And I’m back with the first post of 2020 already! In 2017 we made a rooster, in 2018 we made a dog and in 2019 we made a pig. Making an animal for Chinese New Year has kinda become my own little tradition so I’m glad to continue making them 😀

I will also have a CAL (crochet along) on the Facebook group “Learn Amigurumi Crochet With Us“, so be sure to join that group if you want to join the CAL. The CAL starts Friday January 10th 2020, so in time to make this pattern before Lunar New Year.

This year, Lunar New Year starts on January 25th and it’s the year of the rat. I actually have owned 2 pet rats so I have a weak spot for these animals (as long as they’re tame 😛 )

This rat is crocheted in the round. Using stitch markers or a contrasting color of yarn can help you to count stitches. Pinning parts like the ears or legs in place before attaching them can help you find the right placement.

Pattern

Abbreviations

• sc – single crochet
• inc – increase
• dec – decrease
• ch – chain
• dc – double crochet
• dc-inc – double crochet increase (so 2 double crochets in the next stitch)
• n sc – single crochet n times
• [inc, sc] 6x – repeat the stitches between the brackets the indicated number of times
• (36) – stitch count at end of round

You will need

• 2,5mm crochet hook (size 1/B in US, size 12 in Canada)
• 125g/50m 100% cotton yarn (also called sport, 12wpi or 5 ply) in pink
• 125g/50m 100% cotton yarn (also called sport, 12wpi or 5 ply) in grey (or any color you want your rat to be – you can also use multiple colors if you want)
• black yarn for embroidering the eyes
• stuffing (this can be polyester fiberfill, fabric scraps or the inside of an old pillow)
• yarn needle, scissors, stitch markers

Of course you can use any yarn, as long as you change the size of your crochet hook accordingly. Here is a post where I explain how to find the right hook size for your yarn. If you use thicker yarn and a bigger hook, you will get a bigger rat.
My rat was made with a 2,5mm hook and is 10 cm excluding the tail.

Pattern

Body

1. Start in pink: 6sc in magic ring (6)
2. Change to grey: inc, 5sc (7)
3. inc, 6sc (8)
4. inc, 7sc (9)
5. inc, 8sc (10)
6. inc, 9sc (11)
7. inc, 10sc (12)
8. 4sc, inc, 2sc, inc, 4sc (14)
9. 4sc, inc, 4sc, inc, 4sc (16)
10. 16sc (16)
11. sc, inc, 3sc, dec, 2sc, dec, 3sc, inc, sc (16)
12. inc, sc, inc, 10sc, inc, sc, inc (20)
13. sc, inc, 5sc, dec, 2sc, dec, 5sc, inc, sc (20)
14. 2sc, inc, 14sc, inc, 2sc (22)
15. 2sc, inc, 5sc, dec, 2sc, dec, 5sc, inc, 2sc (22)
16. 22sc (22)
    Start to fill body and keep filling bit by bit until the end
17. inc, 10sc, inc, 10sc (24)
18. 24sc (24)
19. 24sc (24)
20. 24sc (24)
21. 24sc (24)
22. 24sc (24)
23. 24sc (24)
24. 24sc (24)
25. 24sc (24)
26. 12sc, dec, 2sc, dec, 6sc (22)
27. (3sc, dec, 4sc, dec) 2x (18)
28. (4sc, dec) 3x (15)
29. (sc, dec) 5x (10)
30. 5dec (5)
    Finish off

Foreleg (2x)

1. Start in pink: 4sc in magic ring (4)
2. 4sc (4)
3. Change to grey: sc2, inc2 (6)
4. inc, sc5 (7)
5. inc, sc6 (8)
   Finish off, no need to stuff

Hind leg (2x)

1. Start in pink: 4sc in magic ring (4)
2. 4sc (4)
3. inc, 3sc (5)
4. Change to grey: sc, dc, dc-inc, dc, sc (6)
5. 2sc, 2inc, 2sc (8)
   Finish off , no need to stuff

Ear (2x)

1. Start in pink: 5sc in magic ring (5)
2. 5inc (10)
   Finish off

Tail

Knot a piece of pink yarn to the back of the body. chain 15 (if you feel like this is too short, you can chain 20).

Assembly

• Eyes: I made 2 french knots between row 6-7, with 5 stitches in between the eyes.
• Ears: attach between row 9-10, with 3 stitches between the ears
• Forelegs: attach between row 13-16, with the insides of the legs 2 stitches apart. The legs are slightly tilted to the front.
• Hind legs: attach between row 21-25, with the insides of the legs 3 stitches apart. The legs are slightly tilted to the front.

I always love seeing what people make with my patterns, so if you share your creation on Instagram, be sure to tag me (@WithLoveFeli) so I can see what you made! You can also view my patterns on ravelry. You can also follow me on facebook and youtube, so you can see my new patterns and videos as soon as they come out.