The Yarnival of the Animals

Lately, I've been obsessed with ComplicatedKnots 's YouTube channel, where she shows you how to crochet these incredibly cute and easy (but impressive looking) dinosaurs. The triceratops is always a crowd favourite, and I just love the way she's designed the horns and collar. As you can see, I'm quite rubbish at sewing on limbs and I may have overstuffed the body a little bit. But I'm quite happy with the embroidery on the nails! Go give Complicated Knots some love on YouTube, she's got some amazing patterns out there. Including a Squirtle design that's just begging to be made <3

As part of my Jurassic Park obsession, I've been making some dino-amigurumi lately, and Complicated Knots on YouTube has made some terrific patterns for a variety of dinosaurs.  Her pterodactyl pattern is really amazing and requires no sewing, so that's a big plus for me! The wings curl up on their own because they are lined with sc stitches along the sides, but they're malleable enough to make different arrangements.  These would make for perfect gifts for a dino-obsessed child, but their equally cute just to make for yourself :-) Just look at its little snout!

 Another one of Complicated Knots ' brilliant dino-creations: the mighty T-rex. Although this one looks like he needs a cuddle ;-)  I had some difficulty with the puff stitch, I think this is more difficult to do neatly with cotton yarn (she uses acrylic, which is much more pliable). But they do add a lovely effect to his back. Without the dots, he would be quite plain. He's a little wonky on his feet, because i sewed those on while on a train, but you can manipulate them into different positions, which is cool. And finally, another show of his back, to show off those puff stitches that I just couldn't get right...But I would sooner throw out my hooks than switch to acrylic yarn!

 I re-watched the Jurassic Park films recently and wondered if anyone had made some good amigurumi patterns. And Complicated Knots on YouTube definitely has! She has made a range of different dino types, and all for free <3 The ankylosaur has long been my favourite, possibly because it's basically a weaponised armadillo. I have a weakness for animals that are built for defense (turtles rule) and the ankylosaur just takes this concept to the next level. The use of what Complicated Knots calls the waffle stitch for the armour is simply inspired and it made me fall in love with the front and backpost dc, a type of crocheting I had mostly avoided up to now. 

This cute little triceratops is made from a free pattern made by Club Crochet. Apart from the horns, the whole body is made all in one go. You can find a video of the pattern on YouTube ( https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=triceratops+crochet ).  This amigurumi is made of some scrap DK polyester yarn with a 3.0mm hook and 6mm black safety eyes.