The Virginia Opossum, A Marvelous Marsupial!

Have you ever encountered an animal “playing dead?” Well, the Virginia opossum inspired the saying playing possum because of its reaction to being preyed upon, in which it feigns death! Not only does it look dead – it lies somewhat twisted on the ground, with its tongue sticking out and eyes wide open – but it also excretes a pungently foul fluid that repels predators. How icky-cool is that?

YARN & NEEDLES
You can use any weight of yarn you like to knit with for this piece. Be sure to use a needle size with the yarn of your choice that will produce a dense fabric so the stuffing doesn’t poke through. You can refer to the Customizing Your Wanderlust Woolves Knits companion guide for yarn and needle pairing suggestions.

Use your preference of a set of 5 dpns or long circular needles for magic loop.

PACK LEVEL
Beta - Intermediate

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Smaller opossum is approx 1.75” l x 2” w x 1.5” t

ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
Small amount of stuffing, Black & white embroidery floss, Pink embroidery floss, Sewing needle, Darning needle, Crochet hook one size larger than knitting needles used for the head (optional, for crochet neck trim only), Optional hardware (see Customizing Your Wanderlust Woolves Knits PDF, included with pattern).Or your choice of eye alternative. I used 6 mm dome-shaped shank buttons for the larger opossum.

GAUGE
Gauge will vary significantly depending on the size of yarn and needles you use for your piece. The most important thing is that stuffing does not show / poke through the finished piece.

NOTES
I suggest reading through the entire pattern before you begin knitting.

All Abbreviations are listed at the end of the pattern.

Use stranded colorwork when working with multiple colors, being careful not to pull the floats tight as you knit. Alternatively, you can knit the head in once color, as shown on the larger opossum.

To add a twinkle to your critter’s eyes or customize it further, refer to the companion guide Customizing Your Wanderlust Woolves Knits!