When I was little there was a gift shop in my hometown that sold lots of little stuffed animals. They had some that turned inside out to turn into something else; I remember a caterpillar that turned into a butterfly, and some eggs that "hatched" into little birds. I loved those things! I made my own version, easy to crochet, that will be a perfect Easter springtime gift.
* This pattern was originally written for Michaels.com.
Easter Basket Babies
by
Allison Hoffman, craftyiscool.com
On one
side, a colorful trio of eggs rest in a soft bed of Easter grass. Push the eggs
through to the other side, flip it over, and three sweet Easter babies are
hatched!
Materials List
Loops
& Threads "Impeccable" – Aqua (A, 1 skein), Lavender (B, 1
skein), & White (C, 1 skein)
Loops
& Threads "Impeccable Ombre" -- Luxury (D, 1 skein)
Loops
& Threads "Charisma Baby" -- Yellow (E, 1 skein)
Martha
Stewart Crafts "Glitter Eyelash" -- Peridot (F, 2 skeins) *I believe this is discontinued but green fur/eyelash yarn is available from other brands
Crochet
Hooks, Sizes 3.5mm (US E/4) and 4mm (US G/6)
Tapestry
Needle
Black,
Pink, White DMC Embroidery Floss (1 skein each)
Embroidery
Needle
Blue,
white, and orange felt
Craft
glue
Pink
blush
Notes:
The
pieces are all crocheted in the round in unjoined spirals. Use a locking stitch
marker if necessary to mark the beginning of each round. When you complete a
round, move the marker to the loop on your hook and continue crocheting.
Egg (Make three; one each with yarns A, B, and D)
With
yarn and E hook, make an adjustable ring, ch 1, sc 6 into ring. Pull tail
gently to close ring.
Rnd 1:
Work 2 sc into each st (12 sts)
Rnd 2:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 4 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (15 sts)
Rnd 3:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 5 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (18 sts)
Rnd 4:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 6 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (21 sts)
Rnd 5:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 7 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (24 sts)
Rnds
6-13 Sc into each st around.
Rnd 14:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 5 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (18 sts)
Rnd 15:
Sc into each st around.
Fasten
off, leaving a long strand of yarn for sewing. Set aside.
Chick (Make two with yarn E)
With
yarn and E hook, make an adjustable ring, ch 1, sc 6 into ring. Pull tail gently
to close ring.
Rnd 1:
Work 2 sc into each st (12 sts)
Rnd 2:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next st), rep from * to end of rnd (18 sts)
Rnds
3-5: Sc into each st.
Rnd 6:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 4 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (15 sts)
Rnd 7:
Sc into each st.
Rnd 8:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 4 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (18 sts)
Rnd 9:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 2 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (24 sts)
Rnd 10:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 7 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (27 sts)
Rnds
11-12: Sc into each st.
Rnd 13:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 7 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (24 sts)
Rnd 14:
Sc into each st.
Fasten
off, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Cut two tiny circles from blue felt, two
slightly larger circles from white felt. Layer the blue and white circles for
eyes and sew onto Chick with a tiny stitch (or French knot) of white or black embroidery
floss. Glue an orange triangle onto Chick for a beak. Set Chicks aside.
Bunny Body (Make one with yarn C)
With
yarn and E hook, make an adjustable ring, ch 1, and sc 6 into ring. Pull tail
gently to close ring.
Rnds
1-8: Repeat pattern for Chick, ending up with 18 sts at the end of Rnd 8.
Rnd 9:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 5 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (21 sts)
Rnd 10:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 6 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (24 sts)
Rnds
11-14: Sc into each st around.
Rnd 15:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 6 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (21 sts)
Rnd 16:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 5 sts), rep from * to end of rnd (18 sts)
Fasten
off and leave a long tail.
Cut two
tiny circles from blue felt, two slightly larger circles from white felt. Layer
the blue and white circles for eyes and sew onto Bunny with a tiny stitch (or
French knot) of white embroidery floss.
Stitch
an elongated X onto the Bunny's face with black embroidery floss for nose and
mouth. Stitch tiny straight stitches at the edges for an upturned smile. Fill
in the top of the X with satin stitch in pink embroidery floss. Set Bunny
aside.
Bunny Ears (Make two with C)
With
yarn and E hook, make an adjustable ring, ch 1, and sc 3 into ring. Pull tail
gently to close ring.
Rnd 1:
Work 2 sc into each st around (6 sts)
Rnds
2-6: Sc into each st.
Rnd 7:
Sc2tog around (3 sts)
Fasten
off and leave a long tail for sewing. Flatten Ears and sew to Bunny on the top
of his head. Fill in inside of Bunny's Ears with pink blush.
Bunny Arms (Make two with C)
With
yarn and E hook, make an adjustable ring, ch 1, and sc 6 into ring. Pull tail
gently to close ring.
Rnds
1-4: Sc into each st.
Fasten
off and leave a long tail for sewing. Flatten Arms and sew to the front of
Bunny. Stuffing is not necessary.
Nest (Make one with F)
With
yarn F and G hook, ch 48, keeping stitches loose. Join with a sl st into the
first ch to form a ring.
Rnd 1:
Sc into each st around (48 sts)
Rnd 2:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 7 sts), rep from * around (54 sts)
Rnd 3:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 8 sts), rep from * around (60 sts)
Rnd 4:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 9 sts), rep from * around (66 sts)
Rnd 5:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 10 sts), rep from * around (72 sts)
Rnd 6:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 11 sts), rep from * around (78 sts)
Rnd 7:
*(2 Sc into next st, sc into next 12 sts), rep from * around (84 sts)
Rnds
8-9: Sc into each st around.
Rnd 10:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 12 sts), rep from * around (78 sts)
Rnd 11:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 11 sts), rep from * around (72 sts)
Rnd 12:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 10 sts), rep from * around (66 sts)
Rnd 13:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 9 sts), rep from * around (60 sts)
Rnd 14:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 8 sts), rep from * around (54 sts)
Rnd 15:
*(Sc2tog, sc into next 7 sts), rep from * around (48 sts)
Fasten
off, leaving a long tail. Flatten the tube you've just created. Thread the tail
onto a yarn needle and sew the first and last rounds together. Weave in ends.
Assembly
Sew
each Egg to a Chick or Bunny, lining up the bottom row of each piece, stitch to
stitch. No stuffing is necessary. Weave in ends.
Line up
the seam of the Egg/Bunny with the inside edge of the Nest. Using a strand of
white yarn C and a yarn needle, sew along the front of the Egg/Bunny, stitching
it to the edge of the nest, for 12 sts. Weave in ends. Repeat for the remaining
Egg/Chicks, using yellow yarn E, evenly spaced around the inner edge of the
Nest. Chicks may be facing forward with the Bunny or they can all face outward.
For a
Nest full of eggs, push each Chick and the Bunny up into the Eggs, stuffing
them. To "hatch", invert the Nest and pull out the Chicks and Bunny,
stuffing the Egg into them.
Abbreviations
Ch:
Chain
Sc:
Single Crochet
St:
Stitch
Rnd:
Round
Rep:
Repeat
Sc2tog:
Single Crochet 2 stitches Together
Techniques
Adjustable
ring: Make a ring with yarn. Insert hook into ring, yarn over and draw up a
loop. Ch 1, as directed in pattern. Work the stitches required in pattern into
the ring. When complete gently, but firmly, pull tail to close up the ring.
