Do any other VSers knit? If so, are you on Ravelry? I'm getting back into it now that I have the time.

Eventually, I will make a Murloc but I'm not quite that skilled yet.

That is the best thing I've ever seen.

Unfortch, I do not knit. :( My grandma did...I wish she had taught me!

I knit. I wouldn't knit a murloc, though. There are way easier ways to make a murloc with way more fantastical results than knitting.

I don't know about that. That's pretty freakin sweet!

and soft and cuddly too!

Now that I read her whole instructions instead of just looking at the pics, that's actually not that hard. It is mostly knitting in the round for a really long time, and knitting in the round is just like knitting on straight needles except your yarn stays on the needle the whole time.

I wish I could find a pic of the one a guy in a guild I used to be in made out of shimmery fabric. It was spiffy, and it think its mouth opened and closed.

Short-row shaping is one of those things that's super, super easy when you get the hang of it and looks a whole lot more complicated than it actually is. It's how I make toe-up socks without grafting, for example.

My only quibble with this pattern is I think you could get way better results using a different (way cheaper and sturdier) yarn. Kureyon stripes really nicely and all, but it's also like $10 a skein and seriously, I do not love murlocs that much (and also this plushy would not really be washable). I'd suggest something like Sugar'n'Creme Ombre, which stripes amazingly, is 100% cotton and totally machine washable and dryable, and is also like a dollar.

Row 1: k7, turn
Row 2: s1, p6, turn
Row 3: s1, k5, turn
Row 4: s1, p4, turn
Row 5: s1, k3, turn
Row 6: s1, p2, turn


YOU'VE SUNK MY BATTLESHIP!

My only quibble with this pattern is I think you could get way better results using a different (way cheaper and sturdier) yarn. Kureyon stripes really nicely and all, but it's also like $10 a skein and seriously, I do not love murlocs that much (and also this plushy would not really be washable). I'd suggest something like Sugar'n'Creme Ombre, which stripes amazingly, is 100% cotton and totally machine washable and dryable, and is also like a dollar.

I hear you on the Noro thing. WAY too expensive. I bought some Silk Garden to make a scarf...C-Rob's words were "you know...you can buy a scarf for a lot cheaper."

I was actually thinking something of the Red Heart or Caron Simply Soft variety to make Mr. Murloc...I like the silver ones with the purple fins. ;)

I just can't get behind Red Heart. I have tried and tried, but just no dice. It's so stiff and crunchy and ugh. :( Caron, though, is my veryveryveryvery favorite acrylic. I just like using cotton yarns for plushies because it helps give them more shape without having to spend a billion years stuffing and wiring and bla bla bla.

I would like to order one plushy walrus, please. And an e.coli. AND a beholder. Kthx.

Cotton is a good idea for this type of stuff...thanks for reminding me. ;) Aro, you're in Memphis, right? What yarn stores do you like? I used to go to Stash when it was Yarn Studio when I lived in Midtown.

I actually do most of my yarning online just because it is SO IMPOSSIBLE to get to any of the yarn stores in town when one works an office job. I haunt the hand-dyes on etsy.com a lot because I'm in the middle of a sock craze and I'm just enough of a hippy treehugger that I like buying from individuals (and socks don't take much).

OMG! Felted Murloc! MUST HAVE!

I wonder if that could be crocheted...I never have gotten past purl stitch in knitting, but I can crochet up a storm!

I agree that Red Heart should be left for kindergarden crafts. There's many better acrylics out there. As a clothing and textiles professor, synthetics are a good way to lose what little respect I have gained amongst my co-workers (the fiber snobs). Problem is, they charge soooo much for the good stuff it's ridiculous. You could probably raise sheep and alpacas, shear them, spin the wool and get cheaper yarn than what you find at the yarn store.

You could raise your own alpacas and feed them solid gold for cheaper than buying yarn at the yarn store.

One Ebay store I have found that has quite reasonable prices for Yarn Store quality merchandise is Yarnbow. They ship fast, too. It's still pretty expensive stuff, but cheaper than visiting a yarn shop.