Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Giveaway: Animal Lovies

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Animal Lovies reivew and giveaway

Congratulations to Lee!

This is a book that I really want to need so I can keep it and knit all these adorable projects for myself. But I know I would never actually make them, not having a baby anymore, so I want this book to go to someone who will really use it

Animal Lovies by Yolanda Soto-Lopez includes 10 knitting projects for really cute snuggly blankies with little heads and arms that make it a blanket/doll combination. The patterns are for a bear, bunny, lamb, penguin, duck, bird, dog, panda, cat and giraffe and they are all so cute I can’t even tell you. You can see all the projects at Leisure Arts.

The blankets are 12 inches square and all the projects are rated easy +, so if you have some projects that involve increase and decreasing under your belt you’re ready for this book.

If you’d like a chance to win this one, leave a comment on this post before the end of the day Sunday, March 20. I’d love to know which animal or animals you would knit and who in your life you can knit lovies for.

Thank you for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck!

Comments

  1. I would love to make some zoo animal themed lovies for all the new babies my friends and coworkers have been having

  2. I would make a cat because it seems cute
    I would make it for my friend’s child because they are so cute and would love them.

  3. I knit for our local Birthright and these would be perfect for them. Also, I just found out my niece is pregnant and I’d love to make her the cat or bunny. They are all so adorable!

  6. They are all adorable. I personally love bunnies, but I should really make one for a friend expecting in June (instead of one for myself LOL)

  8. Our knitting group always chooses a project each year to donate to our local community organizations. We have made baby blankets for a home serving unwed mothers, lap blankets for a local veteran’s facility and knitted animals for the children entering our local domestic abuse housing. These blankies would be an excellent project for our group to provide to children in our local hospital.

Have you read?

Learn a Flower Bobble Technique to Knit a Fun Shawl

Generally I like knitting patterns where I feel like you can use whatever yarn you have (because my stash is big enough and I want to use it, thanks) and make a successful project. This is one of those times when a special yarn makes the process that much easier. 

The Floral Bouquet Shawl from Xandy Peters uses a specific extended color pooling yarn from Feisty Fibers, which allows you to place the bobble flowers with increasing frequency as you knit the project. 

It starts with a solid color yarn, then the two color yarn is added in, and you make a bobble whenever you encounter the color pops. This would be hard to replicate with other yarn that doesn’t have the extended color pooling built in.

The background of the shawl is ribbed, making the project reversible. 

The shawl uses fingering/sock yarn and comes out to be an asymmetrical triangle that’s 54 inches/137 cm long and 36 inches/ 90 cm deep and 60 inches/150 cm across the top edge. 

Xandy says the pattern is for intermediate to advanced knitters. Knowing how to work traditional bobbles would probably help, but there’s a great video tutorial for how to work the floral bobbles so you can practice on other yarn or even incorporate the bobbles into other projects. 

The bobbles are five-petaled flowers but they also kind of look like starfish to me, which could be fun on a child’s cardigan or other pattern. They’d also be fun on the leg of a sock or around the brim of a hat for extra whimsy. 

The pattern includes photo and video tutorials, and written and charted instructions. It also includes tips on what to look for if you choose to use different yarn for the project, and instructions on how to dye your own yarn to use in the project. 

If you want to give it a try, you can find the pattern on Ravelry. 

[Photo: Xandy Peters]