UPDATE: 25 October 2015
Hi everyone :) I am so sorry… a step was left out on page 22 of the pattern. I have sent out an update to everyone who has bought the pattern. If you have printed the pattern, please re-print ONLY PAGE 22. Nothing else in the pattern has changed, ONLY page 22.
I am sorry folks if this has caused inconvenience or irritation :(
xxx Heidi

Shoop the Sheep is the nineteenth of my patterns that makes use of the African Flower hexagon crochet motif and variations thereof, joined in a specific order to make a recognizable 3D item. Shoop is an excellent stash buster project, as you only need to use very small amounts of leftover sock yarn to make a motif.

You may wonder where the name “Shoop” comes from. My two beautiful girls came up with the name when they were still itty-bitty littlies. Their thinking went like this: If the singular is “goose” and the plural is “geese”, then the singular for “sheep” should be “Shoop”. There you have it… out of the mouths of babes ;)
So, let’s take a look at the important points and how to start to make your own adorable shoop!

Please note: This listing is for a downloadable PDF of the pattern instructions for making Shoop …there is no hard copy of the pattern available, nor a finished item. The pattern is available only in English :)

: : Materials Requirements : :

The sheep that was crocheted for this pattern, was made using sock weight/fingering/#1 weight yarn. Using this weight yarn will give you a sheep measuring approximately 21cm measured from tail to nose, and approximately 14cm from the top of the back to feet.

ALL OF THE CROCHET STITCHES USED IN THIS PATTERN ARE BASED ON AMERICAN CROCHET TERMS

Sock weight / Fingering weight yarn/ #1 in colors of your choice… this little sheep is a great stash busting project as you can use small amounts of sock yarn for each motif, and the more colourful the prettier. Although I can’t tell you how much yardage of each color I used I can tell you that the total weight of yarn for the sheep was around 120 g (unstuffed).

The yardage for the sock yarn I used is around 320m/100g (350yds/100g). It is a superwash merino yarn, but you can use any alternative fingering weight yarn you like…I suggest that animal fibre yarns would be preferable, as they have more stretch, making the stuffing and shaping of the sheep easier. Try to use a yarn with a similar yardage per 100g. If you use a heavier weight yarn and a larger hook, the sheep will be bigger than the one made in sock yarn, and you will obviously need more polyester stuffing.

Crochet Hook 1.75mm
If you are planning to make your sheep in a heavier weight yarn, adjust your hook size accordingly…however, use the smallest hook size possible for the weight of yarn that you can manage. Note that the hook size recommended by the yarn manufacturer would not be the correct size to use for this project…Since the sheep is stuffed, your stitch density will need to be tighter than usual to prevent the stuffing from popping out. Make a test motif in your chosen yarn and hook to see which would be the best size to use.

Polyester toy stuffing Haemostats (optional for stuffing)

Scissors

Tapestry Needle used for sewing in ends Sewing Pins

Sewing needle Curved sewing needle

Long tapestry needle**

Eyes (plastic safety eyes or glass wire-looped eyes). PLEASE NOTE THAT ATTACHED EYES ARE NOT RECOMMENDED FOR TOYS CREATED FOR CHILDREN! They can be a suffocation hazard. If you are making this toy for a child, rather embroider the eyes using embroidery thread! I would still suggest sculpting the eye sockets before embroidering the eyes…it adds a lovely realistic element :) I have used 12mm wire looped glass eyes. These can easily be sourced from sellers on eBay and Etsy.

: : Skills Requirements : :

Basic Crocheting Skills: Chain stitch (ch) , Single Crochet (sc), Double Crochet (dc), Slip Stitch (sl st), joining a chain to make a ring, joining in a new color , Magic Ring (MR)

Join-as-you-go motif joining: This pattern will require that you join the crocheted motifs each stitch to each stitch. This is necessary to prevent the stuffing popping out of the sheep. It is imperative that you are confident in your join-as-you-go ability. The method I use is explained in the Appendix pages found at the end of the pattern. These tutorials are illustrated by using motif chart illustrations with explanatory notes. This cuts down on printing :)
However, if you are scared witless by the thought of doing a join-as-you-go joining method, all is not lost…you can simply make all your motifs in full (including Round 5), then sew them together. The order of motif placement and the number of sides needing to be joined stays exactly the same whether you join-as-you-go or sew up.

Basic sewing skills Sewing the ears to the head and the tail to the body.

I have tried very hard to ensure that there re no errors, however, if you find one, please kindly let me know via om on Rav. Thank you!

Happy crocheting folks!
xxx Heidi