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katsu, the ninja squirrel

Published on August 30, 2011 in crochet, patterns & tutorials and plush. 12 Comments

Last week I mentioned making a ninja squirrle, Katsu, for


my sister. Finally written up a pattern, so you can make
your own ninja too! :D
And unlike most squirrel plush, Katsu is grey. Because most
squirrels in Toronto are actually grey, charcoal, or black,
(and on extremely rare occasion,white!) but not brown.

Alright, heres the pattern

I used:
Patons Shetland Chunky Charcoal
3.75mm hook

Bit of black craft felt for the satchel

Two 4mm glass beads for eyes

Star confetti for ninja stars

Straight pins, tapestry needle, sewing needle, black thread

Stuffing (I used bits of scrap yarn)

A note on yarn and hook: I used Shetland Chunky


because thats what I have. Other chunky or heavy worsted
weight yarn would do. Or one could probably substitute
with a worsted weight yarn, but may have to use a 3.5mm
hook instead. I like to have a fairly tight gauge when
crocheting plush, so it would keep its shape.
A note on pattern: I like to crochet while watching TV and
I dont like to count stitches. So what I started to do is
repeating the same stitch (or set of stitches) around and
around until the pieces gets to a certain length. As such,
the pattern is written in steps rather than in rows. I find
that easier, and I hope it works for you too. But if you need
clarification please feel free to leave a comment or contact
me. Id be more than happy to connect with you :D

Katsu is very small (about 2.5 inches tall) so it helps if one


is familiar with crocheting in the round on a small scale. The
upside is, because hes so small there are not very many
stitches involved and so it doesnt take very long :D
The stitches involved are:
chain (ch)
sc (single crochet)
sl st (slip stitch)
2 sc tog (work 2 single crochet stitches together)

Here it goes

HEAD:

Step 1: ch 3, 5 sc in 3rd ch from hook, sl st in top of


beginning ch.

Step 2: ch 1, [2 sc in next sc, sc in next sc] for 2 rounds.


(So youd see 3 rows of stitches altogether all around.)

Step 3: sc in each sc until piece measures 1 from


beginning.

Step 4: 2 sc tog until there are 5 sc left, sl st in next sc,


leaving a 6 tail, fasten off.

Stuff head, weave tail in the 5 stitches around the opening


and pull taunt, tie off.

*Head position: beginning of step 1 = nose, tie off = back


of head
EARS:

Leaving a 4 tail, ch 3, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, leaving a


4 tail, fasten off.

Position ears on head. Using crochet hook, pull tails, one at


a time, through the head and out through adjacent stitches
at the bottom of the head.

Tie tails at the bottom of the head.


Repeat for the other ear.

MASK:

Cut a small strip of black felt and pin it to head with straight
pins to determine position of eyes. I happen to have
straight pins with black bead pinheads, which make perfect
stand-ins for eyes.
Take mask off head. Note where the pin holes mark the
eyes, and cut the holes bigger with an Exacto knife.

Trim the mask between the eyes and bottom left and right
to create a more mask-like shape.

Sew mask to head, then sew on eyes and embroider


nose/mouth. Head is complete! :D
Now we move on to the body

BODY, LEGS & ARMS: (all made in one piece)

Step 1: ch 10, sl st in 1st ch to form a ring. 1 sc in each ch


around.

Step 2: sc in 1st sc, continue to work 1 sc in each sc for 2


rounds. (So youd see 3 rows of stitches altogether.)

Step 3: 2 sc in next sc, 1 sc in each of the next 4 sc, 2 sc in


next sc, then 1 sc in each sc until piece measures 1 1/4.

Youll get a tube shape. Flatten the tube for the following
steps.

Step 4 (leg): ch 4, sc in 2nd st from hook, 1 sc in each of


next 2 ch, sc in the stitch beside where the ch 4 of leg
began.
Step 5: Crocheting through both front and back piece of
body, sl st in each of the next 4 sc.

Step 6 (other leg): ch 4, sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 sc in


each of the next 2 ch, sl st in next closest stitch of body.
Step 7: sl st up the side of body until 3rd last round before
neck.

(Begin arm) ch 4, sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 sc in each of


next 2 ch, sl st in next sc of body.

Step 8: sl st across neck opening in front layer ONLY.


(Begin other arm) ch 4, sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 sc in
each of next 2 ch, sl st in next sc of body. Sl st down the
side of body until beginning of leg. Fasten off.

Stuff body through neck opening. Sew head to body.

Squirrels cannot stand on their own without their big fluffy


tails. To make tail:

Wind yarn around 4 fingers 7 times.


Cut yarn. Take yarn loops off hand while keep the loops.
Thread a needle through one of the yarn tails while keeping
the other yarn tail free. Wrap yarn tail through the loops,
like so

Bunch the loops together and wrap yarn tail around the
bunch of yarn loops, like so
Tie the two tails together. With the needle still threaded,
pin the tail to the squirrel :D and secure with a few stitches.

Cut all the yarn loops open. Fray the individual strands of
yarn. Then gently roll the tail between palms.

Tail complete! :D
To make Satchel, where ninja squirrels keep their ninja
stars:
I cut from black felt these pieces

Then I sewed 3 sides of the rectangle to the belted part,


leaving the top open. Then I just put it on Katsu and pinned
the back together with a tiny safety pin.

Heres Katsu with his satchel


The pattern for the coconut, if youre interested, is part of
the pina colada pattern. (Wonder what the coconut is doing
here? Full story in last weeks post.)

Aiming at target
Hi-YA!

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