Bunny Knitting Patterns for Baby

Baby’s first Easter might not be as commonly celebrated as baby’s first Christmas, but babies and cute baby animals just go together so well it’s hard to resist stitching up something special for a springtime baby (or any little one).

I was browsing the Yarnspirations website the other day and happened to find a few cute bunny related baby items that were too cute not to share.

For that newborn photo shoot, you’re going to want to make a Cottontail Bunny Cocoon and Baby Hat. The hat has ears, of course, and the snuggly features a little tail. Put an Easter basket beside them and you’re all set for adorable photos of the new baby. While the yarn used in this project is no longer available, it’s a light/DK weight so you can just sub in your favorite soft yarn of that weight for this project.

For older kids or babies, they have a cute snuggly knit blanket with a bunny face and ears. This one is worked in Blanket and Baby Blanket yarns, so you know your little one will love snuggling with it and playing on it for more cute holiday photos. The blanket measures about 36 by 40 inches but you could make a bigger blanket and add the face details for a bigger kid who happens to love bunnies.

There’s also this bunny hat and sweater duo, sized for newborns up to one year of age. They’re worked in garter stitch, and the sweater is a simple raglan cardigan. I love these in gray but any pastel color would work, too, if you’d rather bring a little more color to your Easter knitting projects.

Any of these projects would also be great for charity knitting around Easter time or in the spring. Check your local hospitals to see if they accept handknits for babies.

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Many times when I write these posts I will say something like “you can use any yarn you want” or “this would be a great stash-busting project.” That’s just how my mind works. And my stash, too, since I probably have sweater quantity of two or three yarns at most, but tons of singles and odd balls and leftovers.

Blankets are generally a really good way to use up those bits, but in this case, I think you’re going to want to plan it out a bit better.

Looking at photos of the Color Study Blanket from Purl Soho, it looks like it’s made with two yarns held together, and that block in the center is worked with one of each color from the adjoining sides to make a mixed up color.

But that’s not actually how it’s done. This is three separate colors (four, really, with the neutrals in the corners) chosen form a yarn with an expansive palette so they play off each other. The project calls for a worsted weight superwash wool, which is a great choice for a blanket that’s both warm and washable.

This pattern was originally designed by Laura Ferguson and was updated by Hiromi Glover. It is worked in one piece in garter stitch intarsia, which is a great way to learn the intarsia technique if you don’t already know it. It comes in crib or throw sizes.

Despite the introduction to this post, I am going to go ahead and say that, yes, of course you could do this blanket with scraps or odd balls or even just choose five colors that don’t blend together so easily. But I really do love the look of the color play, and I think it would be worth your time to find colors that play well together to get a similar effect.

This pattern is available for free from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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