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.

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time.

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring.

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row.

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves.

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body.

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy.

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

Have you read?