Today I finished making a pink bear lovey for my friend’s daughter. I tried three different patterns before I finally ended up loosely basing the design on one, but modifying it heavily, so I’m going to post the pattern I came up with here. Every pattern I tried yielded a cute animal head that could have easily been either a bear…or a pig, because of the pink yarn I used. I think pigs are cute, but my friend had specifically requested a pink bear! So I had to basically make up my own pattern to make sure it was at least a bit more obviously a bear than a pig.
Pink Bear Lovey
Terms/Abbreviations:
Sc: Single Crochet
Dc: Double Crochet
St: Stitch
Inc: Increase—2 sc in the same stitch
Dec: Decrease—1 sc across two stitches. I use the invisible decrease method (you can easily find tutorials on YouTube).
Ch: Chain
Sl st: Slip stitch
Sk: Skip
FO: Fasten off
You will need:
Size G/4mm crochet hook (for bear)
Size I/5.5mm crochet hook (for “blanket”)
yarn in main (MC) and contrasting colors (CC) for the bear (head and ears/snout), lovey border, and circle (I used pink (MC) and beige (CC) worsted weight yarn)
yarn for the lovey (I used Bernat Pipsqueak yarn in Tickled Pink)
embroidery thread for the nose (I used brown)
safety eyes (or you can use buttons, or embroider eyes if making for a baby or toddler–see Pattern Notes)
yarn needle
stuffing
Pattern Notes:
It is recommended that toys for babies and toddlers should not have plastic eyes, which could potentially become choking hazards if they are pulled loose. If your lovey will be used by someone under 2 years old, please embroider eyes using embroidery thread or yarn. For more information on these guidelines, please visit https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/safetoys-young.html .
The head, nose, and ears are very loosely based on this pattern: http://www.sewrella.com/the-cuddliest-crochet-bear-lovey/.
For my loveys, I make a small circle to attach the blanket and the head together in a neat way. I crochet the circle and sew it to the underside of the blanket and the underside of the head.
Bear’s Head
Using MC, work in a spiral in continuous rounds.
R1: 8sc in magic circle (8)
R2: inc around (16)
R3: *1sc, inc* Repeat around (24)
R4: *1sc in next two sts, inc* Repeat around (32)
R5: *1sc in next three sts, inc* Repeat around (40)
R6-13: sc in each st around (40)
Attach safety eyes between rows 6 and 7, about 6 or 7 sts apart, if using. Otherwise, eyes can be embroidered or sewn on after bear head is stuffed.
R14: *dec, sc in next three sts* Repeat around (32)
R15: *dec, sc in next two sts* Repeat around (24)
R16: *dec, sc in next st* Repeat around (16)
R17: sc in each st around (16)
R18: dec around (8).
Sl st to join. Leave a long tail for sewing to “blanket.”
Stuff lightly. (I used about 3 big palmfuls of stuffing.) Sew hole closed lightly before sewing to blanket.
Bear’s Snout
Using CC, work in a spiral in continuous rounds.
R1: 6sc in magic circle (6)
R2: inc around, sl st to join. FO leaving a long tail. (12)
Using embroidery thread or yarn and a yarn needle, embroider nose and mouth in desired style onto snout before sewing the snout onto the head.
Sew snout onto center of bear’s head, in between safety eyes. Top of snout should be around row 7 (middle of eyes).
Bear’s Ears (make two)
Using CC, work in a spiral in continuous rounds.
R1: 4 sc in magic ring. (4)
R2: inc around (8)
R3: *sc, inc* Repeat around (12)
R4-5: sc in each st around (12)
R6: sl st the last round closed by squishing it flat (sts should line up)
Finish off leaving a long tail and sew onto the body. Tops of bear’s ears should be around row 3.
“Blanket”
Using your choice of blanket yarn, work in rows. Make your starting chain as long as you want one side of the square or rectangle to be.
R1: Ch 30 sts. Ch 1, turn.
R2-3: Sc in ea st, ch 1 and turn at end of row.
R4-18: Dc in ea st, ch 2 and turn at end of row.
R19-20: Sc in ea st, ch 1 and turn at end of row. FO and weave in ends, or crochet border around edge.
“Blanket” border
R1: Sc in ea st around the edge.
R2: Shell edging: ch1, sc in first st, *sk 1 st, 5 dc in next st, sk 1 st, 1 sc in next st. Rep from * around. FO and weave in ends.
Shell technique can be found here: https://www.craftsy.com/crocheting/article/5-crochet-edges-you-should-know/
Bottom Circle
Using CC, work in a spiral in continuous rounds.
R1: 6sc in magic circle (6)
R2: inc around (12)
R3: *1sc, inc* Repeat around (18)
R4: *2sc, inc* Repeat around (24)
FO end, tie to other tail and hide behind circle when it is sewn to blanket.
Assembly
Sew ears and snout to head. Sew head, blanket, and circle together. Pin in place before sewing to ensure the head is centered and facing the way you want.
Please feel free to sell the lovey(s) you’ve made, but please credit Crafty Reason and link back to the pattern here if you do so. Also, leave me a comment if you notice anything wrong with the pattern–I am still getting used to writing patterns that other people need to follow.
~Crafty Reba
**New!! This pattern is now also available on Ravelry. You can purchase a PDF of the pattern there if you would like your own formatted copy.
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