Introducing Nikodemus Plesiosaur and Angelica Apatosaurus

An Apatosaurus and a Plesiosaur—unlikely friends? Oh, I don’t know about that. Sure, one lives on land and the other in the ocean, but they nonetheless have much in common. For example, it’s easy to imagine these two having many thorough discus sions on the joys and issues of having a very long neck.

Say hello to the latest new additions to the Morrgan's Creatures family: Angelica Apatosaurus and Nikodemus Plesiosaur!

I've made both plesiosaurs and apatosaurs like this before, but never got around to writing them down in pattern form before. Well, that's fixed now!

These two are knitted in the round and they partially share the same pattern - they only differ in the shape of their limbs. These dinos are very simple and quick to make; especially the apatosaurus makes a fine project for a beginner.

Angelica and Nikodemus are available as a knitting pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed), Craftsy and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Hektor the Tyrannosaurus

Tyrannosaurs may have a fearsome reputation, but little baby T-rexes like Hektor are actually very sweet. Much like an eager but adorably clumsy puppy, who stumbles over his own slightly too big feet in his excitement.

Say hello to Hektor, better know as Mr. T among friends and family!

I may have mentioned my notebook before. It's got everything from hastily scribbled notes and little drawings of ideas to the first pattern versions I write by hand as I create my creatures and other designs. One of the earliest idea notes, which I jotted down many years ago, reads (translated from Swedish): "T-rex (red with big feet) Hector".

Well, this guy may be a handsome plum purple instead of red, but he did end up with the big feet! It was one of those ideas that are almost complete in my head, but some vital bit is missing - in Hektor's case, the head. I knew I wanted a cute little baby Tyrannosaurus with huge feet, but the design of the head kept eluding me. That's probably why it took me so long to get around to realizing this idea.

Even now the head was the last thing I did. In the end I gave up trying to come up with a design first and just started knitting. Surprisingly enough, the first version I made ended up being perfect! Sometimes my fingers have a better idea of what to do than my brain, it seems.

Hektor is available as a knitting pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed), Craftsy and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Morrgan's Creatures patterns now available as instant downloads on Etsy!

Tony and Hubert are among the creatures
available as patterns in my Etsy shop.

As the title explains, the patterns for my creatures are now available as instant downloads after purchase on Etsy. No more waiting for emails! I've always taken pride in emailing patterns to customers as soon as possible, but we all know any wait is too long when you're excited about a new project, right? ;)

Plus, as I no longer have to worry about timely emails, this means I can also keep the Etsy shop open while I'm on vacation and the patterns will be available for purchase all year round. Hooray!

Introducing Sophie the Sleepy Snake

Sophie is a pretty laid-back snake lady. Give her a warm place to sleep and a hug now and then and she’ll be as happy as can be!

There's a little doodle in my notebook, a few years old by now. I'm pleased to say it looks pretty much exactly like the photo above. There are few things more satisfying than being able to create a design exactly as I've seen it in my mind's eye.

After the Humboldt pattern was ready, with its many pieces to knit and sew together into a fancy bunny, I knew that I wanted to make something simpler for my next project. Something with few parts and straightforward knitwork. With this in mind, I browsed through my idea notebook and came upon the drawing mentioned above. Perfect!

At the time I had also been working on other small knitted projects and had ended up with quite a pile of yarn ends on my desk, in many different colours. Playing with this colourful pile brought forward a delicious combo of moss green, yellow and rusty orange. I knew that whatever I made next, it had to have these colours. Thus, Sophie's colour scheme was decided.

Sophie is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

An Autumnal Break

Morrgan's Creatures is on a fall break! The Etsy and Dawanda shops will reopen at the end of October with many new exciting designs.

My patterns will continue to be available throughout the break in my Ravelry and Craftsy shops, so go take a peek there if you are overcome by the desire to knit a cute creature!

Introducing Humboldt the Fancy Bunny

Humboldt is a bit of a fancy bunny. He’s the sort of rabbit who would wear a top hat instead of being pulled out of one. However, he isn’t exactly a snob; he just enjoys the finer things in life. Only the freshest hand-picked carrots will do for Humboldt!

Guess how long I have been planning to make this particular bunny? Anyone?

I looked up the receipt for the yarn I bought specifically for this bunny. The yarn was bought in February 2011 and I know I had the vision of a long-and-floppy-eared bunny in my head for way longer than that. Poor Humboldt. He's certainly had to wait for his moment in the spotlight!

Humboldt is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Magda the Cuddlesome Crocodile

The best thing Magda knows is cuddling. But alas and alack, her arms are too short for giving proper cuddles! She more than happy to receive hugs, though, so please make sure this poor little cuddlesome crocodile gets all the cuddles she needs.

I'm very pleased with miss Magda! She turned out precisely as I had envisioned her in my head.

All she needs now is a little bird friend.

Called Heath.

Magda is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Marigold the Moose

Marigold the Moose

Marigold the Moose got her name because marigolds are her favourite flowers. To eat, that is. She likes to keep one behind her ear as an emergency snack!


Marigold's history
Who would have guessed that making a moose could cause so many unexpected problems?

One day I started knitting a moose, and while knitting I was pondering a suitable name. "Marigold" popped into my head. Perfect! Mr Morrgan also thought the name would suit a moose and suggested that she got the name for liking marigolds so much for lunch. Even more perfect!

After that it was settled. The moose called was Marigold.

Only a little later did it occur to me that a lady moose doesn't have antlers. D'oh! Some biologist I am. By this time it was too late. The name Marigold was so perfect it had to stay. I decided she just belongs to a special species of plush moose, where every individual has antlers. So there.

The second uh-oh occured when I was trying to place the ears. I put them between the antlers. ...No, that didn't look right. I put them behind the antlers. Nope, didn't work either. I put them below. Still looked wrong.

There was only one way to solve this: searching for moose pictures online! I discovered something interesting. Plush moose often have the ears below the antlers, whereas live moose have them behind and often showing between the antlers. No wonder I had trouble placing them.

After the gender/antler trouble from before, I felt my integrity as a biologist (ahem) would suffer too much if I'd bend reality twice for the same creature. Hence Marigold's ears are behind and between the antlers, unlike most other plush moose.

Marigold the Moose is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Marigold is an intermediate level pattern. Marigold is knitted both flat and in the round, with the stitches knit, purl, lifted increases, knit/purl 2 together and slip stitch over. I-cord knitting is used for the flower (the pattern has brief instructions on how to do that).

Want to see more creature introductions?

My Creative Space: Progress on the Secret Project! Also, a Moose!

Work on the Secret Project continues! Last time I had the problem of figuring out how to stuff it - well, my mom came to my rescue, as moms tend to do.

She found in storage an old foam mattress I could take, wash and use. (Actually, she did the washing too. Yay!) A fine solution methinks. Always good to recycle something that isn't needed.

The mattress was 5 cm (2") thick, so I had to cut out and shape several layers to create the needed shape.

Fortunately the material was easy to work with using scissors. Such things are not my strong suit and sure, the surface could have been evened out more, but it doesn't show on the outside of the knitted piece.

So, the little dude is taking shape and I'm ridiculously pleased with how it's turning out. I've knitted 19 pieces so far, so there's still a few more to go. Maybe next week you can see him finished, in his proper place on our couch! Still a chance to guess what this is until then. :)

In other crafty news, here's is a sneak peek of a little knitted moose lady:


Her name is Marigold and I've been working on her pattern this week. The pattern should be ready soon, and once it is she will get a full introduction on this blog! Stay tuned!

Want to see the creative spaces of others? Head on over to Kootoyoo's blog for a look!

(PS: There's a SALE at my Etsy shop! Check out this post for details!)

I'm on Ravelry!

Yes, it's true. I have finally signed up for Ravelry, as Morrgan (surprise surprise). Are you there? Come by and say hi!

If you're not there, you might have noticed that you need an account to see my profile. You may also be wondering what Ravelry is. Well, it's a place for knitters, crocheters and other types of yarn addicts to meet up and chat, share ideas and what they're working on, offer patterns (free or for sale), etc. Might be worth a look if you're interested in such!

I've added some of my patterns there for sale already (including these triceratopses) and will be adding them all eventually.


(Oh, and so far no correct guesses on what my latest project is. Next week you'll get either another update and chance to guess, or the answer, depending on how fast I'll be knitting. Stay tuned!)

Introducing Clive the Chilly Giraffe

Bored of the heat and eager to see more exotic surroundings, Clive the giraffe left the savannah and traveled north to temperate forests. At first everything was just as he'd dreamed - plenty of trees to nibble on, pleasantly warm without being hot.

Then it got a bit colder. Then all the leaves fell down. And then it got absolutely freezing.

So here's poor Clive enduring winter, so chilly that he's turned blue, trying to keep warm in his red scarf. Let's hope the scarf keeps him from getting a cold - with a neck that long, a sore throat would not be fun!


Clive is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Hugo the Hugglephant

On August 22nd 2009 I tweeted thusly:

"is starting work on the HUGGLEPHANT."

I got off to a good start, then had to prepare for a trip and after that the holiday season was upon me. Poor Hugo has been terribly neglected since then, until the start of July. I picked up where I left off and am very happy to finally be able to introduce:

Hugo the Hugglephant
Hugglephants are like elephants, only their trunks are extra-long for hugging!

Hugo the Hugglephant dreams of becoming an acrobat when he grows up. He enjoys spending his time by rehearsing fun tricks, like standing on his head!

However, he is a hugglephant first and foremost, so he makes sure to also take frequent huggling breaks.



Hugo is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop. The pattern can also be used to make a regular elephant.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Paulo the Charming Tiger

This is Paulo the charming tiger.

Mister Paulo knows how to charm the ladies. His secret? He's actually sincere.

When he says he bought these roses because their loveliness reminded him of you, that's what he did.

When he says that as lovely as they are, they pale next to your beauty, he really means it.

And the ladies know it. Oh Paulo, you charmer.


Paulo is my entry for this week's European Street Team challenge, hosted by Sofia-Sobeide. The theme for this week was "my favourite flower". Now, how do you get a charming tiger from favourite flowers?

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure myself.

However, the inspiration for Paulo and his personality came to me as I was sitting in my balcony, trying to decide on a fave flower. I looked at my red miniature rose and suddenly the choice was clear - roses. Soon after, the idea of a sweet little tiger holding a bouquet of lovely red roses came to me. How? Why? Who knows. The mental image stuck and I had to try to make Paulo. I'm very pleased that he turned out exactly as I saw him with my mind's eye.

Paulo the Charming Tiger is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

His roses are also available as a separate tutorial, suitable for beginners.

Want to see more creature introductions?

My Creative Space: Something a bit different

This week I have actually been mostly working on the computer. I decided my creature PDF patterns were in great need of a facelift, especially the older ones, so I have designed a new layout with many new photos. I've also tweaked instructions here and there when needed, to make them more clear.

I'm very excited about this change! It's something I've wanted to do for a long time, but haven't had the time for until now. It takes quite a bit of time and energy, however - I've found that I can only redo one pattern per day. So far I've got a third ready, so I imagine it'll be a couple of weeks before all of them are ready for release.

Want a sneak peek? Here are the patterns for the goldfish and the piggy; old on the left, new on the right:




Once the new pattern layout is launched, I also have one or two new patterns to add to the shop!

If you have bought patterns from me before and want them in the new design, just send me a note (Etsy convo, email) once the new layout is available in my shop and I'll send you the new version, free of charge of course.


Want to see the creative spaces of others? Head on over to Kootoyoo's blog for a look!

Introducing Hannibal the Man-Eating Plant

Introducing Morrgan's Creatures is an ongoing project to introduce all the creatures that gave my shop its name.


Hannibal the Man-Eating Plant

Ack! It's a man-eating plant!

Don't worry though, there's no need to run just yet. This little guy called Hannibal is still a small sapling and doesn't even have real teeth yet. So he'll just look really adorable as he tries to chew on your arm.

Hannibal is quite a friendly little guy, despite the ferocious reputation of this particular species of man-eating plant. He'll do very well on ham-and-cheese sandwiches, with the occasional fly thrown in for extra protein - just look at his chubby stem.


Hannibal the Man-Eating Plant is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy shop.

Making Hannibal involves both knitting and little bit of crochet. The knitting is done both flat and in the round, with the stitches knit, purl, lifted increases, knit/purl 2 together and slip stitch over. The crochet stitches are single crochet, chain and slip stitch.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Introducing Hubert the Grumpy Unicorn

Introducing Morrgan's Creatures is an ongoing project to introduce all the creatures that gave my shop its name.


Hubert the Grumpy Unicorn
This is a grumpy little unicorn called Hubert. Why grumpy, I hear you ask? Well first of all, this particular teenage boy unicorn happens to be very pink. Just how is a poor unicorn supposed to impress that cute pegasus girl when he's as pink as can be? AND named Hubert? Seriously, what were his parents thinking?

If only he was a cool steely grey like his uncle Reginald, then things would be different. Or at least had uncle Reginald's name. Now there's a proper noble name for a mighty unicorn, sure to impress any cute pegasus. Not at all silly. Unlike Huuuubert.

But no, that wasn't to be. This little guy is pink Hubert. A very grumpy pink Hubert.


Grumpy Hubert is available as a pattern together with Tony the Lazy Pony via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed) and from my Etsy and ArtFire shops.

Want to see more creature introductions?

Run! It's a man-eating plant!

Well ok, there's not really any need to run just yet. This little guy is still a small sapling and doesn't even have real teeth yet. So he'll just look really adorable as he tries to chew on your arm.

Hannibal is also quite a friendly little guy, despite the ferocious reputation of this particular species of man-eating plant. He'll do very well on ham-and-cheese sandwiches, with the occasional fly thrown in for extra protein - just look at his chubby stem.

I must say, knitting little Hannibal was the most fun I've had for a long time! I was giggling like a madwoman the whole time, imagining having a man-eating plant as a pet. Yeah, I'm a bit weird like that. I got the idea from a stylized logo hubby made some time back, although he ended up looking very little like the logo.

Hannibal is made with both knitting and crochet from a soft acrylic yarn, and he's a whole 23 cm (9 inches) tall. He's already been listed in my Etsy shop, so you can take a look there for more photos. I'll also have a pattern available soon!

Of sharks and muffins

My sweet little Horace got a mention in Lime & Violet's Daily Chum, along with some other sea creatures. This is the second time he's been mentioned in a blog, he's become a popular little shark! And good thing he is, for I am of the firm belief that the world needs more friendly, snuggly sharks.

I'll have the listing for a finished Horace up in a little bit, but in the mean time his pattern is already available in my Etsy shop.

In other news, I've been busy in the "kitchen" again. This time I experimented with bananas and raspberries in muffin form, making up a recipe based on the one for carrot muffins. The carrot one used to be my favourite muffin recipe, but this new one is an awfully strong challenger. They're just oh so moist, a quality I appreciate in muffins. Plus they've got raspberries! And bananas! And make a whole 18!

As usual, the less you mix the batter, the better they'll be.

Banana-Raspberry Muffins (makes 18)

4 dl (~1 1/2 cups) flour
3 dl (~1 1/4 cups) sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla sugar
100 g (~1/2 cup) melted butter
3 eggs
2 ripe bananas
100 g raspberries (that's about 1 1/2-2 dl or 2/3 cup)

Mix the dry ingredients together. Whisk the eggs, then add sliced bananas, raspberries and melted and somewhat cooled butter. Fold the wet ingredients into the flour mixture. Divide the batter into 18 muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes at 200°C (392°F).

Enjoy!

Say hello to Salvador!

One morning this week I woke up and had a need to knit a seahorse. Yeah, I'm a bit strange like that. When I'm in one of those moods there's no point wondering why I need to make one right there and then; I may as well just take advantage of it. So I did make one. And it was wayyyyy fun.

Salvador was made in one piece, not counting the fins, so there was a lot of shaping to do. I have to say it was a challenge, but I'm happy with how he turned out. All in all, very satisfying. :)

Salvador is now available in my Etsy shop! You can even choose a different colour if you like.

On the topic of seahorses, I spent some time googling them to find some good reference photos. Hence I'm able to give you this little tidbit: the smallest seahorse is Denise's pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus denise), measuring only 16 mm or 0.63 inches long. Now that would be a real challenge. ;)