Dinosaur Lovey

I can't get over how cute this dino lovey turned out! It was my first time crocheting eyes for a stuffed animal, and honestly, it wasn't as difficult as I expected. There was so much detail put into the face of this toy that it took me awhile to complete (I lost motivation a couple times), but it's finally finished. I'm planning on gifting this one at Christmas to my nephew. I will definitely be making another one (or two!) of these little dinos in the future! They're just too cute!

Materials:

• Medium green yarn (#4 medium weight)

• White yarn (#4 medium weight)

• Black yarn (#4 medium weight)

• Dark brown yarn (#4 medium weight)

• 5mm crochet hook

• Crochet needle

• Poly-fil stuffing

• Scissors

• Stitch marker (optional)

Instructions:

The Head (green yarn)

Chain 4. Slip stitch.

Round 1: Single crochet (SC) increase every stitch.

Round 2: Increase every 2nd stitch.

Round 3: Increase every 3rd stitch.

Round 4: Increase every 4th stitch.

Round 5: Increase every 5th stitch.

Round 6: Increase every 6th stitch.

Round 7: Increase every 7th stitch.

Round 8: SC all.

Round 9: SC all.

Round 10: SC all.

Round 11: SC all.

Round 12: SC all.

Round 13: Decrease every 7th stitch.

Round 14: Decrease every 6th stitch.

Round 15: Decrease every 5th stitch.

Round 16: Decrease every 4th stitch.

Round 17: Decrease every 3rd stitch. Start to stuff with poly-fil.

Round 18: Decrease every 2nd stitch.

Round 19: Finish stuffing. Close.

The Snout (green yarn)

Chain 4. Slip stitch.

Round 1: SC increase every stitch.

Round 2: Increase every 2nd stitch.

Round 3: Increase every 3rd stitch.

Round 4: SC all.

Round 5: SC all.

Round 6: SC all.

Stuff, then stitch onto the front of the head with a crochet needle and green yarn.

Ridges for the top of the head (green yarn)

Chain 18. Turn work.

Slip stitch.

Skip 1 stitch.

Double crochet (DC) 5.

Skip 1 stitch.

Slip stitch.

Skip 1 stitch.

Double crochet (DC) 5.

Skip 1 stitch.

Slip stitch.

Skip 1 stitch.

Double crochet (DC) 5.

Skip 1 stitch.

Slip stitch.

Skip 1 stitch.

Double crochet (DC) 5.

Skip 1 stitch.

Chain 1. Cut yarn and knot to finish .

Using your crochet needle, sew the head ridges onto the top of the head.

The Eyes (black yarn, white for detail)

Chain 3. Slip stitch.

Round 1: SC increase every stitch.

Round 2: Slip stitch all the way around. This gives the eye a smoother edge.

Chain 1, cut and knot to finish. Leave a long tail for sewing onto the face later.

Take a small piece of white yarn and stitch a small line onto the black eye piece. This will add detail to the eye.

Repeat process for the second eye.

Sew both eyes onto the face of the dinosaur.

The Horns (white yarn)

Magic circle.

4 SC in magic circle.

Slip stitch all the way around.

Repeat this process for the other two horns.

Sew all horns onto the head of the dinosaur.

The Arms (green yarn)

Chain 4. Slip stitch.

Round 1: SC increase every stitch.

Round 2: Increase every 2nd stitch.

Round 3-9: SC all.

Round 10: Decrease every 3rd stitch.

Round 11: SC all.

Chain 1, cut, and knot to finish. Leave a long tail for stitching later.

Repeat this process for the second arm. Fill with stuffing.

The Blanket (green, white, and dark brown yarn)

Chain 4. Connect with slip stitch.

Round 1-11: Granny stitch. (DC 3, Ch. 1, DC 3, etc.) Alternate between green and white, switching colors after each round.

Round 12: Switch to dark brown yarn. Granny stitch.

Chain 1, cut and knot to finish.

Use the crochet needle to sew/stitch the head and arms onto the center of the blanket.

**You can sew a flannel lining on the underside of the blanket part if you want. I had to hand stitch it on, as the material was too thick for my sewing machine to handle.

This turned out so cute!