If I had to describe myself in two words, it would probably be ‘easily amused’, it doesn’t take much to make me chuckle, and one of the things that definitely hits the spot is making “meta softies”, so far I have a zebra made from zebra fabric, an elephant made from blue elephant fabric and as soon as I spotted this pattern I knew exactly what fabric was destined to be used.

The Purl Frog Pattern is from The Purl Bee, the blog created to accompany an NYC based patchwork and craft store. It’s a blog full of tutorials, class information (great if you’re local!), and a huge amount of inspiration for sewing, crochet and knitting projects.

Pattern: The Purl Frog
Level: Easy
Time taken: Half an hour
License: For personal use only
Fabric Used: Frog print from Timeless Treasures

The free pattern is in PDF format, with both printable PDF instructions and written instructions on the website. It’s such a simple project the instructions aren’t really needed, but they are still very clear and understandable for those that do need them.

Alterations

• I don’t have a printer at home so all PDF patterns I trace my screen, meaning that they usually come out a little smaller, even if I’m viewing at 100%, so this is slightly smaller than then 7.5 inches given.
• The thought of a frog without webbed feet just didn’t sit right with me, so I added a few webs on each feet as I was sewing him together – I wouldn’t recommend this! It made it a real beast to turn inside out, and although the front feet do look cute, the back feet just look awkward.
• My 18 month old son will probably end up with this, so beads for eyes weren’t an option, and I seem to have misplaced my jar of safety eyes, felt came to the rescue and they still look great. I would love to remake this pattern with some really big green bulgy safety eyes.
• I filled mine with rice as opposed to mung beans or lentils, so far no dramas, but I’ll update the post if I have issues with this later.

Tips

• Be obsessive about that 1/4 inch seam, don’t make it any less, and use pinking shears on the seam once you’re finished, this is one project you really don’t want to split whilst it’s being played with, lentils covering the floor is not a good thing

It’s definitely a begininers project, not that that’s a bad thing, I do these often just because I know that I can complete them in one of my son’s naps and fill the urge to sew without getting too bogged down in something. It’s a cute little toy for any child, although I would love to remake it using a combination of sand and roving so I could have a little pincushion, once I got over the aspect of sticking pins into a frog I think it would be sweet addition to my sewing room.

Have you made The Purl Frog? Let us know your thoughts via the comments.