Little Oombawkas | Mini Meow CAL Part 2
When you purchase through links on my site, I may earn an affiliate commission.
Here’s how it works.
Little Oombawkas
Mini Meow CAL Part 2
make your own little toy amigurumi cat
Part 2
If you are joining us for the first time, please read the Introduction Post.
Resources and Things You Can Do To Get Ready
- Add this CAL to your Ravelry Queue and join the Crochet with Us Ravelry Group
- Creat a Project Page on Ravelry
- Share your progress on Instagram using #MiniMeowCAL2015
- Join the Crochet With Us Group on Facebook for assistance with the CAL – it is a lovely group filled with helpful and caring Crocheters who are happy to help each other.
Supplies
Hook: 5.5 mm (I)
Yarn: Bernat Softee Chunky (Super Bulky 6) 108 yards for 1 cat (you can use multiple colors if you wish!)
Eyes: 12 mm safety eyes
- Stuffing (Polyfil/Fiberfil)
- Dog, or Cat, Wire Brush
- stitch marker – I use locking stitch markers (safety pin will work) – you do not want the stitch marker to fall out when you are brushing the cat!
- scissors, yarn needle and embroidery thread for the nose (or lighter weight yarn)
Abbreviations
U.S. Terminology Used
Ch – chain
hdc – half double crochet
R- round
rem – remaining
rep – repeat
sc – single crochet
sc2tog – single crochet 2 stitches together (this is worked over 2 stitches to decrease from 2 stitches to 1 stitch)
sk – skip
sl st – slip stitch
st(s) – stitch(es)
* – Repeat the instructions between the asterisks the number of times indicated. This repeat will contain multiple instructions.
( ) – Repeat the instructions between the parentheses the number of times indicated.
[ ] – The total number of stitches in the round.
Helpful Tutorials
sc2tog – single crochet 2 together – *Insert hook into the next st, yarn over and pull up 1 loop**. Repeat from * to ** 2 times. You now have 2 loops on your hook. Yarn over the hook and pull through all 3 loops to complete the sc2tog stitch.
Notes
- Gauge is not important just be sure to make tight stitches so very little space is showing between them. If there are holes in your work you need to drop a hook size to make your stitches even tighter. Otherwise, the polyfil will show through the finished toy.
Pattern Instructions
Click here to go to Part 1 (R1 to R12)
Little Oombawka Body Continued
R13: *1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, 2 sc in the next st**. Rep from * to ** 4 times. [20]
R14: 1 sc in each st around [20]
R15: *1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, sc2tog over the next 2 sts**. Rep from * to ** 4 times. [16]
R16: *1 sc in the next st, sc2tog over the next 2 sts**. Rep from * to ** 5 times; 1 sc in the last st. [11]
Time to Brush Your Kitty!
Now – stuff your cat with fiberfil.
R17: *1 sc in the next st, sc2tog over the next 2 sts**. Rep from * to ** 3 times; sc2tog over the last 2 sts. [7]
R18: *sc2tog over the next 2 sts**. Rep from * to ** 2 times. 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts. [5]
Add more stuffing!
Cut a 6 inch tail of yarn and thread it on a yarn needle. Weave the needle in and out through the last 5 sts.
Pull the yarn end to tighten it. This will close the end of the cat’s body.
Hide the yarn end inside the cat -I like to sew it through the stuffing a couple times before taking the needle off the yarn end.
You can brush the last few rounds of stitches now but please do so carefully. As we have stuffed it you can accidently pull the fiberfil out between the stitches with the wire bristles of the pet brush. If this happens – do not worry too much! You have a few options. One option is you can carefully trim the excess fiberfil with scissors and the other is you can use a pen or the end of you crochet hook to poke the stuffing back inside the cat.
Now put your cat’s body aside (sounds so strange to write that down!) and let’s work on the ears.
Ears (make 2)
With any crochet project where you need to make matching pieces I highly recommend doing so in the same sitting. If you only have time to make 1 – I suggest putting the project aside until you have time to crochet both. This will increase the likelihood that your crochet gauge will be the same for both pieces.
R1: Leave a 6 inch tail of yarn and ch 4.
Work 1 sc in the 2nd ch from the hook, 1 hdc in the next ch; 1 sc in the last ch. Finish off and leave a 6 inch tail of yarn.
Now we need to get the finishing yarn end back to the bottom right corner of the ear.
Position the ears where you would like them to be on the cat’s head. It may help you to see what the ears on a cat look like when you are positioning them. You can take a look here at some of the images on my sister’s site for the cats she breeds and after which this pattern was designed. They have flatter faces and the ears are in a slightly different spot on the head than regular house cats.
Once you have the ears positioned where you want them you can either using pins to keep them in place or simply use the yarn ends and work one stitch on each side to hold their positions temporarily until you sew them in permanently. I use this second method as I have stabbed myself with the pins a few too many times and it really hurts!
When you are sewing the ear to the head, hold the ear securely to the head and pull the yarn snuggly. The yarn is very strong and the more secure you can sew it down the better it will stay. I stitch around the loops and posts of the stitches as much as possible (just in case I need to remove the ear and sew it back on again – it makes it easier to do so if you do not break the yarn strands with the needle and have the yarn become tangled inside itself.). Once you think you have the ear in place give it a pull and see if it is sturdy. If it is then you can finish off and weave the ends in throughout the body of the cat. I like to leave a long yarn tail inside the cat in case the ear becomes loose and one day I need to tack it back in place.
I do not brush the ears as much as I brush the rest of the cat because the hair is generally shorter on the ears than it is on the body of the cat.
Haircut Time!
Repeat for the second ear.
Now brush the base of the ear and the head where they are joined until it looks like the rest of the cat. Remember to be careful around the face as the eyes will be damaged if the wire bristles from the brush touch it.
Hopefully your kitty is starting to look a little bit more like a cat!
Remember to share your photos on Instagram with #MiniMeowCAL2015 and Create a Project Page on Ravelry!
to be continued…
