I was looking for a project to use up some leftover acrylic worsted. As soon as I saw this pattern, I knew it would be perfect. I have a real soft spot for stuffies that don't require a lot of sewing together. And although the polar bear was adorable, I saw no reason it wouldn't do for a black bear. And I had the perfect recipient in mind.
I cast on in September.
Soon all four legs were stuffed and joined to the tummy section, and the body formed swiftly. Then I ran out of yarn and had to order another skein, which is mildly annoying since now I have leftover acrylic worsted again, but that's a problem for future me. At least I knew it would stand.
The new skein finally arrived and despite being a different dye lot, there wasn't a noticeable difference, so I proceeded to make the head. Then, on to the face -- and here things went seriously astray. I had a little black animal nose, which attached the same way safety eyes do. But it was out-of-proportion small to the eyes I had chosen, plus I put it in the wrong place. I got the eyes in the right spot, but there's some sculpting that goes on to form the muzzle and eyes, and by now I was completely off my game. The more I tweaked it, the worse it looked, in the tradition of some famous plastic surgeries. Finally I gave up and took everything apart back to the beginning of knitting the muzzle.
This time I opted for an embroidered nose, swapped for a slightly different eye size, and sculpted with a gentle hand.
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| Before |
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| After (it's subtle) |
I added the little ears and tail, and he was ready to present to the family's newest fan of Long Lake.
Needles: US 4 (3.5mm)
Yarn: Knit Picks Mighty Stitch in Black
Pattern: Lorraine Pistorio's Polar Bear Cub (five stars, will probably make again)
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