ERIK and Erika

Once I had completed Erik's head last week, I pushed right on and began knitting the rest of him - well, he looked a little embarrassed without a body! This part was surprisingly quick and easy - just a little bit of simple shaping in order to make his bottom half nice and plump - all in stocking stitch, except for his bobtail which is knitted in garter stitch.

I blocked the main pieces and the tummy panel overnight and then using mattress stitch I seamed all of the pieces together. The legs are constructed in such a way as to make them bend slightly to the front, so it's a good idea when you are seaming these main pieces together to bear in mind that you will need to ease the smaller front section into the larger back half of the legs. This is actually where mattress stitch is invaluable - I picked up one bar from the top/smaller front section and 2 bars on the larger back section and it worked out pretty much perfectly.

It's always a good idea to take some time to stuff these knitted softies well. Too firmly and you can see the stuffing through the stretched out stitches - not enough and your Erik will be rather limp! I found, much to my dismay, that I hadn't really got enough stuffing to plump out mine quite as much as our original Erik, and as a result my bunny looks rather skinnier! Slightly more delicate, not so butch perhaps and now that I look at the face, even this seems to be a little more feminine than our original Erik, and so the lovely Erika - companion to Erik has been born! Not that this is a bad thing - we had great fun with Erik and Erika yesterday who made their debut on Instagram - you can follow the adventures of Erik @millamia_sweden or see my own Erik Easter Bunny project on Ravelry.

If you are keen to knit your own Erik, then this pattern is completely FREE from our website or on Ravelry. More excitingly though, we have launched a Competition over on our Facebook page where you can win the yarn to knit your very own Erik Easter Bunny! As a seasoned traveller, Erik is sending postcards from renowned destinations across the world, and all you have to do is guess correctly which city and country he is in and then post your answer in a comment under the picture, Simple!

There will be 4 chances to win over the course of the next 2 weeks, so hop on over and have a go!

(posted by Max)