If you're a faithful reader of The Purl Bee, you may remember that a few weeks ago we mentioned that we're having a baby boom at Purl Soho.  I'm very excited to say that I happen to be one of the very happy Purl Soho-Mother's-To-Be! When I started thinking about knitting for my baby, I didn't have to think very hard about what my first project for my little one would be. I have always loved the Bobbi Bear (and the Baby Bobbi Bear) pattern from Blue Sky Alpacas because it's so big (almost 2 feet tall!) which makes it great to cuddle with, plus the pattern is very well written, very quick and it doesn't involve a lot of sewing up.  I've made my share of Bobbi Bears for friend's babies over the years with Blue Sky's Bulky and their Cotton as well.  I recently made Whitney's Bulky Baby Blanket for a friend's baby with Spud & Chloe Outer and I loved how soft it is (plus it's machine washable!) so I decided to use it for my Bobbi Bear.  I chose Sequoia, a red color, because it's not gender specific and because it has a vintage quality that I love.

If you'd like to make your own Bobbi Bear in Spud & Chloe Outer here is what you'll need:

• Bobbi Bear Pattern
• 4 skeins Spud & Chloe Outer main color (I used Sequoia), plus 1 skein for the eyes and nose (I used Flannel)
• 1 bag of stuffing
• US size 13, 16-inch circular needles
• US size 13 double pointed needles
• Tapestry needle for finishing

Please keep in mind that Blue Sky's Bobbi Bear pattern is written specifically for Blue Sky Alpacas Bulky which is thicker than the Spud & Chloe Outer, so the pattern recommends US size 17, 24-inch circular needles, plus US size 17 double points (the pattern gauge is 7 stitches to 4 inches).  Since the Spud & Chloe Outer is a thinner yarn, I used US size 13 needles and my gauge was 8 stitches to 4 inches, but in every other way I followed the pattern to the letter.

Enjoy! --Jen