Review: Ten Adorable Teddy Bears to Knit

I had a different book review on my calendar for this week, but the girl insisted I knit her something from Rachel Borello’s Ten Adorable Teddy Bears to Knit this week so I figured since I was using the book I might as well tell you about it. You can see a couple of the parts I’ve knit so far over on my blog.

As the name mentions, there are patterns here for 10 little bears, from traditional looking teddies to a panda and a koala. (The girl opted for the panda, but she has a long list of demands from this cute book.)

Each bear comes with its own outfit and accessories. Junior, for instance, is shown with a hat that has holes for his ears, a wee backpack and a sleeping bag with cables. Hudson has a beanie and backpack as well, but also overalls. Clarke is a superhero in shorts, a cape and a mask, while Peta has a little dress, scarf and winter hat.

The panda, named Riley, is shown in shorts, a sweater and socks, but the girl wants a lace skirt and a little top instead.

Some of the projects are worked in the round while others (like the panda) are knit flat in lots of little pieces that have to be joined to make the bear in question. That said it’s pretty easy knitting and you can stitch it up as you go, leaving less work for the end.

This book is really cute, and these tiny bears are sure to attract kids and adults alike. I think it will be fun to knit lots of little outfits, and maybe a few more bears. They’re so small, the projects actually go pretty fast even though there are lots of pieces.

About the book: 112 pages, paperback with interior flaps, 10 bear patterns plus 22 options for accessories. Published August, 2015 by Barron’s Educational Series. Suggested retail $16.99.

Looking for more Knitting patterns for Teddy Bears? Check it out here.

Next Pattern:

I can’t resist a pattern that’s both useful and a little silly, and that’s exactly how I feel about the Rybka pouch pattern from the delightfully named Rat and Sea Witch.

I know you’re going to ask, because I did, too. Rybka means little fish in Polish. (And because you’re also probably going to ask, Rat and Sea Witch comes from people’s attempts to say the designer’s name, Ratasiewicz, which if you say it fast kind of sounds like rat and sea witch.)

It’s easy to make a little fish bag in different sizes to suit your needs. The pattern has specific instructions for an Airpods Pro case and a pencil case, but you could change the length easily to hold more stuff, and change the size in general by working with a different weight of yarn.

The pattern calls for sock yarn and mohair held together to make a fingering weight gauge, but you could try it with heavier yarn and see what size bag you end up with.

Whatever size you make it, this looks like a fun project for holding trinkets or everyday items. The mouth of the fish is the mouth of the bag, and it closes with a drawstring that is also the strap. I wonder, too, if you could make one of these with a small clasp frame that could be the fish’s mouth and then you could just work I cord straps that would attach to the sides of the fish.

I could also see stripes, or fish of different colors to use up your yarn leftovers. How about a sunglasses case with a little loop to attach to your bag? Once you start thinking about all the ways you could use a fish-shaped bag in your life, I think you’ll see that you probably need more than one.

If you make one of these I would love to know how it went!

You can grab a copy of the pattern on Ravelry.

[Photo: Rat and Sea Witch]

Next Pattern:

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