavy and hard to pull in, that it took a long time to reel in and I needed help from my older cousins. I got it out of the water and it was a SCARY spidery leggy looking spikey crab! Very angry crab too! I started screaming and my cousin kicked the crab off the dock!

In retrospect, it was probably a good eat, oh well.

Crab Amigurumi pattner by AwkwardSoul (3)Don’t kick me off a dock!

I had the inspiration quickly after making my Turt the Turtle Amigurumi pattern. I noticed other amigurumi crabs had that round shape, and I thought going oval makes for a cuter, more realistic-ish shaped crab.

I was set on doing 8 legs instead of 6, but I couldn’t fit the extra legs without making the crab bigger. I also wanted to make a cute crab, not a scary angry crab from my childhood fishing incident!

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I wish I had a better name for this crab. “Crabby” was taken. “Snippy” didn’t suit him. Oh well. His name is “Crab”.

You can purchase this Crab Amigurumi pattern at my Etsy Store

or
Snag it via Ravelry by clicking  You do not need a ravelry account to purchase!

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Turt the Turtle Amigurumi Crochet Pattern

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Hey crochet peeps! Finally, I have a new pattern available!

Turt the Turtle!

Annoyingly, the other pattern I’ve been working on, which is on its 8th or 9th attempt, I put on hold to work on a turtle pattern. This turtle design came to me right away –  I also came up with a flipper design.

With that said, my turtle design comes with two leg options:

Flipper leg Turt!

Turt Turtle Amigurumi - AwkwardSoul (5)I like swimming!

Stumpy leg Turt!

Turt Turtle Amigurumi - awkwardsoul (13)I like cruising around at my own pace.

Both turtles are super cute and are enjoyable to make!

The only trouble I had with this pattern was creating the head. I wanted something a little tapered, but not complicated. Of course, I got complicated and it took a few tries to get the head just right. The legs and flippers were easy for me to figure out.

Shaping for the turtles came out very nice. I wanted to do a more realistic oval shell shape than the usual round amigurumi turtles out there.

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These cutie turtles are on the small side, 5″ long and 4″ leg span with worsted yarn, so they are a fast crochet project – leaving you time to make a large nest of turtles!

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Turt the Turtle Amigurumi Crochet PDF Pattern is up for sale at my Etsy Shop!

Alternatively, you may purchase the PDF Turt the Turtle pattern directly through Ravelry, no account required! 


Dolphin version 3 – updated colour work!

Sigh, sorry crochet peeps. I redid the colour work on my Dolphin pattern AGAIN! I dislike updating a pattern like this as I wish I got it right the first time!

PINK!

I was making the dolphin for a commission and was really unhappy with the colour work. Annoyingly with spiral rounds is the rows don’t perfectly stack, especially on decrease rows. With that said, the tummy block would begin to spiral out and bend.

I moved stitches around and improved the colour work A LOT so the tummy is a straight natural shape. Took 2 attempts to get it right!

Left: old tummy work. Right: improved new tummy

I can see why lots of amigurumi patterns don’t do colour switching, they often would just sew on another shape as it is hard to mess with the spiral rounds not stacking plus taking 3D shapes into account. Phew, I did pull it off though resulting in a very cute dolphin. The colour changes are still kinda tedious, so this pattern is not for a new crocheter.

I posted the Dolphin pattern changes on my Pattern Errata page for peeps who already purchased the pattern. All dolphin patterns sold will now have the new tummy colour chart.

You can purchase my Dolphin Amigurumi Pattern at my Etsy Shop or via Ravelry by clicking this  thing! You do not need a Ravelry account to purchase the pattern.

BONUS RABBIT BOMBING AMIGURUMI SHOTS!

Apparently my Dolphin Amigurumi tastes good to rabbits. Benson photobombed the photo session to lick and paw the dolphins. Sigh.


Ultra Nubby Scrubby Crochet Tawashi Dishcloths

CROCHETING BIG TEXTURED POOFY STUFF IS FUN!

Get a load of this ultra nubby beast of a crochet project:

I’ve been nursing a sprained/fractured finger over the last few weeks. Right before I messed up my finger I had started on this project then I was forced to take a break. I then discovered I could still crochet (slow paced) however I cannot do tight gauge stuff like amigurumi until my finger is fully healed.

While I was making these, my husband kept stealing them to fidget with. He really likes the white one because it is really stiff and has fun little arms to pull.

This white tawashi is called “Jellyfish” tawashi. Everyone who saw me making it couldn’t figure out what I was doing and concluded it was a jellyfish. This variation in particular is really sturdy and scrubby.

♥ With this pattern there are 5 forms, all easy to modify to be bigger and higher nubs. ♥

Here is all the other forms that I put in the pattern:

Fluffy Jelly Tawashi Dish Cloth – this one is very soft compared to the regular Jelly Tawashi. The nubs are constructed differently to be more open with also has more height and poof going on.

Sun Burst Tawashi – this dishcloth is more on the flatter side, fun and loopy with great scrub capacity. This one crochets up fast!

Medallion Tawashi – this one has coarse, tight nubs for ultra scrubbing power! Very compact!

Spiral Tawashi – a simple spiral dishcloth. Light scrubbing and looks great with variegated yarn.

♥  I got this fun crochet pattern up at My Etsy Shop or can be purchased via Ravelry (no account needed) by clicking this nifty button. ♥ 

Unfortunately, these dishcloths do not make good rabbit hats. Kinda looks like a chef hat or nubby beret? Benson was not impressed. He threw it off and made a cage jail break escape!

Phew! Lots of dishcloths! I actually majorly dented my cotton yarn stash making these and will have to buy more yarn (yessss!).  I got another crochet project idea I’m going to start working on today since I have this one completed. Though, I probably need to go back and make more of this pattern, ya know… christmas gifts. ARG!


Owl Bears and Beasts! Oh My!

RAWR!

Owl bears or Owl beasts. I didn’t know about them until World of Warcraft seeing Moonkins running around and my boyfriend (now husband) at the time saying they are Owl Bears taken from Dungeons & Dragons.

I never got into the paper and pen RPG world, only really recently shown by my husband, who has many many RPG books. I was more of a “play RPGs on my video console” girl, loving old Final Fantasys and Dragon Quest.

While I’m STILL bashing my head over my pattern creation block on a certain item that has taken 7 attempts, my husband was suggesting various D&D creatures I could crochet (probably for him to play with and show off while doing a game, oh I love him). Owl Bear came up right away as I had a pattern written down already that could be stripped down.
Of course, I never shared this pattern nor was it tested yet. I liked this amigurumi being an original – my favorite amigurumi I ever made:

Boomy

From my times on WOW, I loved Boomkins. I’m not sure why. Maybe it was my husband playing one and we RAF’d together so I saw his all the time. Then I had one and I loved it more than my main and I rather play it than my main, despite crappier gear + I sucked with a druid. Whatever, having fun counts right?
I think they are cute and silly! Anyways, I spent many hours on my boomkin “Boomykins” herbing and digging holes. I had to make my own. Then I did.. then I took a crazy pencil I got from a friend and turned it into a staff. Then I showed him to all my friends and they thought I’ve become more nutty with age.

So I redid the pattern and made it and Owl Bear – which is really cute on its own. Teeny claws and cute attitude.

IMG_1024The pattern is up at my Etsy Store or through Ravelry (no account needed).

I went into crazy amount of pictures and detail on each part and how to sculpt the claws/horns/antlers with polymer clay. Then of course, lots of options so you can make an Owl Bear the way you think it should look like – head shape options, ruffles, white tummies and horns.

As always, check out my Amigurumi Commissions section if you would like to arrange for a completed Owl Bear for your very own.

I’m going to do a few more Dungeons & Dragons creatures (why does everyone say I need to do an “Invisible Stalker” or whatever it is called? Then I google it and feel like an idiot every time!)


Silver Fox and Loppy Bunny

I’ve been missing in action the last while because I moved from Vancouver Canada to Southern California. Wow I see sun! I haven’t seen sun since early fall!

After that, I had to wait for my stuff to get shipped over then find the yarn (in a large crushed box).

Then, I got working:

I had the idea to do a grey/silver fox. Pretty neat effect, though the whole time my husband thought I was making a squirrel.

Sadly, he is surrounded by orange foxes! Either way, I posted him and his orange brother fro adoption at my Etsy Shop. As always, you can purchase the pattern at my Etsy Shop or via Ravelry (no account needed) to make your own fox.

I did change the eyes I used. On the left is the 8mm eyes. For the new foxes I tried the 10mm eyes which I think made a huge difference!

In other news, I have a new addition to the family (not including my husband):


His name is Benson P. “P” stands for a name I wanted to give him, but not acceptable of a name.. *cough* Pooper *cough*. I almost named him “Lute” but he seemed more like a Benson. He is a Holland lop with the helicopter ear thing going on – his right ear sticks straight up with the left lopping down. His ears are 90% like that – after he cleans his ears they go into horizontal-copter-mode, but that one ear pops back into the air after a few minutes.
I got him from Roaring Heights Rabbitry and found them to very enthusiastic, knowledgeable and love rabbits! They also have many many cute lionheads and dwarfs too!
So Benson in the pictures above was 8 weeks. He is now close to 10 weeks and growing (and eating and pooping) lots! He loves oats, nosing people and throwing toys.

(fyi, we had no news paper at that time, thus cage looking like a bad setup)
Sadly, I had to leave my hamster Chestnut back in Canada. I was flying to California plus he is close to 2 years old and probably wouldn’t of made the trip. Rest assured, I have a close friend caring for him.

As a final picture, this is what my married life looks like:

Yep. Husband vegging out on his computer + disapproving rabbit on his lap.