He and his brothers and sisters went running in every direction while I stood there hollering for my husband. As hubby came out of his workshop, one of the babies ran past his feet and right into his garage.
There is no food or water or mommy bunnies in the garage, so obviously, we couldn't let him stay in there. The next half hour was spent trying to coax him out from behind a few sheets of plywood leaning against the wall and into a cardboard box.
Did you know that baby bunnies are not all that cooperative? LOL. Thirty minutes and two exhausted adults later, we put the box near his nest and left him to find his way back into his hole.
So while live baby bunnies are cute as can be, I decided I prefer a less mobile version of this adorable animal. I saw some instructions for how to make a stuffed bunny from a knitted square and wondered if I could make a crocheted version. Here is the results of my experiment.
It was really easy to make. Here's some quick instructions if you'd like to give it a try.
I used Lion Brand's Heartland Yarn in color Grand Canyon because the mix of grays and tans seemed kinda bunny colored and because I had a skein in my stash. While the wrapper on the skein recommended a J hook, I opted to go a little smaller and use an I hook (5.5 mm) because I wanted the stitches to be tight. This pattern uses the moss stitch, a nice, tight stitch that is textured and reversible.
I started by chaining 31.
Row 1: Sl st in the third ch from the hook (The first two ch count as a starting hdc). [hdc in the next ch, sl st in the next ch]. Repeat between [ ] across.
Row 2: Ch 2 (counts as first hdc), skip the first sl st, sl in the top of the next hdc. [Hdc in the next sl st. Sl st in the next hdc.] Repeat between [ ] across ending with a sl st in the top of the starting ch 2.
Repeat Row 2 until the height of the square matches the width. The easiest way to determine whether the dimensions match is to fold your square on the diagonal.
If it is square, it will fold into a perfect triangle with the sides lining up evenly. If you have an overhang on one side, you need a few more rows (or a few less if you went too far).
Then I followed the instructions that were given for the knitted bunny I saw on Pinterest.
Cut a piece of yarn about 36" long and thread a yarn needle. Hand stitch a loose basting stitch straight across the middle of the square.
Then turn 45 degrees and baste up to the middle of the top edge, then back down to where you started. This forms a triangle. I hope the picture below will help demonstrate the concept.
Begin pulling the ends of the basting strings to form a "pocket" from the triangle you just created with your basting stitches. Take a little piece of stuffing and tuck it inside the triangle section. Pull your strings tight, enclosing this section. Doing this creates the head and ears of your bunny.
Tie your yarn ends into a tight double knot to secure the stitches. Thread your needle onto the longer end of the string. You will need at least 18 inches of yarn to stitch with comfortably.
Now to give your baby bunny a body. Focusing on the unworked portion of the square, align the two loose edges of the square and whip stitch them together to form a tube.
Then baste around the edge of the tube so you can draw it up like a drawstring. Grab more stuffing and tuck it inside, then pull the tube end tight and secure it. Weave in your ends.
Add a pom pom for a tail and you have a darling bunny baby! These would make great stocking stuffers or a cute addition to an Easter basket.
