Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT)

 Free Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Toy Knitting Pattern by Raynor Gellatly.

I have been a bit busy lately as I have always wanted to try my hand at a fantastic free pattern called Sheldon the turtle. The finished Sheldon is so sweet, plus if you knit him he can be a big daddy to the little guys knitted with my tiny turtle pattern, as I have seen some pictures of on ravelry and its adorable to see them together.

Ok whilst on the subject of turtles, I have a new pattern today. Thats right you guessed it, its for turtles (I'm just realising I have some sort of obsession with knitted turtles!). I love the little dudes that this pattern creates they are seriously cute. This pattern is a definate must to knit up if you know any fans of the 90's cult tv show/movie 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' or just purely because they are so cute. As usual I was inspired to create this pattern as a result of my total inability to crochet, so I wanted to give thanks to atsuko on craftster for her inspirational crochet version.

You can make your favourite turtle or make all four to complete the set.
**Warning I take no responsibility for their demands of lots of ice cream, peanut butter and anchovy pizza! **

Materials· Set of 3.75mm needles (UK size 9, US size 5)
· Set of 3.25mm double pointed needles (optional for I-Cord)
· Yarn needle
· Toy stuffing
· 7.5mm black toy safety eyes (optional as eyes can be embroidered on with black thread/yarn)

Yarn Colours· Light green (for head, arms and legs)
· Yellow (for body)
· Dark green (for shell)
· Red (Raphael), Blue (Leonardo), Orange (Michelangelo) or Purple (Donatello) (for mask depending on which turtle your knitting)

Yarn weight
Double knitting/ worsted weight

GaugeNot too important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through

Finished measurements
Approx. 7 inches (18cm) tall

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
MaskCO 2 sts using:
*Blue yarn for Leonardo
*Red yarn for Raphael
*Orange yarn for Michelangelo
*Purple yarn for Donatello

I-cord 2sts for two inches
Next row: Kfb twice (4st)
Next row: St- St for four inches
Next row: K2tog twice (2sts)
Next row: I- cord for 2 inches
Next row: BO and weave in any loose ends

HeadWith light green yarn CO 6st
1. knit
2. purl
3. kfb every st (12sts)
4. purl
5. *k1, kfb* along row (18sts)
6. Purl
7. *k2,kfb* along row(24sts)
8. Purl
9. *k3,kfb* along row(30sts)
10. Purl
11. knit
12. purl
13. Knit
14. Purl
15. *K2tog, k3* along row (24sts)
16. purl
17. *K2tog, k2* along row(18sts)
18. Purl
19. *K2tog, k1* along row (12sts)
20. Purl
21. *K2tog * along row (6sts)
22. purl

Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches and pull tightly and secure.
At this stage you may want to sew on the mask and add the safety eyes/embroider on the eyes. When sewing on the mask only attach the wide part of the mask leaving the I-cord ends loose so you can tie them together. Use tail to mattress stitch row ends closed stopping halfway to fill with stuffing. Continue until you reach the cast on stitches, leaving a small gap and a long yarn tail to sew the body.

BodyWith yellow yarn CO 6st
1. knit
2. purl
3. kfb every st (12sts)
4. purl
5. *k1, kfb* along row (18sts)
6. Purl
7. *k2,kfb* along row (24sts)
8. Purl
9. Knit
10. Purl
11. Knit
12. purl
13. *K2tog, k2* along row (18sts)
14. Purl
15. Knit
16. Purl
17. Knit
18. Purl
19. Knit
20. purl
21. k2tog,k4,k2tog,k2,k2tog, k4, k2tog (14sts)
22. Purl
23. Knit
24. purl
25. K2tog, k10, k2tog (12sts)
26. Purl
27. *K2tog* along row (6sts)
28. purl
29. BO leaving a long yarn tail

Arms (make 2)
With light green CO 6st
1. purl
2. kfb all st (12st)
3. purl
4. knit
5. purl
6. *k4, k2tog* repeat along row (9st)
7. Purl
8. *k3, k2tog* repeat along row (7st)
9. Purl
10. Knit
11. Purl
12. Knit
13. Purl
14. BO leaving a long yarn tail

Use the long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row ends together until you reach the cast on stitches. Draw all the cast on stitched through the yarn needle and pull tightly and secure (for a drawstring effect). Weave in any loose ends.

Legs (make 2)
Using light green CO 8st
1. purl
2. kfb into every st (16st)
3. purl
4. knit
5. purl
6. knit
7. purl
8. *k6, k2tog* repeat along row (14st)
9. Purl
10. Knit
11. Purl
12. *k5, k2tog* repeat along row (12st)
13. Purl
14. K1,k2tog,k1,k2tog , k2tog,k1,k2tog,k1(8st)
15. Purl
16. Knit
17. Purl
18. Knit
19. Purl
20. Knit
21. BO leaving a long yarn tail

Use the long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row ends together until you reach the cast on stitches. Draw all the cast on stitched through the yarn needle and pull tightly and secure (for a drawstring effect). Weave in any loose ends.

ShellUsing dark green CO 8 st
1. knit
2. purl
3. kfb into every st (16st)
4. purl
5. *k1, kfb* repeat along row (24st)
6. Purl
7. Knit
8. Purl
9. *k1, k2tog* repeat along row (16st)
10. Purl
11. *K2tog* repeat along the row (8st)
12. purl
Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches, use tail to mattress stitch the row ends together until you reach the cast on stitches. (Please note: you can stuff the shell halfway through if you want a round shell, but the turtles in the photograph have unstuffed shells for a semi circle effect.)

Finishing
· Sew the arms and legs onto the body (I used Kitchener stitch)
· Use the long yellow yarn tail from the body bind off to mattress stitch the body row ends together, remembering to stop halfway and fill with toy stuffing, then continue until remaining opening is closed.
· Attach the head to the body by slotting the body bind off stitches through the small gap in the head and then sew together using the green yarn tail, just below the body bind off stitches (I used Kitchener stitch).
· Flatten the shell so it looks like a flat ball, then sew onto the back of the turtle, you can use the cast on stitches for a looser shell or use midway stitches for a flatter semi-circle shell.
· Tie the I-cord ends of the mask in a knot behind the head.

Cowabunga! You have your finished turtle.

** WARNING: I used 7.5mm toy safety eyes for the turtle shown in the photos. Please don’t use the toy safety eyes if giving the finished item to a child under 3 as they may be a choking hazard. I suggest you embroider the eyes on to make the eyes secure and irremovable to small fingers. **

♥ Raynor

Sweet Little Bird

Free bird Toy Knitting Pattern by Raynor Gellatly.

This pattern is the first pattern I ever made. As you can see its not the most advanced of patterns but it does make some really cute little birds. So feel free to make a whole flock of little birdys in a rainbow of colours. The best bit about this pattern is that it uses tiny amounts of yarn, so get using up those scrap stashes!

Materials
• Set of 3mm needles (UK size 11, US size 3)
• Yarn needle
• Toy stuffing
• Optional: safety eyes, beads, buttons or felt for features

Yarn colours• Main colour of any choice
• Scraps of black and yellow yarn/thread if embroidering the eyes and beak
Yarn weight: Double knitting/ worsted weight
Gauge: not important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through
Finished measurements: 2.5” tall and 2” wide

Body:Co 6 stitches
1.kfb into every stitch (12 sts)
2.knit
3.*k1, kfb* repeat along row (18sts)
4.Knit
5.*k2,kfb* repeat along row (24sts)
6.knit
7.Knit
8.Knit
9.*k3,kfb* repeat along row (30sts)
10.Knit
11 – 30 Garter stitch for 20 rows
31. *k3,k2tog* repeat along row (24sts)
32. knit
33. *k2,k2tog* repeat along row (18sts)
34. knit
35. *k1,k2tog* repeat along row (12sts)
36. knit
37. *k2tog* 6 times (6sts)
Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches.
At this stage you may want to add the eye and beak features.
Use tail to mattress stitch row ends closed stopping halfway to fill with stuffing.
Once you reach cast on stitches, thread the yarn tail through, draw up the stitches
tightly and fasten off, weaving in any loose ends.

Wings (Make 2):
Co 6 sts
1.Kfb all stitches (12sts)
2.Knit
3.*k3, kfb* repeat along row (15sts)
4.Knit
5-10.Garter stitch for 6 rows
Bind off all stitches

Fold the wing in half width ways as show in the diagram below.

Sew up the open edges as shown by the red arrows in the diagram below

Tail:
CO 6 sts
1. Kfb all stitches (12sts)
2. Knit
3. Kfb all stitches (24 sts)
4. Knit
Bind off all stitches

Fold in half following the instructions for the wings. Make sure the bind off edge fans out to create a semi circle shape.

Assembly:
Sew tail on tail to the very lower part of the back of the body. Make sure the bind off (wider) edge is on the outside and the cast on (smaller) edge is joined to the body.
Sew the wings about halfway down on the body, sew them on so that they are symmetrical, and the tail remains centered between them.

Face Features:
The bird in the pattern photograph has French knot eyes made with black yarn and a yellow beak embroidered on with yarn. This makes the toy completely safe for any child from birth as the features cannot be easily removed or fall off.

However alternative features can be:
· Small black toy safety eyes (suggested size 5 -7 mm)
· Small button eyes
· Small bead eyes
· Glue on ‘googly’ eyes
· Felt beak

** WARNING: When using any embellishments please be aware of these may be choking hazards if given to small children or babies**

♥ Raynor

Monkey Moo

Free Monkey Toy Knitting Pattern by Raynor Gellatly.

Recently I had been looking for a monkey pattern to knit for my little girls, Evie who is one and Lois who is currently only 2 weeks old. I had a good look around at free patterns and even those for sale but I couldn't see anything that was perfect. Until however I stumbled across a fantastic crochet monkey pattern by ChimuChimu. Her patterns create the most adorable monkeys which were just what I was looking for, only problem being that I don't crochet. So I converted the pattern into a knitting pattern, and I am so happy with the finished toy. Of course i've decided to share the pattern for those who would like to create their own little monkey moo.

This pattern is knit flat so is really heavy on seaming. If you know how to knit on dpn's I would highly recommend you do so to save all the seaming at the end.

Materials

· Set of 3mm needles (UK size 11, US size 2.5)

· Yarn needle

· Toy stuffing

· Black thread/yarn for embroidering eyes

Yarn weight

Double knitting/ worsted weight

Gauge

Not important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through

Finished Measurements

13"(34cm) tall

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Head
CO6 sts using peach yarn

1. kfb into all sts (12sts)
2. purl
3. *k1, kfb* repeat along row (18sts)
4. Purl
5. *k2, kfb* repeat along row (24sts)
6. purl
7. *k3, kfb* repeat along row (30sts)
8. Purl
9. *k4, kfb* repeat along row (36sts)
10. Purl
11. *k5, kfb* repeat along row (42sts)
12. Purl
13. *k6, kfb* repeat along row (48sts)
14. Purl
Change to brown yarn
 15-22. St-t 8 rows
23. *k6, k2tog* repeat along row (42sts)
24. Purl
25. *k5, k2tog* repeat along row (36sts)
26. purl
27. *k4, k2tog* repeat along row (30sts)
28. purl
29. *k3, k2tog* repeat along row (24sts)
30. purl
31. *k2, k2tog* repeat along row (18sts)
32. purl
33. *k1, k2tog* repeat along row (12sts)
34. purl
35. *k2tog* along (6sts)

Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches and pull tightly and secure.Use tail to mattress stitch row ends closed. Stop half way down to fill with stuffing (and if using safety eyes attach them now) and then continue until you reach the cast on stitches. Use the yarn to draw through all the cast on stitches and pull tight for a drawstring effect,secure and then weave in any loose ends.

Mouth
CO6 st using peach yarn

1. Kfb into all sts (12sts)
2. Purl
3. *k1, kfb* repeat along row (18sts)
4. Purl
5. *k2, kfb* repeat along row (24sts)
6. purl
7. *k3, kfb* repeat along row (30sts)
8. Purl
9. Knit
10. Purl
11. *k3, k2tog* repeat along row (24sts)

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row end together. continue up to the cast on stitches, then draw through all the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, secure and weave in any loose ends. Place some stuffing in the remaining opening.

Ears (make 2)
Co 6 sts using peach

1. Kfb into all sts (12ts)
2. Knit
3. *k1, kfb* repeat along row (18sts)
4. Knit
5. Knit
6. Knit
7. *k1, k2tog* repeat along row (12sts)
8. Knit
9. *k2tog* along (6sts)

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail. Use the yarn tail to stitch together the row ends using mattress stitch. Do not fill the ears with stuffing. Once you reach the cast on stitches draw the yarn through for a drawstring effect, pull tightly and secure. Weave in any loose ends.

Body
CO6 sts using brown yarn

1. kfb into all sts (12sts)
2. purl
3. *k1, kfb* repeat along row (18sts)
4. Purl
5. *k2, kfb* repeat along row (24sts)
6. purl
7. *k3, kfb* repeat along row (30sts)
8. Purl
9. *k4, kfb* repeat along row (36sts)
10. purl
11-16. st-st 6 rows
17. *k2tog* 4 times, k20, *k2tog* 4 times (28sts)
18. Purl
Change to t-shirt colour
19-36. Sts-st 18 rows
37. *k2,k2tog* along (21sts)
38. Purl
39-44. St-st 6 rows
45. *k5,k2tog*along (18sts)
46. Purl
47-50. St-st 4 rows

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row end together. continue up to the cast on stitches, then draw through all the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, pull tightly and secure and weave in any loose ends.

Arms (make 2)
Co6 using peach yarn

1. Kfb in each st (12st)
2. Purl
3. *k2,kfb* along (16sts)
4. Purl
5. Knit
6. Purl
7. *k2,k2tog* along (12sts)
8. Purl
9. *k1,k2tog* along (8sts)
10. Purl
Change to brown yarn
11-34. St-st 24 rows
Change to t-shirt colour
 35-42. St-st 8 rows

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row end together. Stop halfway and fill with stuffing. Continue up to the cast on stitches, then draw through all the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, pull tightly and secure and weave in any loose ends.

Legs (make2)
Co6 sts using peach

1. Kfb in all sts (12sts)
2. purl
3. *k1,kfb* along (18sts)
4. Purl
5. Knit
6. purl
7. k5,*k2tog* 4 times, k5 (14sts)
8. purl
9. k3, *k2tog* 4 times, k3 (10sts)
10. purl
Change to brown yarn
11-44. st-st 34 rows

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row end together. Stop halfway and fill with stuffing. Continue up to the cast on stitches, then draw through all the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, pull tightly and secure and weave in any loose ends.

Tail
Co 6 sts using brown yarn
1. *k2,kfb* along (8sts)
2. Purl
3-32. St-st 30 rows

Bind off leaving a long yarn tail. Use the yarn tail to stitch together the row ends using mattress stitch. Do not fill the tail with stuffing. Once you reach the cast on stitches draw the yarn through for a drawstring effect, pull tightly and secure. Weave in any loose ends.

Finishing

• Attach the mouth piece to the head by stitching the cast off stitches of the mouth to the peach part of the head.
• Embroider on a nose, eyes and eyebrows using yarn or thread. If you are using toy safety eyes then you will need to attach them before you seam the head together, I recommend 7.5mm eyes.
• Attach ears roughly halfway down each side of the head.
• Attach arms, legs and tail to the body.

Additional Info

1. You can use plastic pellets to fill the bottom of the hands, feet and body to add some weight to the monkey, however its not recommended that you give a toy with plastic pellets to a baby or young child.
2. Add small magnets to the monkeys hands and feet before seaming, so that it can 'cling'.
3. To add the letter motif to the monkeys T-shirt I used the free letter charts available from little cotton rabbits available here.
4. You can also add shorts to the monkey simply by changing to the shorts colour at row 30 of the leg and replacing the brown yarn with the shorts colour when knitting the body.

**UPDATE NOV 2011** You can now make your own cat and dog in the same style of monkey moo using the Cat hearts Dog free pattern by Kimeberly Kwon, see this post for more details.


That's your monkey finished, now you can relax!

♥ Raynor

Moby the Mini Whale

Free Whale Toy Knitting Pattern by Raynor Gellatly.

I've been meaning to make this pattern for a while after seeing Bittersweets whale of a tale. Plus i've added two land creature pattens so it's time for a sea fairing critter.
Once again this pattern is really quick to knit, however i'm unsure of how easy the pattern will be to follow as it makes sense it my head but i'm not sure if i've explained the tail part properly. Anyway if you decide to knit him let me know how you get on or if the tail part is too confusing.
Remember to share your finished whales with the knitted toy box flickr group, I love seeing what other people create from my patterns.

Materials· Set of 3.25mm needles (UK size 10, US size 3)
· Yarn needle
· Toy stuffing
· 5mm black toy safety eyes (optional as eyes can be embroidered on with black thread/yarn)

Yarn weight
Double knitting/ worsted weight

Gauge
Not important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through

Finished Measurements
3.5" long and 1.5" tall

Pattern
CO 6 sts

1. Purl
2. Kfb into all stitches (12sts)
3. Purl
4. *k2,kfb* along (16sts)
5. Purl
6. *k3,kfb* along (20sts)
7. Purl
8. St-st 8 rows
16. K6, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k6 (18sts)
17. Purl
18. Knit
19. Purl
20. K5, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k5 (16sts)
21. Purl
22. K4, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k4 (14sts)
23. Purl
24. K6, k2tog, k6 (13sts)
25. Purl
26. K3, k2tog, k3, k2tog, k3 (11sts)
27. Purl
28. K5, k2tog, k4 (10sts)
29. Purl Mark the end of this row with a stitch marker or a piece of scrap yarn

*This part is knitted flat, so if you are using dpn's DO NOT knit the next part in the round*30. K1,*k2tog* 4times, k1 (6sts)
31. Knit
32. Knit
33. Knit
34. K2, BO2, k2 (4sts)
28. BO2, break yarn and reattach to the remaining two stitches,BO2

Finishing
Weave in any loose ends at the tail end.
Attach a long piece of yarn where your stitch marker is (end row 29) and start to seam the row end together using mattress stitch in the direction towards to cast on stitches. Stop halfway to add eyes (safety or embroidered) and fill with toy stuffing. Then close the remaining opening up until the cast of stitches. use the yarn to draw through all the cast on stitches and pull tight for a drawstring effect. Weave in any loose ends.

**Note ~ DO NOT seam the whales tail from row 30, this should be left flat or you will be left with half a tail! These rows should be noticable as they will be knit is garter stitch.**

♥ Raynor

Little Hippo

Once again being inspired by kristieMN's free crochet patterns on Crochetville, I couldn't resist making a knitted version of her Happy Hippo. She was super quick to make and required a very small amount of yarn. I knit her on 3.25mm needles which made a finished toy measuring 3.5" long and 2" tall, but you can knit her on larger/smaller needles to adjust the size of the finished toy.

Even though this is knit on straight needles it can be easily asapted to dpn's to save on the seaming.

ok here is the pattern:

Materials

· Set of 3.25mm needles (UK size 10, US size 3)

· Yarn needle

· Toy stuffing

· 5mm black toy safety eyes (optional as eyes can be embroidered on with black thread/yarn)

· Scraps of black yarn

Yarn weight

Double knitting/ worsted weight

Gauge

Not important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through

Head
Co4
1. Kfb every st (8sts)
2. Purl
3. K1, *kfb* 6 times, k1 (14sts)
4. Purl
5. *k1, kfb* 6 times, k2 (20sts)
6. Purl
7. St-st 6 rows
8. *k2tog,k4* 3 times , k2tog (16 st)
9. Purl
10. K1, k2tog, k10, k2tog, k1 (14sts)
11. Purl
12. Knit
13. Purl
14. *k2tog, k2* 3 times, k2tog (10sts)
15. Purl
16. *k2tog* along (5sts)

Cut yarn leaving a long tail,draw tail through remaining stitches. At this point to may want to add the safety eyes (or embroider some eyes on with thread or yarn for babies or very small children) and use scraps black yarn to embroider on some nostrils. Use the long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row ends together, stopping halfway to stuff and then along to the cast on stitches. Pull the yran tail through the cast on stitches to give a drawsting effect, tie off and weave in any loose ends.

Ears (make 2)
Co4
1. knit

2. knit

3. knit

4. k2tog twice (2sts)

Cut yarn leaving a long tail,draw tail through remaining stitches. Use the remaining yarn tail to attach the ears to the head.

BodyCO 6 sts
1. purl
2. kfb every sts (12sts)
3. purl
4. *k1, kfb* along (18sts)
5. purl
6. *k2,kfb* along (24sts)
7. purl
8. Knit
9. purl
10. Knit
11. Purl
12. *K2tog, k2* along (18sts)
13. Purl
14. *K2tog, k1* along (12sts)
15. Purl
16. *k2tog* along (6sts)
17. Purl
18. BO (leaving a long yarn tail)

Use the long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row ends together, stopping halfway to stuff and then along to the cast on stitches. Pull the yarn tail through the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, tie off and weave in any loose ends.

Legs (make 4)

CO 3st

1. Knit

2. kfb every st (6sts)

3. knit

4. kfb every st (12sts)

5. knit

6. knit

7. knit

8. *k2tog * along row(6sts)

9. Knit

10. *k2tog * along row(3sts)

11. Knit

Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches and pull tightly and secure.Use tail to mattress stitch row ends closed (please note i didnt fill the legs with stuffing but you can if you wanted to, just remember to stop halfway to stuff). Continue until you reach the cast on stitches, leave a long yarn tail to sew the legs to the body.

Finishing

Attach the head to the BO stiches of the body (I attached the head roughly halfway down)

Attaches the legs to the body and the ears to the head.

To make a tail,cut a small piece if yarn and tie a knot at the end. Using the opposite end from the knot, attach the thread to the hippo's bottom.

All Done! Now you have your very own little hippo.

Feel free to share pictures of your finished toy on the knitted toy box flickr group.

♥ Raynor

Hints and Tips

There are some areas of toy making that can be really confusing for beginners. I know I was certainly baffled by things like safety eyes and sewing toys together when I first started out making toys. So to make things a little easier I thought I would have a little post with useful links to great tutorials on toy making. A huge thank you goes out to all the people on the other side of the links who were kind enough to make the tutorials.

Safety Eye Installation by 60-60

Baby Safe Eye Tutorial by Fluff & Fuzz

Mattress Stitch Tutorial by Mochi Mochi Land

Sewing on Limbs by Mochi Mochi Land (scroll down to find the tutorial)

Foot Joining Mini-Tutorial by Mochi Mochi Land (For dpn's only)

Toy Eye Tutorial by Mochi Mochi Land

Making toys that Squeak/Jingle by Kimberly Chapman

Abbreviations

Rather than having to add the abbreviations to all the patterns on the blog I thought it may be easier to put them all in one easy place for everyone to see. So here are the most common ones which are used in my patterns:

• CO = cast on
• K or k = knit
• P or p = purl
• Kfb = knit front and back (Knit a stitch, leaving stitch on left needle; knit into the back loop of this stitch)
• Pfb = Purl front and back (purl a stitch, leaving stitch on the left needle; purl into the back of the loop of this stitch)
• K2tog = Knit two stitches together to make one
• Sts or st = stitches
• *.......* = repeat the pattern set within the asterisk
• BO = Bind off
• CC1= Colour 1 (for patterns with contrasting colours the number will indicate a change in colour)

If you get stuck with any stitches or need help with a certain technique then visit this fantastic site, Knitting Help which shows you videos on how to do almost every knitting technique.

♥ Raynor

Amigurumi Tiny Turtle

I love amigurumi toys, but it's extremely hard to find knitting patterns as most amigurumi patterns are for crochet. So being inspired by these tiny striped turtles on crochetville I have come up with my very own little knitted amigurumi turtle.

I think he turned out rather cute, unfortunately I stuffed his head a little too much so he is a little head heavy but other than that very cute!
He measures a tiny 3.5" long and 2" tall however you can knit him on a larger needle size for a slightly larger turtle, but i always think the smaller the toy the cuter it gets.
If you knit him please show off your work and join my flickr group I'd love to see a little army of turtles, in all different colors.
**The turtle is knit on straight needles as I'm useless at using dpn's, however I'm sure the pattern can be easily modified to allow for knitting on dpns which saves time with seaming**
Ok here is the pattern:

Spanish pattern translation available here
 Materials· Set of 3mm needles (UK size 11, US size 3)
· Yarn needle
· Toy stuffing
· 5mm black toy safety eyes (optional as eyes can be embroidered on with black thread/yarn)

Yarn weight
Double knitting/ worsted weight

Gauge
Not important but make it tight so stuffing doesn’t show through

Abbreviations:
· CO = cast on
· K or k = knit
· P or p = purl
· Kfb = knit front and back (Knit a stitch, leaving stitch on left needle; knit into the back loop of this stitch)
· K2tog = Knit two stitches together to make one
· Sts or st = stitches
· CC1= Colour 1 (in the photo this would be yellow)
· CC2= Colour 2 (in the photo this would be green)
· *.......* = repeat the pattern set within the asterisk
· BO = Bind off

Shell
Cast on 6 sts
start with cc1
row 1: knit
row 2: *kfb* repeat 5 times, K1 (11st)
row 3: purl
row 4: *kfb* repeat 10 times, K1 (21st)
row 5: purl
row 6: *k1, kfb* along row (31st)
row 7: knit <------please see the note about this row at the bottom of the pattern
row 8: knit
row 9: purl
change to cc2row 10: knit
row11: purl
change to cc1row12: knit
row13: purl
change to cc2
row 14: k1,*k2tog,k1* to end of row (21sts)
row 15: purl
change to cc1
row 16: k1,*k2tog* to end of row (11sts)
row 17: purl
change to cc2row 18: k1,*k2tog* to end of row (6sts)

Cut yarn leaving a long tail,draw tail through remaining stitches. Use the remaining long yarn tail to mattress stitch the row ends together until you reach the purl row on the right side of the knitting. Fill the shell with toy stuffing and then continue to close the remaining opening using mattress stich and then tie off. Weave in any loose ends.

Head
CO 6st

1. purl
2. kfb every st (12sts)
3. purl
4. *k1, kfb* along row (18sts)
5. Purl
6. *k2,kfb* along row(24sts)
7. Purl
8. knit
9. purl
10. Knit
11. Purl
12. *K2tog, k2* along row (18sts)
13. purl
14. *K2tog, k1* along row(12sts)
15. Purl
16. *K2tog, * along row (6sts)
17. Purl
BO (leaving a long yarn tail)

At this point to may want to add the safety eyes (or embroider some eyes on with thread or yarn for babies or very small children). Use the long yarn tail to matress stitch the row ends together, stopping halfway to stuff and then along to the cast on stitches. Pull the yran tail through the cast on stitches to give a drawstring effect, tie off and weave in any loose ends.
**Please note, try not to overstuff the head or the turtle may end up head heavy**

Legs (make 4)
CO 3st

1. Knit
2. kfb every st (6sts)
3. knit
4. kfb every st (12sts)
5. knit
6. knit
7. knit
8. *k2tog * along row(6sts)
9. Knit
10. *k2tog * along row(3sts)
11. Knit

Cut yarn, leaving a long tail. Draw tail through remaining stitches and pull tightly and secure.
Use tail to mattress stitch row ends closed (please note i didn't fill the legs with stuffing but you can if you wanted to, just remember to stop halfway to stuff). Continue until you reach the cast on stitches, leave a long yarn tail to sew the legs to the body.

Finishing
Attach the head to the shell on the curved side.
Attach the legs to the flat of the shell.

Now you have your very own tiny turtle. Now go forth and multiple! 

Note about shell row 7: It has come to my attention that some people think that this row is a mistake and should be replaced by a purl row. The pattern is correct and it should not be changed to a purl. This row is a knit row as it mark the point where the flat shell bottom changes to the shell curve and allows for an easy 'fold' once the toy is stuffed and sewn.
♥ Raynor

Zero the Ghostly Dog

Free Zero Dog Toy Knitting Pattern by Raynor Gellatly.
Here is a little free pattern I've created for any knitting fan of Tim Burtons cult film 'The Nightmare Before Christmas', it's Zero the ghostly dog Jack Skellingtons faithful little pooch.

Materials
*DK/worsted weight/4ply yarn, 1 ball white & small amount of black, orange and red for detail.
*3.25mm needles (UK size 10, US size 3)
*Toy stuffing
*Yarn needle
Suggested yarn : Bernat Glow in the dark worm white (available here)
Yarn weight and needle size are open to your own interpretation, basically increase/decrease the sizes for a bigger or smaller Zero.

Gauge also isn't important but for the head and ears make sure the stitches are tight enough so the stuffing doesnt show through.

Body

CO 1

1. Kfb (2sts)

2. Purl

3. Kfb (4sts)

4. purl

5. kfb, k2, kfb (6sts)

6. purl

7. Kfb, k4, kfb (8sts)

8. Purl

9. Kfb, k6, kfb (10sts)

10. Purl

11. Kfb, k8, kfb (12sts)

12. Purl

13. Kfb,k10, kfb (14sts)

14. Purl

15. Kfb, k12, Kfb (16sts)

Break off yarn and leave stitches on a spare needle/stitch holder

Repeat steps 1-15

Take stitches from the spare needle and join them onto your working needles (making sure the stockinette stitch is on the same side for both pieces)

16. Knit across all stitches (32sts)

17. St-st for 6 rows

18. K2tog, knit until last 2 st, k2tog (30sts)

19. Purl

20. Repeat rows 18-19 until 10 sts remain

21. *K2tog * repeat 5 times (5sts)

22. Purl

23. Knit

24. Purl

25. K2tog, k1, k2tog (3sts)

26. Purl

27. Knit

28. Purl

29. K2tog,k1 (2sts)

30. Purl

31. Knit

32. Purl

33. Knit

34. Purl

35. K2tog (1st)

36. Purl

37. Knit

38. Purl

Break off yarn and weave the end into the rest of the body.

Head

CO2

1. Kfb all stitches (4sts)

2. purl

3. kfb all stitches (8 sts)

4. Purl

5. St-st for 18 rows

6. *K2, kfb* repeat 2 times, k2(10sts)

7. Purl

8. *K2, Kfb*repeat 3 times, K1 (13sts)

9. Purl

10. *K3,kfb* repeat 3 times, k1 (16sts)

11. Purl

12. *k1,kfb* repeat 8 times (24sts)

13. Purl

14. *k4, kfb* repeat 4 times, k4 (28sts)

15. Purl

16. Knit

17. Purl

18. *K4, k2tog* repeat 4 times, k4 (24sts)

19. Purl

20. *k2,k2tog* repeat 6 times (18sts)

21. Purl

22. *K1,K2tog* repeat 6 times (12sts)

23. Purl

24. *k2tog* repeat 6 times (6sts)

25. Purl

Cut a tail of yarn approx 6” and use a needle to pull through the remaining stitches and pull tightly. Use the yarn tail to start joining all row ends using mattress stitch until half way down the head. Stuff the ball of the head and then continue to mattress stitch the row ends right up to the cast on stitches and then stuff the rest of the head/nose. Pull the yarn through the 2 co stitches, fasten off and then weave in the ends.

Ears ( make 2)

Cast on 6 sts

St-st for 19 rows

20. *k2tog* 3 times (3sts)

21. purl

22. knit

23. purl

Cut a tail in the yarn approx 5” long and use a yarn needle to pull through the remaining stitches. Use the remaining yarn tail to join the row ends up until the cast on stitches, and then sew onto the head.

NoseCO 2
1. kfb all stitches (4sts)
2. knit
3. kfb, k2, kfb (6sts)
4 .knit
5. k2tog, k2, k2tog (4sts)
6. knit
7. *k2tog* times 2 (2st)

Cut the yarn and pull through the remainign stitches. Join the row end together.
Make the nose into a ball shape and oversew the edges, so you are left with a little orange ball.
Sew the nose onto the long end tip of the head. and weave in any ends.

Finishing

Use black yarn to ‘embroider’ two eyes and a smile onto the head.
Sew the head onto the body weaving in any loose ends.

Iadded his red collar by wrapping a red piece of yarn around his neck a few times then tieing off, weaving in any loose ends.

Now you have your very own knitted Zero, and remember a ghost dog is life not just for halloween.

For a fantastic free Jack Skellington pattern please visit Meanderings blog by clicking here.

♥ Raynor

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Jellybum

Copyright

Well its always a sticky subject, but it has to be done!
The Copyright of all the patterns on this blog belong to Raynor Gellatly.

Feel free to:

• Distribute patterns for free (direct link as often as possible)
• make as many items as you like for personal or charitable purposes
• sell any finished items made from my patterns (I would appreciate credit for the pattern, or a even just a link to the site, however its not a must.)

You MUST NOT

• Take any of my pattern and claim they are your own
• Sell any patterns for a profit
• Make kits with the patterns for profit
• Use my photographs without my permission (hence the watermarks)

Even if these are not your own personal views on copyright they are mine so please respect them. Even though my patterns are simple a lot of work has still gone into creating them.

Ok i'll get off my soap box now, i hope that cleared a few things up for people, happy knitting.

♥ Raynor

Hello

Hi there,
Thanks for dropping in and welcome to my little blog.
I thought I could start this blog so I can pass on my little random knitted toy patterns to others, and the best bit is that they are all free. My patterns are very simple as I'm still quite new to this creating business, so please bear with me.

I hope you enjoy my patterns.I have set up a flickr group for anyone who wants to join and show off their finished work, I'd love to see what people have created.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/knittedtoybox/

I'm also on Ravelry as 'Jellybum' so please feel free to have a little nosey around about me.

Happy Knitting.
♥ Raynor