I spent the weekend baking cookies and finishing up my Bixi.

How was your weekend?

With all the parts crocheted it was time to start putting Bixi together.

The ears were a logical place to start, so I plunged in. Stacey recommends whip stitching the ears shut first and then attaching them to the body.

But why should I listen to her? She’s just the designer after all.

After fumbling my way through the first ear I remembered that I should listen to the designer because she’s already tested various methods. Off the ear came, whip stitch ensued, and the ear was reattached much more quickly.

Let the sewing begin!

On my first attempt the fabric slithered around a little and it was hard to catch all the layers as I was sewing. The second attempt, with the closed ear, was much more stable.

After attaching the ears I moved on to the eyes. Stacey uses cute safety eyes on her creations and I’m sure she’d be happy to recommend sources. Your local yarn store might also have eyes, or at least cute buttons you can use.

Since I’m not giving my Bixi to a small child (and it was a Sunday afternoon and I forgot to plan ahead) I decided to explore other eye options.

First I attempted a French Knot. It had potential but wasn’t visible enough on the dark green yarn.

Then I got out my jar of buttons (every knitter and crocheter has one of those, right). I was able to find a coordinated set that happened to be two different sizes. This was convenient. Since Bixi has the eye patch I was able to put the smaller button on the pink patch and the larger button on it’s own.

A monster with cookies.

When positioning the mouth I found it was easier to place the legs first. On my first attempt I positioned the mouth too low and everything ended up squished together.

By the way, Stacey does recommend which rows to target when positioning your features, but a little bit of judgement is always involved.

Stuffing the arms was made easier by using my crochet hook to push the fiber fill into place.

Speaking of Stuffing

I used traditional fiber fill to stuff my Bixi. I just filled him up.

I’ve heard some people like to put the stuffing in an old panty hose first. This helps keep it in place and reduces the chance small fingers might be able to pull any out.

Keep in mind the shape of your stuffed animal and the compression from the panty hose when considering this option.

You can also buy plastic beads for stuffing at a craft store. Using them will effect the weight and hug-ability of your monster.

One thing I’ve heard people caution against is using rice or beans. Apparently there is the risk those fillings could attract bugs. eewwww!

Bixi Details Recap

The Bixi pattern is a free pattern on our website. Bixi was designed by Stacey Trock exclusively for Knitting Fever and it one in a series of ten monsters.

I used Ella Rae Superwash Classic yarn in colors #103-Parsley for the body and #123 – Red Violet for the accent color.

Next Project?

You might have noticed I acquired black yarn for Bixi’s mouth. hooray!

Future monsters!

I also got my hands on white for eyes for future monsters in the series, as well as some red and beige, which is destined to become monster bodies.

The sharp eyed among you will notice some purple Juniper Moon Farm Findley in the top right corner (color #4 – Renaissance to be precise).

Gable Wrap using Findley yarn

It is enough yarn to make the Gable Wrap, which is a new free pattern on our website.

But before I can plunge into that I really need to get the sleeves attached to my Three Lace Cardigan.

No ears here. Just arms.

It seems all my current projects have some assembly required!

How are your Alfo and Bixi coming along?

Well you better finish up quick because Deek and Lark have joined the party!

And these cute crocheted amigurumi have a lot to contribute.

Life is better with friends

If two heads are better than one, Deek knows that three are better than two!

After all, life is more fun when you have friends along. Why not let Deek bring some fun to your life?

You can download the free pattern for Deek here. You can add Deek to your Ravelry queue here.

Who needs toes when you have ruffles?

Stage your own alien invasion with Lark.

This kooky, mollusk based life-form will transport you to a world where cuddles reign supreme!

You can download the free pattern for Lark here. You can add Lark to your Ravelry queue here.

Bixi Update

Don’t feel bad if you haven’t finished your Alfo or Bixi yet. Neither have I. (Well, I had to take a break to finish knitting sleeves for a cardigan I’ve been working on.)

Ears, arms and feet!

I have finished all of Bixi’s appendages–arms, feet, and ears!–and have crocheted a few rows for her body.

She’s working up so quickly, I’m going to have to locate my stuffing soon.

Remember to share pictures of your progress on the Ella Rae Facebook page. That is also the place to ask any questions you might have as your working along.

First off, let me announce the CAL kick-off giveaway winners
Saunya H, Andrea G., Kiakiali, Laura O, and Kadie are the lucky fans the random number generator selected.

Andrea, Kiakiali, and Kadie–I’ve sent you emails with instructions for claiming your prize. Saunya and Laura–please use the “message” button on our Facebook page to get in touch with me.

Bixi!

How are your monsters coming along?

I decided to make Bixi.

You can download the free pattern from our website here.  You can add it to your Ravelry queue here.

One of the hard parts of starting any new project is selecting colors.

Stacey designed these cute, crocheted amigurumi monsters using Ella Rae Classic Wool yarn. There are 33 new colors of Classic Wool for the fall, which brings the number of available colors to “dizzying”.

I decided to use Ella Rae Superwash Classic yarn for my Bixi, just to show you it could be done.

I narrowed it down to 4 colors.

I narrowed my options down to four colors. From left: #123 – Red Violet, #103 – Parsley, #132 – Oatmeal, and #102 – Claret.

I decided to use Parsley for the body and Rose Violet for the arms.

With that important decision made I was able to get hooking!

Off to a roaring start

Stacey suggests starting with the appendages first. That way when your body is a decent size you can start attaching the arms and ears right away.

This is a very clever idea. When I was designing my own crocheted stuffies when I was younger (in the time before the internet!) I would always make and stuff the body then struggle to sew the arms and legs on.

Sometimes all you need is a little shift in perspective!

As you can see so far I’ve made the eye patch, feet, and one arm. I’ll be finishing the second arm soon and then it’s on to the ears and body.

Bixi is working up very quickly for me. I hope you are having as much fun. Remember you can ask questions here on the blog or over on the Ella Rae Facebook page as you’re working up your own monsters.

We might be Knitting Fever, but crochet makes us shiver in delight!

And nothing is as delightful as the crocheted amigurumi monsters designed exclusively for us by Stacey Trock at FreshStitches!

Amigurumi is a style of crocheted (or knit) stuffed animals from Japan with an emphasis on cute. You’ve probably seen them before, and have maybe even made a few, but this is a whole new batch to play with.

It's a monstrous surprise!

Stacey has designed 10 brand new monster patterns for us using Ella Rae Classic Wool yarn. (You can also use Ella Rae Superwash Classic.)

In order to avoid overwhelming you with the cuteness, we’ll be releasing two patterns each week from now until Halloween.

Meet Alfo

Alfo, the monster, by Stacey Trock

Your first, fierce new friend is Alfo! A ten-inch tall googly-eye monster ready to shout his love from the mountain tops. Or maybe the back of a dark cave, you decide where Alfo lives.

Download the pattern here. You’ll need the main color, small amounts of two contrasting colors, and plastic eyes (if desired).

Alfo is made with basic shapes, which makes him a good building block for the other monsters.

Stacey’s patterns are very well written with clear instructions and pictures of the various steps to let you know you’re on the right track.

You can add Alfo to your Ravelry queue here.

Meet Bixi

Bixi, the monster, by Stacey Trock

The second monster looking to creep into your heart is Bixi! This 5.5 inch-tall bundle of monstrous delight has its arms flung wide in welcome.

Download the Bixi pattern here. You’ll notice Bixi uses a few more colors than Alfo. One of the nice things about the series of monsters is you’ll be able to mix and match the yarn colors you buy across the projects.

For instance, since Classic Wool comes in 220 yard balls one ball of white will probably be more than enough to make all the eyes you’ll need.

Another fun thing about making monsters is that you don’t have to be limited in your color choices. Monsters come in all colors so you can let your imagination run wild!

You can add Bixi to your Ravelry queue here.

Crochet Along

Ready to welcome one of these monsters into your heart? Download the free patterns, then head to your local yarn store to get your supplies.

To celebrate the new designs we are hosting a Crochet Along (CAL) on the Ella Rae Facebook page. You can tweet about it as well. Let’s make a hashtag! #KFIMonsterCAL

This will be a great opportunity to share you progress, see other people’s monsters, and ask any questions you might have. We look forward to seeing pictures of your monsters, so share away!

While Stacey’s patterns are very clearly written, you never know when your brain might refuse to cooperate causing you to need a little help.

In addition to the CAL it might be handy to know that Stacey has a number of resources on her blog to help you along. There are videos, blog posts, and other handy tips.

And, if you’re really serious about your crocheted monsters, you might want to check out Stacey’s Craftsy class about designing your own. While the class is about designing a monster, she covers how to make the various shapes used in the new patterns so you can stitch with confidence.

Prizes!

I almost forgot the best part! As though CALs aren’t fun enough–we’ll have prizes as well! (Void where prohibited. US Residents)

This week, to celebrate the start of the Crochet Along, we’ll select a few lucky fans to receive a ball of Ella Rae Classic Wool that you can use to get your monster menagerie started.

To enter leave a comment on this blog post telling me which color Classic Wool you’d use for your first monster. Classic Wool is available in over 100 colors, so it might be a tough choice. (Updated: Sept 28–This giveaway is now closed.)

Updated! Kick off winners: Saunya H, Andrea G., Kiakiali, Laura O, and Kadieare the lucky fans the random number generator selected.

Andrea, Kiakiali, and Kadie–I’ve sent you emails with instructions for claiming your prize. Saunya and Laura–please use the “message” button on our Facebook page to get in touch with me.

There will be another prize awarded at the end of the CAL. The deadline to enter this second giveaway is Halloween. To enter make one (or more!) of our 10 monsters then post a picture of your monster on the Ella Rae Facebook Page having an adventure. Maybe it will be somewhere scary, or funny, or just having fun. Use your imagination! Our favorite ones will win the prize. To be eligible to win the majority of your monster has to be made using a yarn KFI represents.

Now go find those crochet hooks and start chaining!