Category: Stories

Stories

The chubby badger sketch

Sonja

This week I made a bunch of sketches and showed them to my boyfriend. He said ‘that one’, I agreed. This is the crochet badger I have in mind. A sweet and cute looking, chubby little badger.

BadgersketchI’ve been thinking much about how to do the colour changes for this badgers head. Should I crochet in two colours right away, so the dark stripes are worked into the design, or should I add the dark stripes later as patches. It’s an issue. Working in two colours usually would have my preference and sewing on patches I sometimes consider as ‘the easy way’ to get a two coloured animal. But, I also think worked in colour changes aren’t an end in itself, and if it limits the design, sewed on patches aren’t such a bad choice.

To me the character and expression of the animal is the most important goal. It’s a matter of experimenting to get it right. For example, Floro the red squirrel needed to have a beige nose. In order to try it out, I added a beige patch to a finished head, just to see how the two colours looked together. But by doing that I noticed the added patch gave the squirrel just the right little muzzle. A worked in beige colour nose didn’t add that bit of character, so I choose to use a patch. As for the eyes it’s the same thing. To me a worked in eyepatch isn’t round enough so I prefer to use a patch. Sizing it is much easier too.

For the badger I’ll try to work in the colours and I already decided to work in rows for that, because if I crochet in a spiral, the vertical stripes will be impossible to get. If the worked in stripes won’t look good, I’ll use patches. Secretly I think for a badger, sewed on patches will give the best result for what I want, but let’s wait and see.

Let’s hope the crochet badger will be much like this sketch, then I love him already!

 

Stories

I’m all badger’y

Sonja

Yes, I can honestly say badgers are my ultimate favorite animals. For me it’s hard to choose one, because I’m fond of so many animals like squirrels, hedgehogs, ducks, foxes, sparrows, starlings, many rodents…..I just love animals.

But badgers are ultimate beauties. Their shape and colour, their playful character and little voices. There’s just so much to love about them. Unfortunately there is one downside about these fluff balls, they’re one of the toughest animals to crochet, all thanks to their beautiful striped head. But let’s forget about that for now, I’ll explain all about that and my plans on how to get it right in my next post. Yep, my next project will be a crochet badger pattern. I was going to make an adventurer badger first, but I just can’t wait to make a ‘normal’ badger doll.

Let’s now enjoy badger cuteness with a few pic’s I found online.

Wheeeeee!!!!!

931588

Badger from The Burrowers

These are both baby badgers. The second picture is from one of the badgers from the BBC program, The Burrowers.

For my smartphone I needed a new fabric case, so I made one with a badger. And….I recently discovered ‘Badger Balm’, how cool is that! It’s an American brand so American badgers, but they’re lovely too. The balms are completely organic and mostly of beeswax and olive oil. I adore the tins and the balms smell delicious.

BadgerB

And here’s something nice to close this post with, a badger painting I made years ago. Badger Castle.

badger illustration

Enjoy and I promise, this week I’ll post a first sketch of my crochet badger and I’ll explain all about the colour changes for this pattern and my vision about it.

 

Art, Stories

Look, it’s a ……..

Sonja

I had this lovely afternoon in the forest, taking pictures of my new crochet animal, surrounded by wildlife. There were lots of birds and young chicks chatting around me, bumblebees were zooming cheerfully above the ground and, a red squirrel was laughing at me from behind a tree. 

Floro's-habitat

I finally managed to get a sharp picture of a squirrel, didn’t I!

While busy taking pictures of Floro and clacking away mosquitoes, I heard this strange sound behind me. Suddenly I realized that THAT’s a squirrel sound! So I turned around and saw a red squirrel spying on me from a tree. When he saw me turning around he quickly fled higher so I couldn’t see him anymore. I waited a few minutes, while being eaten, but saw him no more. A pitty, I hoped to get a picture of him, you know, me taking pictures of Floro and the squirrel who spied on us….Would be so perfect.

Well anyway, here’s a first glimpse of Floro, the pattern will be available in my shop on thursday!

 

Stories

The sloppy sketch

Sonja

Sloppy-sketchF0r a while now I’m working on the crochet red squirrel pattern, in my head and on paper that is, and I decided to post this sloppy sketch. I can’t get a clear representation in my head of how I want the squirrel to look. I have ideas, but am not sure it will work out in crochet. I tried to make the perfect example drawing but I’m just not able to because of these little doubts.

My boyfriend commented on the drawings, about them being too serious and said: ‘draw the kind of squirrel you see, without the hips and realistic features’. So, I drew this sloppy sketch in a few seconds and it’s the best image of the idea in my head, funny how it works….

I’m just going to start crocheting the squirrel now, based on my ideas. My squirrel has to become a lively fellow, not the sitting kind you see all around. That is the typical squirrel position, but to me squirrels are lively, speedy, wild little beasties. I know my popkes don’t look particularly wild and speedy, but they are lively. The squirrel will have that doll-ish feature, but has to be an original addition. I’m always careful to not make my popkes to similar, they have to represent the animal they are and be original at the same time. The doll shape however has my preference for that, because it makes the animals flexible.

Let’s see what happens!

 

Chit and Chat, Stories

Next popke

Sonja

I’ve already started working on my next project. Another bunny/hazy. My former bunny pattern is a serious rabbit, quite realistic. That is because I made him in memory of a sweet pet bunny we once had and I wanted to offer bunny lovers a realistic rabbit pattern. But crocheting realistic animals is not my style. I like to make them much more cartoon’esk. This bunny idea I’ve had for a while now, and now he begins to take shape. I want him to be a bit crazy, wild looking.

This is the first sketch that probably will give a slightly different result, because I’m not sure I can get the head shape like the sketch, in crochet.

Konijn

The bunnies in ‘Wallace and Gromit: the curse of the were-rabbit’ have been a bit of an inspiration for my rabbit. I like their crazy attitude.

 

Stories

Doggy sketch

Sonja

I’m celebrating the Christmas holiday and we’re supposed to go hiking in this free period, but the weather isn’t the kind you can enjoy… rain and slippery roads that look like muddy streams, which makes you all blubbery when you walk on them for just two seconds.

Anyway, crocheting gives me much joy too, so I started working on my new pattern, the doggy or ‘hondje’ in Dutch.

He’s not really a specific breed of dog. He looks most like a basset hound or beagle in my colouring, but it isn’t important, he’s just ‘dog’. He’s the kind of stuffed toy you can give to a toddler and he’ll name it doggy, because that’s what he is. Simple and sweet, well, I hope he will be.

Here’s the sketch. Hondje should be able to stand on four paws and can also lay flat on his tummy.

Hondje-w

Chit and Chat, Stories

Kitty cat crochet

Sonja

There are so many idea’s I have, and each time I start a new project I have to pick which one I’m going to make. A squirrel and a sheep are hight on my list, but I also would like to make a cat. Sometimes the things on my list haven’t really ‘formed’ in my mind, so the idea that has, gets priority. This time the cat got it. There’s a clear image in my mind of how he should become and his colours etc. so I can’t wait to make him.

Here’s a sketch. He will be a ‘folded’ kitty.

 

Stories

I thought I was finished…

Sonja

Today I finished, or at least I thought so, my little fox. But when I had sewed the parts together I wasn’t completely happy with the result. He looks beautiful, but something isn’t right. This is a first time thing. Normally I notice these imperfections when I pin a doll together, but this time it looked all right.

What is wrong? He looks a bit too long I think, or his head is just a tiny bit too small. I decided I’m going to make slightly smaller feet and body (which I already made about 6 times to get this one…oh dear). That way he should come out perfectly. Some of my friends saw him today and thought he looked great, but as long as I’m not satisfied myself I can’t rest….He must by perfect.

Here’s his face before I sewed it. That was a bit of a struggle also, because it came out smaller when sewed together.

Stories

Son’s fox

Sonja

My next project will be a crochet fox, not a Starfox this time, but a Son’s fox. Foxes are one of my favourite animals, and still I haven’t made one, a real one that is.

It took me quite a while to design the fox, because it was a bit difficult to choose the style. Should he have realistic proportions, standing on four paws, or should he be more doll-ish. I’ve made a bunch of sketches and decided to go for doll-ish.

Why? I really don’t like crochet dolls that look like a statue. I would love my fox to be flexible and playful, so he can sit on the couch or sleep all stretched out next to a pillow. Some people will make a crochet doll to decorate their side table or bookcase. It would be just lovely if you can change his position. One week he’s sitting, the next he’s hugging a vase or leaning against a lamb, it makes him alive and gives you a laugh, well, me for one.

I hope, that when he’s finished, I can post some pictures of him in different positions and places, that would be cool. But here’s the sketch for now.

He looks a bit basic maybe, but when I picture him in fuzzy wool I love him already. I can choose the orange I used for Starfox, but I think I’ll go for a darker, more rust colour. A bit too dark for a real fox, but I think I like that more for my fox. That same rust colour I’ll use for another upcoming project, a squirrel…..