I was very ambitious in the lead up in terms of time I had available to complete what I wanted to (the gifts were not small and were mostly self drafted). And I also didn’t account for breaks/ rest days/ crochet injuries (yes, it’s a thing, my poor shoulder)! Which all slowed me down a bit. Unfortunately because of this, I was unable to finish one, so my other brother will have to receive his in a week or so. If I do decide to take on such a mammoth task again in the future, I shall definitely give myself more time. But as other plans fell through for this year, I decided to bite the bullet and go for it. And I’m pleased I did.
The first one (and the one which I was most excited about) was the Totoro plush from the Miyazaki film ‘My Neighbour Totoro’. This one was actually from a pattern- though I will say it’s the most amazing pattern I’ve ever seen. Full of detailed descriptions, pictures, videos. Everything. If you’re inspired by this post, then you can purchase said pattern HERE. Either way, the creator deserves full credit for the pattern.
I actually did a test first, to create a smaller version (the pattern has three variations included- one is the main Totoro and the other two are the small blue and white ones, which Mai first comes across in the film), because there were a lot of new techniques in the pattern. And I wanted to see if I was able to do it and if it looked good. I actually replaced the blue for pink, because I had a lot of spare pink yarn. And why can’t I just use another colour?! I have ideas for some pretty whacky designs, so watch this space for those…
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| pictured with an existing Totoro plush I already have |
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| making of |
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| testing out the eyes- I ended up going with the one on the left, which I created using safety eyes and 100% cotton embroidery thread and a 2.5mm hook |
It didn’t come out perfect, but I was pleased with it and confident enough to go into creating the big Totoro design. I used just 28 grams of the pink yarn and around 5 grams of the white (though I did not weigh this). This one took 19 hours in total.
As you can see from the photo, I also didn’t use the chenille yarn as advised in the pattern, because I didn’t have any, but also wanted to see how it would turn out by just using regular yarn. And I actually quite like the effect. I am aiming to purchase some chenille yarn though next, because I’d love to see how it looks all fluffy and cute! Plus, it would be a new challenge to me, because I’ve not actually used it before besides a tiny test piece.
Before I forget, all the yarn used throughout is post is Women’s Institute Hobbycraft exclusive, 100% premium acrylic DK yarn. All using a 3mm hook, single crochet, yarn under/ yarn over technique.
Ok, so now the big one! Here’s a few pics of how Totoro turned out:
And I’ll just say I am immensely proud of him! He looks soooo cute and I’ve crocheted him really neatly. I must say he was hard to give away! But I guess I can always make another. And I will. I’m going to create a Totoro army! The house will be full of him, though my partner may have something to say about that…
This one took 18 hours (getting slightly quicker!), and I used 33 grams of the grey yarn and just 6 grams of the cream colour.
The next one I made was a cushion for my dad, of one of his paintings:
As you can see from the photo, I also didn’t use the chenille yarn as advised in the pattern, because I didn’t have any, but also wanted to see how it would turn out by just using regular yarn. And I actually quite like the effect. I am aiming to purchase some chenille yarn though next, because I’d love to see how it looks all fluffy and cute! Plus, it would be a new challenge to me, because I’ve not actually used it before besides a tiny test piece.
Before I forget, all the yarn used throughout is post is Women’s Institute Hobbycraft exclusive, 100% premium acrylic DK yarn. All using a 3mm hook, single crochet, yarn under/ yarn over technique.
Ok, so now the big one! Here’s a few pics of how Totoro turned out:
And I’ll just say I am immensely proud of him! He looks soooo cute and I’ve crocheted him really neatly. I must say he was hard to give away! But I guess I can always make another. And I will. I’m going to create a Totoro army! The house will be full of him, though my partner may have something to say about that…
This one took 18 hours (getting slightly quicker!), and I used 33 grams of the grey yarn and just 6 grams of the cream colour.
The next one I made was a cushion for my dad, of one of his paintings:
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| the original painting |
Got to be honest, I was super proud of this one too- I thought it turned out really well. The final measurements were around 12.5x12 inch. And yes, I crocheted the back panel as well. Which was a bit of a boring task, because it was so repetitive, but I think the end result was worth it, rather than just sewing the front to a piece of fabric. This one took 29 hours in total, including sewing the inner pillow-like case inner to house the stuffing. I didn’t want to stuff straight into the crochet, because I wanted an extra layer separating it, because I didn’t want to risk any of the stuffing poking through or owt. Should also say that for this one and the next one, I created the pattern using the website Stitch Fiddle. So you can add a picture and it will grid it up for you, like this:
Ok, lastly, was the scarf I made for my brother, of his DJ/ producer logo:
Again, I was really pleased with this one, too! I love how well the text came out and really liked the tassel detail. It would have been better if it was a bit longer, so I guess it could be more of a ‘display scarf’ if you like, but I would have still been here crocheting it, if it was any longer!
This one took 34.5 hours in total. So yeah, it was pretty much my full time job for the last four weeks! And I’m about a third through my other brothers gift, which will be appear on here once it’s finished. Right, enough of this, I’ve got some crochet to do!
xo
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