Can I ever just knit a pattern without thinking of all the modifications I could try? Unlikely! So, of course I thought of a few mods I wanted to try on my Wee Woodland Wuzzie pattern. The suggestions here are three animals I made from a mash-up of the pattern pieces, with enough details for you to knit your own: a Bear Cub, a Beaver, and a Mole. Please note that you will need a copy of the pattern to make any of the toys below.
Tip: see this tutorial to help with shaping the toys' heads.
At the end of the post are some more ideas I had, if you feel like stretching your own curiosity and knitting skills to try something else. As well, a list of the yarns I used to make the toys in this post.
Bear Cub Wuzzie
Materials: 20 g of chunky weight yarn in brown or black, 5 g of chunky weight yarn in light brown, pair of 4.5 mm (US size 7) knitting needles, small amount of fine yarn in black, pair of 8 mm black safety eyes, stuffing, tapestry needle
Gauge: 5 sts and 7 rows per 2.5 cm (1") in st st
Size: 10 cm (4") tall
Note: While the original size of the Wee Wuzzie toys is perfect for little hands and pockets, making the Bear Cub a bit bigger will better fit the scale of the other animals. However, you can use worsted weight yarn and 4 mm needles to make it the same size as the other toys, if you prefer.
Bear Cub Body
Follow the instructions for the Hare body, using brown or black yarn.
Finish the Body as written in the pattern.
Bear Cub Head
Follow the instructions for the Otter head, beginning with your brown or black yarn. Add the two mods below:
Change to the light brown yarn on Row 12 as instructed, and work this row as written.
Then work 3 rows of st st, before working the decreases on the last row.
Finish the Head as written in the pattern.
Bear Cub Finishing
With fine black yarn, embroider a nose and mouth. Sew the head to the open neck of the body. Secure all yarn ends.
Beaver Wuzzie
Materials: 15 g of worsted weight yarn in medium brown, 5 g of worsted weight yarn in dark brown, pair of 4 mm (US size 6) knitting needles, small amount of fine yarn in cream and black, pair of 6 mm black safety eyes, stuffing, tapestry needle
Gauge: 5.5 sts and 8 rows per 2.5 cm (1") in st st
Size: 8.5 cm (3 ⅜") tall, excluding ears
Beaver Body
Follow the instructions for the Hare body, using the medium brown yarn.
Finish the Body as written in the pattern.
Beaver Head
Follow the instructions for the Squirrel head, using the medium brown yarn.
Finish the Head as written in the pattern.
Beaver Tail
CO 10 sts with dark brown yarn.
Row 1-3: Beginning with a WS row, work 3 rows in st st.
Row 4: K2, m1, k6, m1, k2. (12 sts)
Row 5: Purl.
Row 6: K3, [m1, k3] x 3. (15 sts)
Row 7-9: Work 3 rows in st st.
Row 10: [K1, k2tog] x 5. (10 sts)
Row 11: Purl.
Row 12: [K2tog] x 5. (5 sts)
Cut yarn, thread end through remaining sts, and pull tight to gather. Sew tail seam from tip to cast-on edge. Flatten the tail, with the seam centred on the underside.
Beaver Finishing
With fine black yarn, embroider a nose and mouth. With the fine cream yarn, embroider teeth. Sew the head to the open neck of the body. Place the tail on the lower back of the toy’s body, with the seam facing down. Sew the tail to the body through both layers of the cast-on edge. Secure all yarn ends.
Mole Wuzzie
Materials: 15 g of worsted weight yarn in dark brown or grey, 7 g of worsted weight yarn in tan, pair of 4 mm (US size 6) knitting needles, small amount of fine yarn in pink, pair of 6 mm black safety eyes, stuffing, tapestry needle
Gauge: 5.5 sts and 8 rows per 2.5 cm (1") in st st
Size: 8.5 cm (3 ⅜") tall, excluding ears
Mole Body
Follow the instructions for the Fox body, adding these two mods:
Use the dark brown or grey yarn for the body and the tan yarn for the bobble feet.
After Row 10, only work 2 rows of st st, then skip to the Row 15 instructions.
Finish the Body as written in the pattern.
Mole Head
Follow the instructions for the Hedgehog head, beginning with the dark brown or grey yarn, and changing to the tan yarn on Row 12.
Finish the Head as written in the pattern.
Mole Finishing
With fine pink yarn, embroider a nose and mouth. Sew the head to the open neck of the body. Secure all yarn ends.
Other Animal Ideas
Another woodland animal you could try is a chipmunk, using the squirrel pattern, but making the tail smaller and adding embroidered stripes to the back. You could make a muskrat with the mouse pattern, knitting it in dark brown and tan, and making the tail shorter. The hedgehog pattern, minus the prickles, could be used to make a badger, by using grey for the main colour and white for the face. Then add some embroidered black stripes to the face. What else could you make by combining or modifying the toy pieces? Let us know in the comments!
Yarns Used
Bear Cub: Berroco Vintage Chunky in Forest Floor (61173) and Cork (6144)
Beaver: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted in Chestnut (23424) and Loam Heather (N4568)
Mole: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted in Bittersweet Heather (discontinued) and Almond (25072)
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