tunip the vegimal
My son loves the Octonauts, and I think it's great too. It's super fun, and I've found out so much I didn't know about sea creatures! We have recently been reading (and re-reading!) The Octonauts Explore The Great Big Ocean, which is about Tunip and the Vegimals looking for their original sea habitat. As usual, I found myself thinking that the Octonauts would be very cute amigurumi toys. And as my next thought was that crocheting a Tunip wouldn't take very long, and the one after that was that I know I've got just the right colours in my yarn stash, it wasn't long before I'd picked up my hook. Yes, I've got two other projects I'm working on, but I'm sure this one will be really quick...
Well this time it really was, Tunip came together really quickly, and is a simple yet super cute toy to make. My son loves him and Tunip has read The Octonauts Explore The Great Big Ocean with us every bedtime since.
If you would like to make your own, here is how he was made.
Yarn
I used Stylecraft Special DK yarn. Tunip has three main colours. His head is Citron yellow, his body, tail and flippers are Aspen, and his sprout is Grass Green. I used a tiny bit of Camel for his turnip top wrinkles and a tiny bit of cream for his muzzle.
Hook Size
Tunip was made with a 3.25 mm hook.
Stitches
The pattern is written in US terms. The abbreviations are as follows:
CH – chain;
SL ST – slip stitch;
SC - single crochet;
HDC - half double crochet
INC - 2 SC in the same stitch;
DEC - SC decrease. I use the invisible SC decrease (insert hook into front loop only of next two stitches, draw up a loop through both stitches (two loops on hook), draw a loop through both loops on hook).
Notes
Many of the pieces start with a magic circle. I have a quick guide to crocheting a magic circle here.
The pattern uses the invisible join, to give a neater finish . If you haven't used this before, have a look at my photo guide here.
Tunip also has two 8 mm safety eyes and the head and body is stuffed with toy filling. If you are making Tunip as a toy for child under three, for safety reasons you should embroider the eyes instead.
The head and body are made separately and sewn together. I attached the eyes, sprout and muzzle to the head, and crocheted the wrinkles, before sewing. The flippers and tail were also attached to the body section before sewing the head and body together. Make sure to attach all parts firmly and securely so that it will be safe for small children.
Head
Use yellow yarn, and 3.25 mm hook.
Start with a magic circle.
Row 1: 6 SC into magic circle (6)
Row 2: INC around (12)
Row 3: [SC, INC] around (18)
Row 4: [2 SC, INC] around (24)
Row 5: [3SC, INC] around (30)
Rows 6 - 9: SC around (4 rows of 30)
Row 10: [SC8, DEC] three times (27)
Row 11: SC around (27)
SL ST into next two stitches, cut yarn leaving a long tail, and finish with an invisible join.
Sprout
Use green yarn, and 3.25 mm hook.
CH 8, SC into second chain from the hook, SC into next, then SL ST into next five stitches to end of chain
CH 10, SC into second chain from the hook, HDC into next, SC then SL ST to end of chain
CH 13, SC into second chain from the hook, 3 HDC, SC then SL ST to end of chain
CH 10, SC into second chain from the hook, HDC, SC then SL ST to end of chain
CH 8, SC into second chain from the hook, SC into next, then SL ST to end of chain
Now turn and SC into the starting chain for each leaf.
SL ST into the first SC to join as a round (5 SC)
INC into each SC and continue around to INC in both stitches of the first INC (12 SC)
Cut yarn leaving a bit of a tail, and finish with an invisible join.
Muzzle
Use white or cream yarn, and 3.25 mm hook.
Start with a magic circle.
SL ST, [SC, 2 HDC, SC, SL ST] twice
Pull circle to close
Cut yarn and pull through, and weave the yarn over and around the SL STs (in the middle of the muzzle at the top and bottom) to help form the muzzle shape.
Body
Use blue yarn, and 3.25 mm hook.
Start with a magic circle.
Row 1: 6 SC into magic circle (6)
Row 2: INC around (12)
Row 3: SC around (12)
Row 4: [3 SC, INC] three times (15)
Row 5: SC around (15)
Row 6: [4 SC, INC] three times (18)
Row 7: SC around (18)
Row 8: [5 SC, INC] three times (21)
Row 9: SC around (21)
Row 10: [6 SC, INC] (24)
Row 11: SC around (24)
Row 12: [7 SC, INC] (27)
SL ST into next two stitches, cut yarn, and finish with an invisible join.
Use blue yarn, and 3.25 mm hook. Make two.
Start with a magic circle.
Row 1: 6 SC into magic circle (6)
Row 2: [SC, INC] three times (9)
Row 3: SC around (9)
Row 4: [2 SC, INC] three times (12)
Row 5: SC around (12)
Leave a bit of a yarn tail to attach the fin to the body.
Fins
Use blue yarn, and 3.25 mm hook. Make two.
Start with a magic circle.
Row 1: 6 SC into magic circle (6)
Row 2: [SC, INC] three times (9)
Row 3: [2 SC, INC] three times (12)
Row 4: SC around (12)
Row 5: [2 SC, DEC] three times (9)
Row 6 [SC, DEC] three times (6)
Leave a bit of a yarn tail to attach the tail to the body.
Tail
Assembly
Using the yarn tail, sew the sprout onto the top of the head after the second row.
With a darker yellow or brown, pull through some SL STs to make the turnip wrinkles after the third and fourth row of the head. Aim for 4 or 5 wrinkles of between 2 - 5 stitches.
I attached the eyes in row nine, with 7 stitches in between.
The muzzle is sewn on in between the eyes, on rows nine and ten. I also used the blue yarn to sew one stitch at the top of the muzzle for the nose.
The tail pieces are attached after the first row of the body, one each side. Pinch the end flat and use the yarn tail to sew through both sides of the tail piece at the same time.
The fins are attached either side, between rows 10 (the back of the fin) and 11 (the front). They are angled so that when Tunip is fully assembled, they are higher at the front than the back. Again, pinch the end flat and use the yarn tail to sew through both sides of the fin at the same time.
Finally, use the long yellow yarn tail from the head to sew the head and body together. Stuff once you've sewn just over three quarters of the way around.
And that's it - your Tunip is finished! Happy making!
I'd love to see any toys that you make with this pattern. Just tag me on Instagram @fat_cat_crochet or try the pin on Pinterest.
You are welcome to sell any toys you make from this pattern but please credit me as the designer, and link back here if selling online. Please do not copy or sell the pattern itself.
And finally here's a picture of the eponymous fat cat with Tunip :)
Vegimal patterns so far - more on the way!
