New Mini Dragon Design

I present this FREE pattern to you in honor of the 2024 Lunar New Year and also because it seems like there are dragons everywhere I look! They’re popping up in my books (Fourth Wing – just finished it and haven’t tackled the sequel yet), in movies (Damsel), in shows, (huge Game of Thrones fan here! I still enjoy re-watching the series).. just everywhere! Yes, I admit to being a proud sci-fi/fantasy nerd! And of all the animals of the zodiac, I think the dragon is by far the coolest..funny that I don’t actually know anyone born under this sign! Here’s a photo of both of the dragon designs I’ve come up with to date!

You can see that my mini dragon pattern is based off of my larger Spike the Dragon design, which you can find on ETSY. Spike sits at approximately 8.5 inches tall (worsted weight yarn) while my new smaller version is palm sized at about 4.5 inches tall! This small version makes a great little desk or shelf decoration and can be even be used as a keychain! We all know handmade gifts are the most special of all and an adorable little lucky dragon would make an amazing gift for just about anyone! I recommend using a Light/DK or a Fine weight yarn to make this doll. In my examples, I used Hobbii Rainbow 8/4 cotton yarn as well as Patons Grace, which is a mercerized cotton yarn.

I consider this pattern to be of a BEGINNER/INTERMEDIATE level. Single crochet stitches are worked in spirals for all body parts. To make this dragon, you need to be familiar with working in Front Loops Only, Back Loops only, the invisible color change technique, double crochet stitches, and making French Knots. This doll is relatively small – Some may find it difficult to work with such small, tight stitches.

As with all of the patterns I offer for free, I’d truly appreciate if nobody claim my pattern or my photos as their own and/or attempt to sell my instructions for profit. You may sell your own homemade dolls made from this pattern. (no mass production, please) I kindly ask that you credit the design to Little Muggles. Please be respectful to all designers who spend many, many hours coming up with and sharing creations with the world! We love what we do and are happy to spread the love of crocheting but it’s terribly discouraging and disheartening when we discover pattern thieves.

The making of Benjamin the Bunny

Little Muggles may earn an affiliate commission on purchases made through links in this post.

Do most of you get your yarn in person at a store or from online orders? I usually go in person but as you’ve probably experienced, stores can have quite a limited selection in terms of brands and colors. So I’ve been slowly getting my feet wet with ordering online! I was so excited to receive this particular yarn in the mail a few weeks ago! If you’ve followed my creations, you might know that I’ve been dabbling with cotton yarn most recently, but I’ve mainly only worked with a Category 2 weight, which is also finer than what I usually use. I’ve been really looking to try something slightly thicker and decided to test this Cotton Sprout line (DK weight) by Premier Yarns! I ended up loving the feel of this particular yarn line and I think I’m going to buy up a bunch of their other colors very soon. If you’re interested in learning more about this line, please click HERE to learn about Cotton Sprout and see all the available colors!

So what was I going to do with this new yarn? Since this happened right before the Lunar New Year, of course I had to attempt a new bunny! 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit after all!

I selected Beige as the main color of my new bunny and I love, love, love this shade! It’s slightly darker than what I expected “beige” to be but it’s beautiful and I know it will pair wonderfully with any accessory color out there.

I quickly made up this little bunny but had the most trouble with the ears. I wanted a one-piece ear design that incorporated an inner white patch. It’s always tricky getting edges to line up when it comes to color patches… don’t even ask how many ears I had to make to come up with the final look. Not only was I working on the color changes but also the length of the ears and the attachment to the head. Thank you to the many individuals that gave me constructive feedback via Facebook and Instagram! I always love reading everyone’s comments and I like to take it all into consideration!

And though I don’t have a lot of experience making clothes for dolls, I decided to give it a shot and attempt a jacket for this little guy. I had a lot of fun testing out different things here… I’ve included the instructions how to make the jacket in my pattern. You can also leave off the sleeves and make a vest instead – I think this is a super cute look too! So again, with a seemingly simple design, I actually learned quite a bit while making this doll! 👍

My Benjamin Bunny pattern can be found in my usual shops – ETSY and Amigurumi.com Please pop over to take a look!

I toyed with creating a girl bunny as well but haven’t decided whether I’ll make an official pattern for it.

Again, for those interested, the yarn used to make this main doll is Cotton Sprout Yarn by Premier. Colors used include Beige, White, “Bark” for the trousers, and for the blue jacket, I used “Cornflower” and “Gloaming” for the edging. For the green jacket, I used “Leaf”.

I hope to see lots of Benjamin Bunnies pop up, especially since Easter isn’t that far away! Looking forward to seeing all the customized colors and personalized touches that make each doll unique! Have fun, everyone!

Free Small Kitty pattern available now!

Hooray!! I am so thrilled that Spring is finally here! I know I can’t really complain too much because I live in California where the winters are quite mild compared to many other places in the world. No snow, no blizzards, no freezing temps… but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve also become more sensitive to the cold around here so I’m still looking forward to warmer temperatures and all things Spring!

Luckily for me, my crochet workspace has a large window that looks out onto my front yard and currently I have an amazing view of abundant blossoms on our cherry trees! My beautiful Springtime view has really uplifted my whole mood lately and has inspired me to be generous with my crochet. 🙂

On that note, here’s another freebie for you to enjoy! 🙂 Click HERE to go to the free pattern!

In honor of the season, I’ve used these soft pastel shades to make this bunch of buddies. These are some of the smallest amigurumi that I’ve created to date. They’re super cute and can be used in many different ways, from ornaments, to desktop decor, to key chains! The pattern is easily adjustable for you to create other characters as well.

Cha Siu the Pig!

Gung Hay Fat Choy! Happy Lunar New Year!

Yup, it’s that time of year again – another Lunar New Year! This time it’s the Year of the Pig and you know how I like coming up with new designs to celebrate this festive holiday! I wanted to make this Pig look like it’s wearing a traditional Chinese outfit and after MUCH experimentation, I settled on this look. You have no idea how many attempts it took trying out different looks on the jacket trim, button details, and making those piggy toes! Out of all of my previous designs, I feel that I worked the longest on this pattern! Hours and hours of crocheting and frogging… I am so happy to finally(!) present this pig to you all! You can find it for sale in my Etsy shop and on Amigurumipatterns.net!

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Toy Soldier look

Doesn’t this pig look spiffy in his jacket? I was going for a traditional Chinese outfit look, so initially I looked into making some elaborate braided buttons. After a bunch of trial and error, I settled on this simple faux button closure that I think resembles the old fashioned frog fasteners that are often found in traditional Chinese outfits. More elaborate frog closures were common in old time military uniforms as well so this doll can even be customized to look like a toy soldier! Add some epaulettes and a hat and this pig will look like an extra in a Nutcracker production! 🙂 Hmmm, that’s not a bad idea! I’ll have to remember it!

Faux frog closures

I worked really hard to finish this doll before my self imposed deadline of February 5, which was the first day of the Lunar New Year in 2019. I was proud to complete it about a week before my deadline but writing up the pattern itself took so long that I didn’t release it until the 2nd day of the year! With all the typing and formatting involved, the pattern took nearly as long as the crocheting! For those who get the pattern, I hope that you guys can tell how much work and effort went into the 12 page PDF file! 🙂

2019 Year of the Pig!

So I wish everyone an auspicious New Year full of wonderful moments and good health! Did you know that the Pig rounds out the animals of the Zodiac? It is considered the last of the 12 animals and in 2020, the Rat will begin the cycle anew!

I also wanted to let you all know that I have been more active on my social media accounts now and will be adding many photos of my works in progress and updates…if you’re interested in following my projects, please follow my Instagram (@littlemuggles) and Facebook accounts (littlemugglesworld)! Don’t laugh, I haven’t gotten the hang of twitter yet but plan to work on that too! 🙂 🙂

I’m already hard at work on my next doll! Pop over to see what it is! XOXO!

FREE PATTERN! Puppy Beanbag Buddies!

 

Hi everyone!  I’m finally finished with my side project, my Puppy Beanbag Buddies!  The pattern is very similar to my baby Owl and Violet Kitty patterns as they all have nice round, heavy bodies and make fabulous desktop accessories!  The body contains polyester pellets to give it that extra heft and stability! They’re perfect for weighing down papers; I’ve even been known to use these little guys as impromptu pin cushions! 🙂

I think the world of amigurumi is more exciting than ever these days!  It’s amazing to see how quickly the amigurumi community has expanded since way back when I first discovered this hobby.   It’s truly inspiring to see all of the imaginative and creative techniques being used in crochet dolls these days!  I’m sure you agree!

To thank you all for continuing to follow me and for your kind words of encouragement, I’ve decided to share this as a FREE PATTERN! Please click HERE!

These little buddies make for a very simple and relatively quick project, so you have plenty of time to make a few to slip into those stockings that are hanging on the mantel!  Basic stitches are used so this would be a great project for anyone new to crocheting as well!

This pattern is also perfect for anyone who is interested in getting a head start on making something fun to celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year… did you know that it’s going to be the Year of the Dog in 2018? ?  I have a feeling there will be a ton of featured doggy designs within the amigurumi community in the next couple of months! 🙂

I wish you all a fantastic, magical holiday season! Cheers!

 

Knit amigurumi with Free Pattern!

 

A dear friend of mine gave me a present over the holidays which I have been enjoying tremendously ever since!  I’ve posted about it on Facebook already, but it’s the video game “Yoshi’s Woolly World” for the Nintendo Wii U.  All the characters and backgrounds are made entirely of yarn – this is seriously my kind of fantasy world!  You should visit this official WEBSITE to take a look at the mind blowing creativity of this game!  I’m not kidding – your eyes will widen and your jaw will drop from the stunning details and vibrant colors!

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The same dear friend who gave me the game (and game system), recently gifted me with these adorable Amiibos!  They are the cutest things ever and actually interact with the game system itself!

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Looking at these little cuties, I was inspired to try my hand at knitting an amigurumi for the first time.  I did a bit of research to see what kind of easy patterns I could find and I was immediately drawn to all of the cute creations by the very talented Amy Gaines!!

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I found a simple little design which I figured I could manage!  After all, one of my resolutions this year is to expand my yarn skills so what better time to try something new?

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What do you think? My very first knit amigurumi!

 

I do have a little bit of knitting experience in that I can do some basic stitches and I do own a few knitting needles…I dug them out and dove right into this FREE PATTERN.  I was amazed at how quickly it all came back and I had a lot of fun!  I just love the stockinette stitch, which is what this pattern calls for.  The rows end up looking so nice and tidy and professional! My biggest challenge was sewing the seams. I definitely have a lot to learn there.   A huge difference between this doll and my usual creations is that the knit amigurumi is SUPER SOFT! I love squeezing it – I wish my crochet dolls could come out this plush!

Overall this bunny was a fun little project. I find it much harder to knit amigurumi vs. crocheting them so I’m not planning to hang up my crochet hook anytime soon!! I may venture to make another knit amigurumi in the future but for now, I’ll continue with crochet!

Hanna the Hippo wins 2nd place!

 

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Amigurumipatterns.net held a Circus amigurumi design Contest a short while back and Hanna the Hippo was my entry!  I’ve been thinking about doing a hippo for a while now and the contest was the perfect motivator to get to me to finally design one! I did a bit of research and settled on trying to make a hippo with an umbrella.

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I actually had a hard time deciding what color the hippo should be. I really wanted to make a purple one, but seeing as I did not have a soft lavender yarn that I like,   I opted for a pale blue hippo instead.  I generally gravitate toward soft pastel colors, but I think a bright, bold shade like a hot pink would be really fun too! 🙂  Once the pattern comes out, I will wait and see what you guys do with it! I love seeing my designs made in various colors – many are colors that I wouldn’t think to choose but end up looking wonderful!

I was delighted with how my hippo turned out and I had a lot of fun with the photo shoot as well.  Here is the final shot that I entered into the contest!

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After I entered my design, I took a peek at what some of the other entries looked like. I was blown away by so many detailed and amazing creations!  Honestly, I didn’t think I stood a chance after viewing everyone’s submissions!  (See all entries here!)  I am completely shocked, thrilled and honored to have placed 2nd and I thank everyone who voted for my hippo! My prize box came on Christmas Eve and it was so much fun opening it up!  The 10 yarn balls behind Hanna in the top picture were found in the box.  They are Stylecraft yarn balls of DK weight, and are made of 100% pure premium acrylic.  You can’t tell, but they are super duper soft!! I will have fun coming up with things to make with this yarn!!  I love the colors that were sent to me!

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I also received a fantastic set of Clover crochet hooks, a box of safety eyes/noses, the full set of published works by Amigurumipatterns.net, and a beautiful yarn bowl by  Barruntando, a shop that offers unique and original pieces of pottery made of honey!  Their Etsy shop is absolutely fabulous – I am tempted to order some other pieces to have around the house!  I have never seen a yarn bowl before and was delighted to try this one out!  The beautiful bowl is a soft aqua color and has cute little star cutouts on the side.

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Check out some of their products! Aren’t they too adorable???

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Wait! There’s more! I also get a super fabulous crochet hook designed by Furls Crochet! I have only ever seen these in ads – they are so beautiful!!

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I haven’t actually gotten the hook yet so I can’t tell you how amazing it really is, but I’m looking forward to holding one of these babies in my hands!!

And finally,  I got a year subscription to Inside Crochet magazine, a really cool UK publication that has plenty of projects and designs for me to try in the new year!  I just might have to try my hand at some non amigurumi related things (gasp!) to learn some new stitches and skills!

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This has been a wonderful close to a wonderful year.  I didn’t come up with as many new designs in 2015 as I would have liked, but I plan to change that for 2016.  I’ve got a number of ideas in my head of things to make, so definitely keep your eyes open for new Little Muggles creations in the future!!

Best wishes to you all for a Happy, Healthy, and Fantastic New Year!!!

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FREE Little Muggles Amigurumi Baby Bear Ornament Pattern!

Little Muggles Baby Bear Ornament
Little Muggles Baby Bear Ornament

I’ve been working on the design for this little cutie for the past few days and I’ve decided to present it to you as a holiday freebie surprise! I actually meant to finish this sooner so that everyone would have more time to make these for the holiday season! The good thing is that since this little ornament is relatively small, it doesn’t take too much time to make.  You only need to know basic crochet stitches and you can knock out a couple of these one one evening!  I especially love how you can change up the colors easily.  Use one when decorating a gift or place them around the house or office for some kawaii cuteness!  Have fun making your little ornaments and don’t forget to send me pictures of your cute little baby bears! I can’t wait to see your creations!

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE PATTERN!

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On a side note, my kids are now officially on Winter Break!  I don’t know about you, but when the kids are hanging around the house all day, I don’t end up getting much done for myself!  I have a growing list of things to make with yarn… on my short list is a new monkey for upcoming Lunar New Year!  To the drawing board I go! Follow me on Facebook to stay updated on my projects!

 

Amigurumi Magazine!

 

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What fun!! Look at this wonderful surprise I found in my mailbox the other day!  MyTimeMedia has released their newest issue of “Amigurumi” magazine and my little “Buttons the Mouse” pattern is featured in it!  Well, it was a surprise in that I didn’t know that I’d be getting the magazine that day.  🙂  After all,  I did give permission for them to use my pattern.  Alas, this publication is currently printed only in German.   I am hopeful that they will release an English version one day soon!  Then I can try my hand at all of the amazing designs found in the magazine!!

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Look who else is featured! It’s All About Ami‘s (Stephanie Lau’s)  adorable “Teddy Ornaments”! Isn’t the layout beautiful? I am such a big fan of Stephanie’s!  My little mice are definitely in great company!

There will be 4 new publications of this magazine in 2016!  Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to be featured again one day!