emily fazzar ([info]secretlifeof_em) wrote in [info]knitting,
@ 2006-07-12 11:00:00
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Current mood: accomplished
Current music:mike doughty- cash cow
Entry tags:pattern - toy

Knit your own Naughty Squiddy.
Hello all,

Here is my 'pattern' for the squid I made- It's the first one I've ever written out, so I'm sure it's far from perfect. I also wrote it up after I finished it and haven't made another to test it (because lord knows I'll never put it up if I have to do that first). so any suggestions would be appreciated, or something is wrong, just let me know! :)

anyways, those are my disclaimers, and here goes:

Adventures in squiddom


Yarn: Paton's Classic Merino wool. Much less than one skein.
Needles: Clover size 7 Dpn's

Body:

Cast on 26 sts
knit 20 rounds in sockinette
purl 1 round, increasing every other stitch (39 sts)
purl 1 round.
purl 1 round, increasing every third stitch (52 sts)

transfer to two DPNs- 26 on each,
Knit the next 12 rounds, decreasing a stitch at both ends of each DPN
when you're down to 3 sts on each needle bind off using three needle bind off.


Long tentacles, Make two:
cast on 6 sts.
k 24 rounds*
k2 into each stitch (12 sts)
k next round
k2 into every other stitch (18)
k two rounds.
(k 2tog, k)3 times (12 sts)
(k 2tog) 3 times (6 sts)
(k 2tog) 3 times (3 sts)
k 3tog-
run excess yarn back through tentacle


Short tentacles (make 8**):
the short tentacles are basically an icord-
cast on 3 sts,
Knit 9 rounds*
P 3 sts.
k, k2 into the middle stitch, k
p 4 sts
k, k2 into middle two stitches, k
(P 2tog) 3 times
k 3 sts
(p 3 tog)
run excess yarn back through tentacle

*looking at squids, they don't seem terribly symmetrical, so I didn't make all the tentacles the same length.


**Squids have 10 tentacles (I googled it:) promptly after I googled it, apparently I forgot, and my squid only has 8 tentacles- so, depending on how precise you are, make the appropriate number of short tentacles.

Finishing:

Evenly space small tentacles around the edge of the squid.
I felted my squid before sewing on the long tentacles… Using about 6 inches of yarn, I loosely attached the long tentacles to the inside top of the squids head- after felting I used some black acrylic yarn to sew on his eyes, which were about 1 sts wide, and two sts high-

Because of the size of the needles the stitches are still visible despite the felting, it didn’t bother me much, but I intend to tinker with the pattern a little w/different needles/ more aggressive felting.




(44 comments) - (Post a new comment)


[info]gillianfrances
2006-07-12 03:41 pm UTC (link)
*shrieks of excitement*

OH MY GOD THAT IS FABULOUS!!

I am SO making one (or two, or TEN) of those!

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 03:45 pm UTC (link)
eeee :)
let me know how they come out!

he's definately a quick knit-

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[info]_white_stripe_
2006-07-12 04:36 pm UTC (link)
i was going to make one and now i def. am. i love quick knits like no other.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:52 pm UTC (link)
i am *all* about instant gratification. when will then be now!

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[info]_white_stripe_
2006-07-12 05:01 pm UTC (link)
i always get stuck on sleeves when i do sweaters. they are just so blah. then, when you finish one there is ALWAYS the other one which gets kind of boring.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 05:09 pm UTC (link)
i have lots of elaborate, grand plans, laying about half knit.

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[info]_white_stripe_
2006-07-12 07:33 pm UTC (link)
yep, and people who dont knit totally do not understand.

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[info]fiddlie
2006-07-12 03:55 pm UTC (link)
He is fabulous!! I must make one of these (can't say it will be soon because I am in a streak of finally knocking out some UFO's and making a blanket for my son....). To be clear, you felted after you had sewn on the short tentacles and felted the long ones before you sewed them on? It may be a while, but I'll let you know how it goes! Oh, adn just one skein or what? Woohoo!

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:05 pm UTC (link)
yeah, i sewed on the short ones before and the long ones after- i don't think it would really matter.

yeah, way, way less than one skein- he's just a little guy, after felting his body is only like 4".

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:06 pm UTC (link)
sorry, i'm dumb today- i did felt the long tentacles at the same time, i jsut sewed them on after- i threw all the parts in a laundry bag so they wouldn't get lost in the machine...

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[info]holeygwakamolee
2006-07-12 04:15 pm UTC (link)
thats so cute. screw all my other projects i'm making this today.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:17 pm UTC (link)
i'm glad you like it!

let me know if any thing doesn't work?


(awesome username too!)

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[info]hsulli
2006-07-12 04:17 pm UTC (link)
Thanks for posting this!! I definately want to make one--I might make him my first felting project instead of the obligatory purse. One question which will probably seem obvious--after you do the initial 23 rounds, and it says to switch to two dpns, will I still be knitting in the round (using a third needle as my "knitter"), or will it be back and forth. And when I finish my naughty squid, do I have to give him a beer? I don't have Sam Adams, but I have some MGD...

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[info]hsulli
2006-07-12 04:18 pm UTC (link)
Oh yeah--did you just use one skein of the Patons?

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:22 pm UTC (link)
way way less. i'm not sure how much- but i had used it to make earflaps on a hat, and then the squid, and i still have a lot less

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:21 pm UTC (link)
yeah, still in the round. honestly, i just did that so i could keep track of the decreases visually- because i wanted the top of him to be triangular- i didn't trust myself to keep track of the decreases in the middle of the the other needle.

so, yeah, long answer short, it's still in the round. w/ the third needle knitting :)

my squid seems to have a fondess for beer- but he also fits on wine, my cell phone, anything really, I'm sure he'd be happy to help you finish off any MGD you have around :)

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[info]platys
2006-07-12 04:21 pm UTC (link)
Ooooh, how awesome.

Do you want me to post it to islandofmisfitpatterns.com? We have much need for squidy goodness.

(I know, I'm such a pimper of the site. We're too excited for our own good. I'll settle down soon, I promise.)

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:22 pm UTC (link)
haha, sure! that's be awesome!!! :) pimp away! that site is great, i'd be honored to be on it :)

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[info]platys
2006-07-12 04:25 pm UTC (link)
Do you have a blog or email address you want me to link back to as the author?

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:35 pm UTC (link)
sure, you can use rugglesem.designs@gmail.com.

i don't currently have a craft blog, but am working on it- so i'll letcha know when i do :)

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[info]platys
2006-07-12 04:41 pm UTC (link)
Here you go. :)

I had to shrink the picture slightly, but otherwise, its as you wrote. Let me know if you want me to change anything.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 04:53 pm UTC (link)
it looks good to me! :) thank you! :)

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[info]jnotjeff
2006-07-12 06:43 pm UTC (link)
You MUST get a craft blog soon- I can't wait to see other projects you've done and will do

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 07:24 pm UTC (link)
thanks so much :D

i used this as inspiration- and started one over at blogspot
http://rugglesemdesigns.blogspot.com

so far all that's over there is the squid, but, i spend FAR FAR too much time online, so i'm sure there will be more stuff soon.

i hope to get it on a syndicated feed over here on LJ, but, i goofed up so am waiting for the LJ folks to help me :)

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[info]jnotjeff
2006-07-12 07:49 pm UTC (link)
Yeah! I'm actually your first subscriber now (I use Bloglines- what a great tool) and can't wait to see what you do. I'm afraid to start a crafting blog for myself since I haven't done much yet but it might be worth it.

By the way, I see you're in Taunton- I'm in Boston!

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 07:55 pm UTC (link)
very cool! yay boston! boston is much cooler than taunton ;)

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[info]jnotjeff
2006-07-12 07:56 pm UTC (link)
If it helps, Taunton is much cooler to say? That's all I've got!

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 08:16 pm UTC (link)
heh. that's something :)

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[info]joifulgurl
2006-07-12 05:35 pm UTC (link)
haha i totally love it. and it would be wicked easy to alter it to make a very indecent male body part (take away all it's arms, lengthen it... you know what i'm talking about) for a funny gift.

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[info]island___grrrl
2006-07-12 05:39 pm UTC (link)
Oooh I love me some Mike Doughty... And the squid's cute too!!!

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 05:44 pm UTC (link)
me too, i saw him in providence last month- and currently am playing the cd's to DEATH while i clean* my room.

*obsessively refresh journal.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 05:43 pm UTC (link)
ahh hahaha, yah, it's easy to alter for a VERY naughty "squid" ;)

my mom was happy to be first to inform me of squiddy's alter ego ;)

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[info]jnotjeff
2006-07-12 06:44 pm UTC (link)
I don't really have access to a washing machine that doesn't use quarters, but what a cute lil guy and great pattern! Fantastic!

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[info]loudxmouse
2006-07-12 07:15 pm UTC (link)
you CAN hand felt. people have been doing it for thousands of years:
big sink/large pot/large sink/bathtub
very hot water and very cold water
an aggitator (your hands, potato masherk, something of the like)
something rough helps too (pair of jeans, big smooth rock, etc)
wee bit of soap
rubber gloves

felting is just a technique where wool items are rubbed, agitated and mushed around in very hot, then cold water repeatedly. boil water on the stove or use hot tap water and agitate in hot then cold until you get the desired effect.

i felted an ipod cozy in my college bathroom, with hand soap and 15 minutes. Then i put it in my back jean pocket to dry and felt a bit more.

make a little swatch and try it.

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[info]secretlifeof_em
2006-07-12 07:25 pm UTC (link)
it true, i started felting him in the sink, and my boyfriend came in horrified, thinking i was scrubbing a peice of meat!

he's actually pretty cute unfelted too- i used smallish needles, so he didn't felt a whole lot.

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[info]loudxmouse
2006-07-12 08:21 pm UTC (link)
ha ha ha

"want scrubbed steak for dinner?"

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[info]jnotjeff
2006-07-12 07:55 pm UTC (link)
This is so helpful- I love it. I'm trying to be more daring with my knitting projects and this is JUST what I needed to hear. Thank you so much. I will definitely be trying it. I am working on knitting some small doll clothes and want to see if I can get them felted down to proper size.

I already warned my roommate about Kool Aid Dyeing- looks like she's going to see some felting now!

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[info]loudxmouse
2006-07-12 08:20 pm UTC (link)
there are books about hand felting and tuts online! have fun! have at it! do whatever you feel like.

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[info]the_marionette
2006-07-12 09:56 pm UTC (link)
Oh that is great! I can't wait to make one!!

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[info]loanesay
2006-07-13 07:15 am UTC (link)
YAAAYYY, naughtt squid pattern!!!!! hehe
thanks!

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[info]webms
2006-07-13 12:45 pm UTC (link)
Way cool! Thank you for sharing your pattern! It is very cute!

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[info]wanderlustlost
2006-07-13 02:36 pm UTC (link)
I found my new favourite pattern. :)

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[info]katilos_needles
2006-07-14 05:17 pm UTC (link)
Ooooh! Design more fishy toys! *jumping up and down*

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[info]hsulli
2006-07-31 07:54 pm UTC (link)
I finished up your squid today and it's fabulous! I made a few changes, and I was wondering if I could e-mail you with a photo of my version, and a few changes I made to the pattern (I can't post photos on LJ because I'm too cheap to pay for an account). I promise I'm not some crazy spammer or anything. :-) Thanks! I LOVE my Squiddy!

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