You can go through all those posts now, or just hop to them as you get to those points in the pattern – whatever works best for you!
Yarn
This pattern can be used with any weight yarn. The sample is crocheted with worsted weight yarn to make a 3-inch tall pumpkin with a 10-inch vine. You can use thicker yarn/a bigger hook to make a bigger pumpkin, and thinner yarn/a smaller hook to make a smaller pumpkin.
Materials
Size H crochet hook (or size needed to get a tight fabric)
two 12mm black animal eyes
tapestry needle
1/2 cup plastic poly pellets
nylon knee high
yarn
Stitch into the Back
All stitches in this pattern (that are worked in the round) are worked through the back loop only, unless otherwise directed. Look at this picture.
See how one loop is highlighted in black? This is the back loop, and it’s what you’ll stitch into. Stitching into the back loop creates ridges on the right side of the piece.
Want to see crocheting through the back loop in action? Check out this blog post. It talks all about why Stacey crochets through the back loop and even has a handy dandy video showing how to find that loop.
Recently I’ve been looking for a different way to close my amigurumi. Slipstitching across the opening works just fine, but sometimes it leaves a pointier top than I would like. I wanted something that was more consistently smooth.
After a bunch of experimentation, I decided on a new method where I close up the top like a drawstring bag. It works really well – and it’s super easy!
Here’s how to do it.
See how easy that is?
Here are handy links to all the posts about closing up the stuffing opening and fastening off in amigurumi. . .
I wanted him to have spiky little bumps all over his back and head so I used a modification of a picot stitch to crochet picot bumps. Picot stitch is usually used as an edge treatment, but in this video I show how you can use it within the body of an amigurumi. It’s an easy and fun way to add texture!
See how easy that is? You can use this technique to add a spiky, bumpy texture to any amigurumi.
Have fun with it!
Here are handy links to all the posts teaching more fancy crochet stitches. . .
Choose any of my square applique patterns. They’re all designed to finish at 10 inches, so they’ll all fit in the Polaroid frame dimensions we’ll be working with here.
If you don’t have any of my quilt patterns, you can buy one here, or choose one of the free patterns available here.
Step 2
Prep your materials. For a single block (good for a pillow cover) you’ll need. . .
1 piece of cotton batting cut 18 inches square (or a little larger)
1 piece of fabric for the background of the “photo” cut 10 1/2″ square
scraps of white fabric (I like using white on white prints for a tiny bit of texture) cut into the following strips
two strips 1 1/4″ x 10 1/2″
1 strip 1 1/4″ x 12″
1 strip 3 3/4″ x 12″
1/3 yard background fabric (the part around the Polaroid frame) – for best results, use a fabric that is a random scattered pattern that works in all directions. I love the speckly polkadots I used and I’ve got them on order in a bunch of great colors for the shop.
Press your batting square (with steam) and let it cool before you move it.
Layer your “photo” background at a slight angle (you’ll want to vary the angle a bit in each block of your quilt) and quilt it to the batting.
There’s a post here showing some of my favorite no-marking straight line quilting patterns here, and wavy quilting patterns here.
Press the block again and let it cool.
Step 4
Layer, fuse, and outline your applique.
Making sure that the raw edges at the bottom of the shoulders are lined up with the raw edge at the bottom of your background block.
Note – I’m zoomed in now to the “photo” that will be inside your Polaroid, just to get you the closest view possible. Your “photo” will be surrounded by bare batting – for now.
Let’s start building the frame!
Step 5
Using your 1 1/4″ x 10 1/2″ white strips and 1/4″ seam allowance, sew a strip to each side of your block.
Sew the 1 1/4″ x 12″ strip to the top of your block, opening and pressing the strip like the side strips.
Step 7
Complete the Polaroid frame by adding the 3 3/4″ x 12″ strip to the bottom of the photo.
See how the raw edges at the bottom of your applique are all hidden now? It looks just like a photo!
Now it’s time to cover up the rest of the batting.
Step 8
Pick any side of your Polaroid and sew on a strip of the background fabric, using the same “stitch & flip” method.
The rest of the photos will be zoomed out like this one so that you can see the whole block. The background fabric should completely cover the batting and there will be some overhang.
Step 9
Continue adding strips to cover the batting. I moved on to the right side next.
And then the top.
And finally the last side.
You can go in any order you like – just continue until the batting is covered.
Oops! I still have a little sliver exposed!
I’m not going to worry about it. I know I cut my batting square on the big side, and my next step is going to be to trim the block down to size. I’ll keep an eye on that sliver. If it doesn’t get trimmed away, I’ll use a scrap of the same fabric to add one more strip to cover it.
Step 10
Trim the block to 17 1/2″ square. That way when you sew it together with other blocks to make a quilt, it will finish at 17″ square.
My first step in trimming is always to flip the block over and trim away the excess background fabric from the batting edges. That way I know exactly where the batting ends.
I just use my rotary cutting tools to cut away those red triangles showing around the batting square.
Then flip your block back over and trim to size. make sure you leave at least 1/4″ of background fabric around each corner of your Polaroid frame. You don’t want those corners to get buried when you sew your blocks together!
Done!
I was careful to trim away that uncovered sliver of batting.
Here’s a little mockup showing just four blocks together. If you use the same fabric for all the backgrounds, it looks like a page in an album with a bunch of Polaroids scattered on it!
Here are some dimensions and yardage requirements for all three of my standard quilt sizes.
Crib Quilt
My crib quilts are usually 50″ x 50″ but for the Polaroid version it will be 51″ square. Make 9 blocks total, arranged 3 x 3.
1 1/4 yard total of fabrics for the “photo” backgrounds
3/4 yard white fabric
2 3/4 yards background fabric
at least 3 fat quarters for applique, though you’ll probably want more for variety
Napping Quilt
My napping quilts are usually 50″ x 60″ but for the Polaroid version it will be 51″ x 68″. Make 12 blocks total, arranged 3 x 4.
1 1/2 yards total of fabrics for the “photo” backgrounds
1 yard white fabric
3 1/2 yards background fabric
at least 3 fat quarters for applique, though you’ll probably want more for variety
Twin Quilt
My twin quilts are usually 70″ x 90″ but for the Polaroid version it will be 68″ x 85″. Make 20 blocks total, arranged 4 x 5.
2 1/4 yards total of fabrics for the “photo” backgrounds
1 1/2 yards white fabric
5 3/4 yards background fabric
at least 5 fat quarters for applique, though you’ll probably want more for variety
You can get a lot of the fabrics you need in my shop.
For the white fabric, I really like using white-on-white prints. That gives them just a little bit of texture, which I like, but you can use solid white if you prefer.
For the background I recommend a small-scale print that looks great turned in any direction.
I can’t wait to see your Polaroid blocks!
Find links to all the posts about pattern size and layouts here.
In the video I mentioned that you can use the same method to crochet scallops onto things that aren’t crocheted – like the hem of a skirt, or the edge of a pillowcase. You just need to make some stitches around the edge to anchor your crochet. There’s a video showing how to do that here.
Here you can see I’ve added some pretty scallops to the bottom edge of a skirt made from an old T-shirt.
I have sad news today. I can’t reorder cuddle fleece any more, so it’ll be going away from the shop.
The company has been discontinuing colors over the last few years, and they finally discontinued the line completely. 😢
I love this stuff! I use it for softies and all my quilt backs. It’s not hard to sew with, and it wears beautifully. But I just can’t get it anymore. 😢
Initially I found a good substitute at Joanns, but now all those stores are closing. 🙁
I haven’t found an exact substitute yet, but here are a couple you can explore.
The thing about cuddle fleece was that it was a two-sided fleece, which made it extra-cuddly and soft, and the extra thickness made it a great weight for quilt backs.
Fabric Direct carries a double-sided fleece here. I haven’t tried it, so I can’t say for sure, but it looks the same.
The Cuddle Fleece I used to carry was made by Shannon Fabrics. They don’t make the double-sided cuddle fleece anymore, but they do continue to make a lot of other high-quality cuddle fabrics. Their basic Cuddle works well for quilt backs and softies – it’s just not as heavy as the double-sided so you don’t get that extra weight and plushness that I really liked. They have a product called Luxe Cuddle that I was tempted by, but I think it’s actually too deep a pile and will not quilt as nicely. Shannon has a Where to Buy link on their site, but I can tell you that it’s not comprehensive because there’s a store near me that I know carries their cuddle, but they’re not listed, so call around to shops near you.
A couple of weeks ago I sent out a survey asking readers which block from each of my quilt patterns you’d like to see as an individual pattern. Your responses were awesome! I’ll be working over the next several weeks to release the patterns you chose – and I’m starting with the one that was most clearly a favorite.
