Well hello my lovely ones! Happy Sunday! Hope you have all had good weekends. Ours has been filled with swims, friends, family, baking, big walks & pub lunches… oh and obviously some crocheting!! I do seem to be seeing green this week though, with Mr Alien here! I can safely say it has definitely been a green week. It started with a certain little Mini Crochet Designer No1 spying a rather scrummy ball of yummy yarny limey goodliness, the other day and whizzing upstairs with it to design Mr Alien here. Bless her!! She sent me off to work straight away with my crochet hook and yarn in tow to get making!!
I was a little bit concerned by the fact the yarn, my daughter had fallen in love with, was pure silk, hand dyed from the amazing Abby at Luxury Yarns. But she assured me that Mr Alien would be well and truly loved, squidged and snuggled forever. So he just had to be made, didn’t he. Not sure if it’s sacrilage or genius to use this silk yarn, but it worked up a treat!!
Unfortunately, for my daughter, my son took a shine to little Ali, as he calls him, so I soon realised Number 2 needed to be made!! I’ve never whipped up a design so quick!! He kept grabbing hers for his nap time, so I could see that bedtime tears could occur, if there wasn’t two!!
This probably is why I was seeing green all week!! So thought I had better share this pattern with you guys. It’s a pretty easy pattern to do, just a few different stitches here and there. Hope you like it.
My little limey ball of loveliness came out of this little parcel of magic from Luxury Yarns. It’s my third instalment from the Ōil Yarns Club that the wonderful Abby has set up and I am loving all the new and exciting yarns and challenges that it brings me. So my parcel comprises of a skein of beautifully hand dyed yarn by Abby, a little bottle of some essential oils from the DōTERRA range and a lovely little jewel marker. The yarn is called Top of the Morning, which is such a fab name!! Definitely a nod to a certain St Patrick’s Day!! But yeah, it’s a great club if you fancy joining. You can sign up for one, two or three monthly instalments, so you can make it work for you. If you fancy a peak and are intrigued, then just follow the link below.
Level – Moderate (There are few different stitches in this pattern.)
Supplies –
Right then, so for my little alien I have used the oh so incredible hand dyed yarn from the amazing Abby Parkes over at Luxury Yarns. It is a 5ply yarn, so otherwise known as sports weight and is a size inbetween 4ply and double knit. Now if you don’t have any 5ply, then it is not a problem to use double knit weight yarn. It just means that your alien will be a little bigger than mine. You will also need a small amount of white and black double knit yarn. This is for the eyes, eyebrows and smile.
So I have used about 50g of the 5ply yarn in total, but if you are using double knit yarn, I would use about 100g. You will also need some toy stuffing, scissors, a 3mm crochet hook and a blunt ended tapestry needle. Oh and a little bit of scrap yarn for your stitch marker.
(If you use double knit yarn instead of 5ply, it is still fine to use a 3mm hook.)
Stitches –
Magic Ring – Fold over the yarn to make the loop. Insert your hook through the loop and grab the working yarn (long piece) and pull through the loop. Hold the tail and the working yarn and pull so that the knot tightens, but you still have a loop. This has created a magic ring.
Slip stitch (ss) – This is where there is no height to the stitch. It’s usually used to join rounds. So insert the hook into the front of the stitch you are joining to. This is usually the first stitch you made in that round/row. So yarn over hook and pull through that first stitch then also through the loop on your hook.
Chain (ch) – To make a chain, place the yarn over the hook then pull it through the loop on your hook.
Double Crochet (dc) – Insert the hook through the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have two loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops.
Double Crochet Decrease (2dctog) – This is where you crochet two stitches together to decrease the amount of stitches in the round. So insert the hook through the front of the first stitch only (the front V) and then insert again through the front of the second stitch (the front V). Now yarn over your hook and pull it back through both stitches, so you will then have 2 loops on your hook. Yarn over your hook again and pull through both loops. And there is your 2dctog. (Basically 2 double crochet stitches crocheted together.)
Back Loop Double Crochet – (bldc) This is the same as a double crochet stitch, but the difference is that it is only worked in the back loop of the stitch.
Back Loop Decrease – (2bldctog) So this is the same as a 2dctog stitch, but again you only work it in the back loops of the stitch.
Ok so here we go…
1 – Right then, so first things first, make your magic ring and chain 1. (Remember if you’re unsure of how to do this, see the tutorial section.) Now work 6dc stitches into the chain itself. You can now pull the little tail to close the ring. (6)
2 – Now work *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
3 – *1dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
4 – *2dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
5 – *3dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (30)
6 – *4dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (36)
7 – *5dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (42)
8 – *6dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (48)
9 – *7dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (54)
10 – *8dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (60)
11 – 17 (7 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (60)
12 – Now work *8dc stitches, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (See the stitches section of how to work a 2dctog stitch.) (54)
13 – Now work *7dc stitches, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (48)
14 – Now work *6dc stitches, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (42)
15 – Now work *5dc stitches, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (36)
16 – Now work *4dc stitches, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (30)
17 – Now work *3dc stitches, then 2dctog repeat ** 6 times. (24)
18 – Now work *2dc stitches, then 2dctog repeat ** 6 times. (18)
19 – Now work *1dc stitches, then 2dctog repeat ** 6 times. (12)
This is a good time to stuff your head.
20 – 22 (3 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (12)
23 – Work *2dctog* repeat this 6 times. (6)
Ok so now it is time to sew up your little stitches.
So when you are sewing up the stitches, you are creating the little nose. See how it has a little dip in the middle of the nose. Work this, by threading the yarn in the centre, back and forth. And it will create a little nose. Then simply fasten off and weave in your end.
Body
1 – Right then, so first things first, make your magic ring and chain 1. Now work 6dc stitches into the chain itself. You can now pull the little tail to close the ring. (6)
2 – *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
3 – *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
4 – *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (36)
5 – *5dc, then 2dc into the next stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (42)
6 – *6dc, then 2dc into the next stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (48)
7 – *7dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (54)
8 – 9 (2 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (60)
10 – *8dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (60)
11 – *9dc, then 2dc into next stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (66)
12 – *10dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (72)
13 – 17 (5 pounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (72)
18 – Now work *10dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (66)
19 – Work 1dc into each stitch. (66)
20 – Now work *9dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (60)
21 – 22 (2 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (60)
23 – Now work *8dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (54)
24 – 25 (2 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (54)
26 – Now work *7dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (48)
27 – 28 (2 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (48)
29 – Now work *6dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (42)
30 – 31 (2 Rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (42)
32 – Now work *5dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (36)
33 – 34 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (36)
35 – Now work *4dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (30)
36 – 37 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (30)
You might find this a good point to stuff your body, so that you can see the shape it is creating and make sure you get the stuffing to the bottom of the body.
38 – Now work *3dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (24)
39 – Now work *2dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (18)
40 – 45 (6 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (18)
46 – Now work *2dctog* repeat ** 9 times. (9)
Now sew up the top stitches and fasten off leaving tail so that you can sew the body and head together.
Arms – make 2
1 – Start by making a magic ring and chain 1. Now work 6dc into the ring. (6)
2 – Now work 2dc stitches into each stitch. (12)
3 – *1dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
4 – *2dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
5 – Work 1dc into each stitch. (24)
6 – Ok so now work *2dc, then 2dctog.* Repeat ** 6 times. (18)
7 – Work *1dc stitches, then 2dctog* repeat ** 6 times. (12)
8 – 29 (22 rounds) Work 1dc into each stitch. (12)
30 – Now work *2dc, then 2ctog.* Work ** 3 times. (9)
31 – Ok so finish with 1dc in each stitch. (9)
Now slip stitch and fasten off leaving a long tail so that you can sew your arms onto the body. (I haven’t stuffed my arms, but you are very welcome to, if you want a different look.)
Legs – Make 2
1 – Start by chaining 18.
Then slip stitch into the first chain you made to make a ring. This is where the arrow is pointing.
2 – Then work 1dc in each stitch. (18)
3 – Now work *2dc, then 2dc in the next stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
4 – Work 1dc in each stitch. (24)
5 – Right so now work *2dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
6 – 7 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (18)
8 – Work *1dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
9 – Work *1dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 4 times. (8)
10 – Work 1dc in each stitch. (8)
11 – Work *1dc, then 2dc in the next stitch.* Work ** 4 times. (12)
12 – Work *2dc, then 2dc in next stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
13 – 14 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (18)
15 – Now work *2dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
16 – Work 1dc in each stitch. (12)
17 – Now work *2dctog.* Work ** 3 times. Follow this with 6dc stitches. (9)
18 – Work 3dc stitches. Now follow this by working *2dc into each stitch.* Work this ** 6 times. (15)
19 – Now work *2dc in the next stitch.* Work ** 3 times. Then work 12dc stitches. (18)
20 – 21 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (18)
22 – Work 6dc stitches. Now work *2dc in next stitch.* Work 6 times. Then work 6dc stitches. (24)
23 – 24 (2 rounds) Work 1dc in each stitch. (24)
25 – Work 9dc stitches. Then work *2dc in next stitch.* Work 6 times. Now work 9dc stitches. (30)
26 – Work 12dc stitches. Then follow this with *2dc in each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. Now finish with 12dc stitches. (36)
27 – Work 1dc in each stitch. (36)
28 – Now you are going to start decreasing, but in this round you are going to work your stitches in the back loop. This is when you work your stitches only in the back loop of the stitch. So work *4bldc then 2bldctog* Work ** 6 times. (30)
Can you see how it’s being worked in the back loop of the stitch, so it’s leaving a little ridge.
29 – Now work *3dc then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
30 – Work *2dc then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
31 – Work *1dc then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
32 – Finally, work *2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (6)
Now it’s time to sew up your feet, by sewing up the last few stitches and fasten off leaving a tail. Now weave the tail up to the top of the leg, so that you can sew it on to the body.
Here’s your two chunky little legs! Don’t forget to stuff them!!
Eyes – Make 2
Use your white yarn for these.
1 – Right then, so first things first, make your magic ring and chain 1. Now work 6dc stitches into the chain itself. You can now pull the little tail to close the ring. (6)
2 – *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
3 – *1dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
4 – *2dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
Antennae – Make 2
1 – Right then, so first things first, make your magic ring and chain 1. Now work 6dc stitches into the chain itself. You can now pull the little tail to close the ring.
2 – *2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
3 – *1dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
4 – *2dc, then 2dc into each stitch.* Work ** 6 times. (24)
5 – 6 (2 rounds) Now work 1dc in each stitch. (24)
7 – Now work *2dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (18)
8 – Now work *1dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 6 times. (12)
9 – Now work *2dc, then 2dctog.* Work ** 3 times. (9)
10 – 21 (12 rounds) Now work 1dc in each stitch. (9)
Now slip stitch into the next stitch and fasten off leaving a tail so that you can sew them onto your head.
Assembly! (The fun bit!!)
Right then, so you now have 1 body, 2 legs, 2 arms, 2 antennas, 2 eyes and a head. So it’s time to sew it altogether. You need to use your blunt ended tapestry needle for this.
So after many slightly wonky sewn up crocheted animals, I have come to the conclusion that the best place to start is the arms. If you attach both arms first and then the head, the whole toy seems to come together easier. Right so let’s get started.
First things first, use the tail from the top of the arms to sew each arm on to the body. I tend to sew them on about inch from the top.
When you’re sewing on the arms and legs, make sure you sew the top of the arm and the under side of it. You wouldn’t want an arm to fall off – how traumatic would that be for your little bod.
Now it’s time for the head. Make sure you sew the head on in the correct orientation, with the little nose in the middle of the face. I know it sounds daft, but it’s not fun having to undo it all when your realise it is looking decidedly odd! You may have noticed there are no antennaes yet sewn on our head yet. This is due to the fact that they need to go on at the end of the sewing up process. (Once again, I have learnt from experience – if you sew them on before, it’s really hard to line up all the body parts i.e wonky toys!!) Make sure you really anchor it down need to make sure that you anchor it down to the body, as the antennas can make the head quite heavy.
Right now for those legs.
Sew your legs on with the same kind of technique as the arms.
Just need to make sure you keep checking the angle they are sitting at to each other and that you sew all sides of them on securely.
Right then, antennas. These definitely need to be left till one of the last parts to sew on. Again it’s all to do with alignment and how it looks at the end. Now sew your antennas in place.
Make sure you work your way around the base of each antenna.
Ok so now for the eyes. Make sure you make two of these eyes, one after the other. It is important that you have two when you come to sew them on, as you can see exactly where you want them to be placed. So to sew them on, grab the middle little tail and using your needle, just loosely sew the tail through to the other side and cut off the visible end. This will gently anchor the eye in place, which will make it easier for you to sew around the edges.
Ok, so now it’s time to sew around the edges of the eye using the long tail and your needle. I have sewn on many of these types of eyes in my time and I have found the best way is to work your way up and down in and out of each stitch. You can see in the picture below how I am coming back up through the next stitch. This will ensure the sewing on thread is hidden and will give a much neater finish to your project.
Once you have finished your first eye, I insert the needle through to the back of the head, where I make a simple knot and insert that back through to the side of the head. This will ensure that the eye is anchored properly. Now onto the second eye and sew on as before. Make sure that you keep checking the eyes are level and placed where you want them to be. Don’t be afraid to undo and start again, if it goes a little wonky!!
Ok, so now it’s time to finish the eyes and add the finishing touches with the eyebrows and mouth. Start by threading your needle with black yarn and then knotting the end. Then thread it through from the back, through the middle of the white part of the eye. The knot at the back should be small enough to fit through the middle of a stitch so that it is hidden, but be able to nestle in the stuffing to anchor the eye in place. Now finish your eyes by working little pupils on each eye, by sewing up and over a stitch. You can make these pupils as small or as big as you like.
I seem to usually go over 2 stitches and usually sew it over about 4 times.
To work the eyebrows, you can carry on using the black yarn from the eyes. So come up where you want the eyebrow to start and then literally insert it back into the stitch where you want the eyebrow to end. It’s pretty simple, but very effective. Don’t make it too big, as they can get caught and snag later on! Obviously you can make any expression you would like to, just by changing the angle of the eyebrows!
To make the smile, literally come up about two rounds under the first eye. Then over to the second eye in the same place. Now here’s the tricky part, find the middle of the smile and make a little stitch a few rounds underneath, but make sure your stitch goes over the smile. This is to ensure the mouth is anchored down.
Once again as before thread your black yarn to the back of the body, make a simple knot and then sew back through the body and cut off the end.
And there you have it! One little Mr Alien.
I really hope you have enjoyed this pattern. I have loved creating him around my daughter’s design! And loved the challenge set from my Luxury Yarns – Ōilyarns Club yarn. Big thank you to Abby for this amazing silky yarn! It’s stunning and so fun to work with!!
Really hope you enjoy making him! I wonder what different colours you make! Please share your beautiful creations. Can’t wait to see what colour combos and yarns Mr Alien can be made from.
Please let me know if you get stuck, I will endeavour to help in anyway I can.
Happy hooking!!
🌈Xx
(Free pattern designed and brought to you by PipsRainbow. Thank you for not copying or recreating it. ☺️Xx)