Link Lovey Crochet Pattern (Closing down my Etsy Shop - Here are the patterns for free)

Link Lovey

Materials Needed:

Size F Crochet Hook (3.75mm)

Size H Crochet Hook (5.00 mm)

Green, Tan, Yellow, Brown Worsted Yarn

Small amount of pink yarn

Small amount of white worsted yarn

2 9mm Safety Eyes

Fiberfill

Yarn needle

 

Stitches and Abbreviations st – stitch

mc – Magic circle ch- chain sc - single crochet dec - decrease dc – double crochet hdc – half-double crochet

sl st - slip stitch f/o – finish off

Blanket/Body

Green yarn

H hook

You will need to ch 1 extra at the start of the magic circle to make room for the first dc.

R1: (3 dc, 2 ch) four times in magic circle, join at the top of first dc with a sl st.  Pull hole closed. *The dc’s are the sides of the square, the ch’s are the corners.

 

 

R2: Ch 2, turn, dc in the same stitch the chain is in. 5 dc into the corner (the corner being space made by the 2 ch on the previous row). Dc around doing 5 dc in each corner. Join with a sl st in the first dc of the round. 

 

Notes: Skip over the original ch 2 and put the sl stitch directly in the first dc to avoid a seam!

 

Optional: For extra pointy corners make the 3^rd dc of each corner a triple crochet stitch (tc)

 

R3: Ch 2, turn, dc in each st across. At each corner do 5 dc in the 3^rd st of the previous row’s 5 dc. R4-10: Repeat R3.

F/o, weave in ends

 

Belt

H Hook, brown yarn

R1: Ch 96 - You want the chain to be long enough to wrap around the entire body/blanket portion and late flat against it so you can sew it on. For me this was 96 chains. Add or take away to this as necessary to fit your project.

R2: Turn, sc across. Finish off, leave very long end for sewing

 

 

Note: For all pieces apart from the blanket and belt section, do not connect rows. Once a row is finished go directly into the next row. It is worked in a spiral.

 

 

 

Head

F hook

Tan yarn

R1: 6 sc in magic circle (6)

R2: 2 sc in each st around (12)

R3: (2 sc, sc 1) around (18)

R4: (2 sc, sc 2) around (24)

R5: (2 sc, sc 3) around (30)

R6: (2 sc, sc 4) around (36)

R7: (2 sc, sc 5) around (42)

R8-12: sc around (42)

R13: (dec 1, sc 5) around (36)

R14: (dec 1, sc 4) around (30)

R15: (dec 1, sc 3) around (24)

R16: (dec 1, sc 2 ) around (18)

R17: (dec 1, sc 1) around (12)

Put in safety eyes between rows 10 and 11, with 7 stitches in between. Sew on cheek blushes two rows beneath eyes with pink. Mouth optional. Stuff.

R18: Dec around

Sew up hole, finish off leaving long end for sewing

 

Hat

H Hook, green yarn

R1: Ch 26, join last stitch to the beginning of the chain with a sl st, making a circle. Do not twist! Sc around chain, put in stitch marker. You are now working in the round.

R2-5: Sc around (25)

R6: Dec 1, sc 12, dec 1, sc to end of round (23) R7: Sc around (23)

R8: Dec 1, sc 11, dec 1, sc to end of round (21) R9: sc around (21)

R10: Dec 1, sc 9, dec 1, sc to end of round (19)

R11: Dec 1, sc 4, dec 1, sc 4, dec 1, sc 5 (16)

R12: Sc around (16)

R13: (Dec 1, sc 2) around (12)

R14: (Dec 1, sc 1) around (8)

R15: Sc around (8)

R16: Dec around (4)

Sew hole closed, weave in ends.

 

 

Arms

F hook, start with tan yarn

R1: 6 sc in magic circle

R2: 2sc in each st around (12)

Change to brown yarn

R3-4: Sc around (12)

Change to white yarn

R5: Dec 1, sc around (11)

R6: Dec 1, sc around (10)

R7: Dec 1, sc around (9)

R8: Dec 1, sc around (8)

Change to green yarn

R9: Sc around (8)

R10: Dec 1, sc around (7)

R11: Sc around

Sl st, stuff, sew hole closed leaving long end for sewing

 

Hair

This method can be a bit difficult to understand if you are a beginner. If you find you can’t grasp it you can embroider the hair directly onto the head with yellow yarn. There are some great hair embroidery tutorials online if you choose to go that route.

F hook, yellow yarn

R1: Ch 21, turn, ch 2, skip 2, sc 1, ch 5, skip 5, sc 1, ch 6, skip 6, sc 1, ch 2, skip 2, sc 1. At this point it should look like this. See the four oval holes?

 

 

 

Starting in the first small oval, enter your hook on the outside of the piece. Start working the hole as if it was 4 stitches in the round. Sc all the way around the small hole. Do this for two rows. On the third row dec 1, sc 1, dec 1, sc 1 and sew up the hole. Cut the yarn.

 

Now move to the next chain circle of 12 stitches and join more yarn from your skein.

Again enter your hook on the outside of the piece and work the stitches in the round for one row. This piece of hair needs to have a curve in it like it’s being brushed to the side. To accomplish this: on one side of the hair do hdc and on the opposite side to sl st. See picture:

                                                           

For the side closest to the piece you’ve already worked do two hdc, and for the opposite side do 2 sl st. Do this on every row until the end, and don’t use these sections for the decreases. 

 

Back to the pattern: In this hole you’ve done one row in sc all the way around, now do another row of sc with the hdc’s and sl st’s described above on the edges. At the beginning of row 3, dec 1 in the front section and dec 1 in the back section. Don’t let them overlap with the hdc’s and sl st sections. Do this for the next 3 rows. Finish off, sew up hole.

 

For the next 10 stitch oval enter your hook from the outside and sc all the way around. For the next 3 rows, dec 1, sc 1. Finish off, sew up hole.

 

For the final small oval repeat what you did in the first oval. When it’s done it should something look like this. Do not stuff.

Assembly

Sew the hair securely onto the head and then attach the hat to overlap the hair a bit so he doesn’t end up with a bald spot.

 

 Sew the two arms on the bottom of the head at row 17, pointing outwards. Sew the belt flat against the blanket all the way around. Ideally it will go around in a square and the corners of the belt will match the flat sides of the blanket. See the picture for further clarification.

 

 

 

Now sew the head to the middle of the blanket with the face pointing toward one of the corners. 

Animal Crossing Figures 3D Prints! My process

In 2020 I got really, REALLY into the world of 3D printing. And that also happened to coincide with getting overly obsessed with Animal Crossing. 

I also found out last year that I have raging ADHD and hyperfocused obsessions are a big part of ADHD. This blog alone is a testament to that, I went HARD on crochet for awhile and got absolutely bored of it quite suddenly. I have many hobbies like that. I'm currently working on medication options but I also kind of like myself the way I am. I don't mind having a carousel of hobbies I cycle through intensely. It's also probably why this blog doesn't really have a cohesive theme, it's kind of whatever I'm feeling. But I'm not out to be a professional blogger or anything, I just like to share ideas and techniques I thought were neat at the time.

When Animal Crossing New Horizons came out I wanted to 3D print my favorite villager, Fauna. She is a super sweet deer who will make your heart bigger. Surprisingly, no one had yet made Animal Crossing figures that were 3D printable. I decided to give it a go myself. I downloaded the T-posed model from the mobile game Pocket Camp and set to work trying to pose it and make it 3D printable. Progress was slow. Just getting her arms from straight out to down felt impossible for a good while. 

I finally had a breakthrough with an old but free program called Sculptris, made forever ago by the makers of ZBrush. Through masking and the move tool I managed to pose her. I added a base and cut it in half in the stock 3D program with Microsoft and it actually printed on my printer. 

Clearly I needed to make more! I want everyone with access to a 3D printer to be able to print their favorite villager. 

I am pleased to say that it was a successful project, and almost every villager type is available on my Thingiverse and Cults3D accounts now. https://www.thingiverse.com/skelei/designs  https://cults3d.com/en/users/skelei

I printed almost all the models to make sure they worked. Some I've painted, some I've sanded and primed, and some I've just done some initial clean up. I have a few wooden boxes full of these figures and they aren't bringing joy to people just sitting in my house. I've decided to sell them off at a nice discount. The following will be a write up on how I process and paint my figures for anyone that buys an unfinished one from my Etsy store or prints one themselves.

First things first, why do I print the figures in two halves? Why don't I just print them as one piece? Well two reasons. First, the 3D printer makes removable, supporting structure for anything that overhangs. The arms and heads have a lot of this structure, so it has something to print on as it’s adding layers. When you remove this supporting material it leaves roughness and defects on the print. By cutting it in half and printing the flat side down, it vastly reduces the amount of support material necessary and results in a smoother finish. The second reason is strength. The thin places, like the legs and neck, are weak when printed as one piece. The printer adds material layer by tiny layer, horizontally, and that creates a weakness on the horizontal plane. Thin areas will crack and break along these lines with surprisingly little force. By making the horizontal plane vertical (by having the model lay sideways on the bed) it adds a lot more durability and strength to those small parts. Though that’s not to say it’s indestructible, I accidently dropped a figure and stepped on it and it was very sad to have to throw it in the recycling.

My models are printed, cleaned up with flush cutters, glued together with Loctite superglue, then the seam is filled with Perfect Plastic Putty. This putty is high quality and cost effective but water dissolvable, so it's not a good idea to dip the figure in water.

When glueing line up and glue the base first, and let dry. Then the head and the rest. That lets you correct for any warping.

Next steps are sanding and priming. You don’t have to sand if the layer lines and occasional rough spot of the print don’t bother you. Go ahead and throw on a coat of white primer and paint. But if you want a smoother result it’s time to sand. I use three grits of dry/wet sandpaper (gray type), 240, 500 and 1000. Start with the lower number (rougher) sandpaper. Scrub the figure down with special attention to the rougher spots. Then move to the next number, then the next. 

At this point you have two options. You can get a regular white primer (I use Krylon ColorMaxx White Primer) spray it (OUTSIDE) and then you’re good to paint it within a day. If, however, you’d like an even smoother surface, the next step is Rustoleum 2n1 Filler and Sandable Primer. Spray the figure, wait a few hours. Now get the sandpaper back out and put on a mask. Your covid mask is fine you just don’t want this stuff in your lungs. Go outside and use the sandpaper in the same order again. You can even get the sandpaper wet for even more smoothness. Just remember that the Perfect Plastic Putty Filler in the seam is water solvable so do be careful to not over wet those sections. Once that’s done you can spray it with a white primer and be ready to paint.

Acrylic paint is my go to for painting. The cheap craft paint from Walmart works fine and is the most cost effective. However, you must thin the paint with water. It will look chalky and bad if you slather it on at full thickness. I’ve painted many figures with cheap acrylic craft paint with fine results by thinning the paint to a milk-like consistency. If you want to get fancy with it and use paint meant for miniatures, I suggest Vallejo paint. More expensive but it is higher quality.

The important part to remember with painting is to build up in layers. Start with base colors. If your character is primarily blue, put on a thin coat of blue, let it dry completely, then add another layer. It really does pay off in the end. The number one mistake newbies make when painting miniatures is to add on paint too thick.

Add details at the end. You can thin the paint a little less for finishing details, think a honey-like consistency. Even if you make a mistake, you can always paint over it. Take your time.

Once you have the paint job how you like it, it is time to put a protective clear coat. Make sure all the acrylic paint is completely dry. I use ColorMaxx Crystal Clear Flat. This stuff pretty much melts down your paint and can even smooth out some imperfections. It is imperative you DO NOT touch it until it’s completely dry. It will rip all the paint off if you touch it early. I ruined a beloved project with this mistake and it still kind of hurts tbh.

Hope this is helpful and good luck!

Totoro Lovey Free Pattern

Hello everyone, hope you're all doing well. I recently decided to make my totoro pattern free, Enjoy :)

Materials Needed: 
Size F Crochet Hook (3.75mm) 
Size H Crochet Hook (5.00 mm) 
2.70mm Hook 
Grey, white and black worsted yarn 
White Crochet Thread 
2 9mm Safety Eyes 
Fiberfill 
Yarn needle 

Stitches and Abbreviations 
st – stitch 
ch- chain 
sc - single crochet 
dec - decrease 
dc – double crochet 
hdc – half-double crochet 
sl st - slip stitch 
f/o – finish off 

Note: For all pieces apart from the blanket section, do not connect rows. Once a row is finished go directly into the next row. It is worked in a spiral.

Ears - Make 2
Grey yarn

F hook 

R1: 4 sc in magic circle (4) 
R2: Sc around (4) 
R3: 2 sc, sc , 2 sc, sc 1(6) 
R4: 2 sc, sc 2, 2 sc, sc 2 (8) 
R5 -6 : Sc Around (8) 
R7: Dec 1, sc 2, dec 1, sc 2 (6) 
R8: Dec 1, sc 1, dec 1, sc 1 (4) 
F/o, leave long end for sewing 

Eyes - Make 2
White crochet thread 

2.70 mm hook 

R1: 6 sc in magic circle 
R2: 2 sc in each st around (12) 

Sl st, f/o, leave long end for sewing 

Head 
Grey Yarn 

F Hook 

R1: 6 sc in magic circle (6) 
R2: 2 sc in each st around (12)
R3: (2 sc, sc 1) around (18) 
R4: (2 sc, sc 2) around (24) 
R5: (2 sc, sc 3) around (30) 
R6: (2 sc, sc 4) around (36) 
R7: (2 sc, sc 5) around (42) 
R8-13: sc around (42) 
R14: (dec 1, sc 5) around (36) 
R15: (dec 1, sc 4) around (30) 
R16: (dec 1, sc 3) around (24) 
R17: (dec 1, sc 2 ) around (18) 
Sew ears on top of head at row 4 
Put safety eyes through the white circles and then attach between R10 and R11 
Sew around the white to attach 
Use black yarn to sew on nose at row 12 and whiskers beneath eyes 
Stuff firmly with fiber fill 
R18: (dec 1, sc 1) around (12) 
R19: Dec 1 around (6) 
F/O and sew up the hole 

Arms -Make 2 
Grey Yarn 

F Hook 

R1: 5 sc in magic circle (5) 
R2: 2 sc in each st around (10) 
R3-14: Sc around Stuff with fiberfill 
F/O and sew hole closed Leave long end to sew onto head Use black yarn to give him “claws” 

Blanket/Body 
Start with white yarn 

H Hook

You will connect rows on this section. You will need to ch 1 extra at the start of the magic circle to make room for the first dc. 
R1: (3 dc, 2 ch) four times in magic circle, join at the top of first dc with a sl st. Pull hole closed. *The dc’s are the sides of the square, the ch’s are the corners.

R2: Ch 2, turn, dc in the same stitch the chain is in. 5 dc into the corner (the corner being space made by the 2 ch on the previous row). Dc around doing 5 dc in each corner. Join with a sl st in the first dc of the round. 

Notes: Skip over the original ch 2 and put the sl stitch directly in the first dc to avoid a seam! 

Optional: For extra pointy corners make the 3rd dc of the corner a triple crochet stitch (tc) 

R3: Ch 2, turn, dc in each st across. At each corner do 5 dc in the middle stitch of the previous row’s 5 dc. 
R4-8: Repeat R3. Switch to grey yarn 
R9-14: Continue to repeat R3. Switch to black yarn 
R15: Sc around. At corners chain 2 and then continue to sc around. 
F/o, weave in ends

Assembly 
Sew the arms securely onto the bottom of the head at row 16, pointing outward. Sew the head onto the middle of the blanket, face pointed toward one of the corners. Sew upside down grey V’s onto the front of Totoro’s belly. 

Troubleshooting: Is a piece coming out way too small? I tend to crochet between medium and loose tension. If you crochet tight and things are coming out small you might want to move up a hook size or two. Also make sure you are using the right weight of yarn. This is written for worsted weight, if you are using something lighter it may affect the finished size. 

Hello again, it's 2019

According to Blogger my last post was in 2015. It's been awhile. I moved a couple of times since then but now I live in North Carolina. What have I been up to? I still crochet, though way less than I use to. Here is a bunny toy I made for my friend's baby. I really like how it turned out. I may post the pattern eventually.

 

Way back in 2013 my #1 favorite game of all time (Tales of Symphonia) was rereleased and my best friend and I had a small party in celebration. I handmade a paper chain of the characters as decoration. 

I bought a paper cutting machine (cricut) this year and decided to make it again. Super pleased with how it came out and thanks to the cutting machine my hand isn't aching for a week from the scissors. I've had a few requests come through since I posted the original to buy one, I went ahead and put it up in my etsy shop for anyone that loves that game as much as I do.

Here is what it looked like with all the pieces laid out before I glued them:

On Netflix there is a show called Miraculous Ladybug. I put it on to watch with my kindergartener and accidentally got completely hooked. I am not the target demographic but the main characters are so precious. I've become incredibly emotionally invested. I made another paper chain with the main Ladybug characters. I especially like Rena Rouge, the fox one. That one is up on my etsy as well. I have a ton of fun making these chains and I will probably be making more. I'm hoping to put up a video soon of the process.

I went back to school for my Computer Science degree. I'm about a year in and I love it. I also work at a programming school for children. I still do a lot of crafts and I'm going to resurrect my blog and include stuff I made with my cutting machine cause goodness, it can do a lot. I've changed the blog name to Forgotten Fox so you'll see a new banner roll out soon. I might even post some of my illustrations. Thanks for sticking with me. I'm making an Instagram soon and I'll post it when it's ready so we can all follow each other.

Edit: I made an Instagram it's @ForgottenFoxDesigns

Mabo Curry Buns - Tales of Zestiria

I’ve been playing through Tales of Zestiria and they make Mabo Curry Buns look soooo good that I had to try and make them. I decided to bake them but they could be steamed (more traditional) just as easily.

What you need:

Plastic wrap

Cookie sheet

Cooking spray

Mabo Tofu Sauce

S&B Curry Bricks

10 ounces Ground Pork

10 ounces Firm Tofu

Dinner Roll Dough (I found it in the frozen section)

Water

So first things first, if your roll dough is frozen you need to de-thaw it. I put it on cookie sheets covered for about two hours.

Once they are thawed, brown the meat and chop the tofu.

Dissolve two sections of the curry brick into ¾ a cup of water. (Put the other three sections away to make curry rice later. Curry rice? Dissolve them in 1 ½ cups of water and pour over rice.)

Stir until smooth.

Add Mabo Tofu sauce to the meat. Stir.

Add the curry sauce to the meat. Add ¼ cup of water. Stir.

Let simmer for 5 minutes. Add Tofu. (If you try it at this point and think it seems salty, don’t worry. The bread balances it out)

Simmer for three minutes then take off the heat.

Now to make the buns. Use a rolling pen to flatten a roll on some plastic wrap. My rolls were tiny, so I combined two for each bun.

Put in a couple of spoonfuls of the mabo curry.

Pull up the sides and pinch at the top.

Place on a greased cookie sheet. I made 5 buns and put the rest of the filling in the fridge to make more tomorrow. Also good with rice.

Once all the buns are filled, let them rest for about 5 minutes. Repinch in any areas that have come undone. Now place them in a 375 degree oven for 12-14 minutes.

Done! Mabo Curry buns! I recommend making these during the water trial because you are going to need something to make you love the game again.