Deramores Topsty Turvy Red Riding Hood Toy Knitting Pattern

Deramores Topsty Turvy Red Riding Hood Knitting Pattern

Project Overview

This is an intermediate-level knitting pattern for creating a charming 22cm tall Little Red Riding Hood doll with accompanying wolf character. Designed by Amanda Berry, this downloadable PDF pattern creates a finished toy suitable for display or play. The project uses flat knitting construction on straight needles to create individual pieces that are subsequently sewn together to form the complete doll.

What Is Being Made

The pattern includes instructions for knitting a Little Red Riding Hood figure and a wolf character. The main doll features a beige head, brown body components, and a distinctive red hooded cape in Deramores Studio DK yarn. The wolf is constructed in grey yarn. Both characters are three-dimensional stuffed toys created through flat knitting and assembly techniques.

Knitting Techniques Used

• Flat knitting construction: All pieces are knitted back and forth on straight needles rather than in the round, creating flat panels that are later sewn together
• Increases: The pattern employs kfb (knit front and back) increases to shape the doll's head and body, creating shaping from a small cast-on edge
• Decreases: K2tog (knit two together) decreases are used to taper and shape pieces, particularly visible in the head shaping sequence
• Stockinette stitch: The primary stitch throughout the pattern, created by alternating knit rows on the right side with purl rows on the wrong side
• Seaming: Pieces are assembled using a darning needle and yarn tails to create a three-dimensional form
• Stuffing: The finished pieces are filled with toy filling to create a soft, dimensional doll

Stitches and Stitch Abbreviations

• St st (Stockinette stitch): The foundational stitch creating a smooth, V-textured fabric
• Kfb (Knit front and back): An increase stitch that creates two stitches from one by knitting into both the front and back loop
• K2tog (Knit two together): A right-leaning decrease that combines two stitches into one
• K (Knit): Basic knit stitch worked on right-side rows
• P (Purl): Basic purl stitch worked on wrong-side rows

Materials and Notions

Needles and Tools: The pattern requires a pair of 3.5mm (US 4) straight knitting needles for the main construction, plus a 3.5mm (US E/4) crochet hook for finishing details. A darning or tapestry needle is essential for seaming the knitted pieces together and for embroidery work.

Yarn: The pattern uses Deramores Studio DK yarn in six coordinating colors. One 100g skein of each color provides sufficient yardage to complete the entire doll. The specific colors are Oatmeal (beige), Chocolate (brown), Lapis (blue), Raspberry (red), Jade (green), Smoke (grey), and Frost (white). Less than one metre of black DK yarn is needed for the wolf's embroidered nose details.

Additional Notions: The pattern requires one bag of toy filling to stuff the completed pieces, creating a soft three-dimensional form. Four 5mm black beads serve as the doll's eyes. Pink embroidery thread or floss is used for embroidering Red's mouth details.

Tension and Finished Dimensions

The recommended tension is approximately 22 stitches and 28 rows per 10cm square when working stockinette stitch on 3.5mm needles. However, the pattern notes that tension is not critical for this toy project. The finished Little Red Riding Hood doll measures 22cm in height.

Pattern Techniques Explained

Casting on: The pattern uses the long tail cast on method for all pieces unless otherwise specified. This traditional cast-on creates a neat, elastic edge suitable for toy construction.

Shape progression: The head shaping demonstrates a classic increase-and-decrease sequence. Starting with 13 cast-on stitches, the pattern increases to 25 stitches, then to 37 stitches at the widest point, before systematically