The Evil Teddy Bear

How-to Questions
1

Ever since I learned how to knit I have been obessed with knowing how to make a teddy bear. My dream came true in the form of what I thought was an EASY teddy bear pattern (which it probably is but I cannot understand it)!!!
The Pattern is this:

Bear is knitted in one piece from toe to toe, and then folded up and sewn into shape before being stuffed and features added. Use any colour combination for bear, remembering to hold two strands together throughout.

Completed bear will be approx. 12" tall

Legs:

With 6mm (US 10) needles and one strand each of the pink and beige yarns held together, cast on 8 stitches.
Stocking stitch for 16 rows, ending on a purl row. Break yarn and transfer live stitches to a stitch holder.
Repeat for second leg, again ending on a purl row. Do NOT break yarn.
Knit across the leg just worked, and the leg from the stitch holder (16 stitches).

Belly & arms:

Stocking stitch 12 rows.
Cast on 10 stitches at the beginning of the next two rows using backward loop cast on. These form the arms, a total of 36 stitches (16 + 10 +10)
Stocking stitch 6 rows.
Cast off 10 stitches at the beginning of each of the next 2 rows, to finish the arms (16 stitches remaining)

Head:

Stocking stitch 32 rows (creating front and back of head).

Arms & back:

Cast on 10 stitches at the beginning of the next two rows using backward loop cast on. These form the arms, a total of 36 stitches (16 + 10 +10)
Stocking stitch 6 rows.
Cast off 10 stitches at the beginning of each of the next 2 rows, to finish the arms (16 stitches remaining)

Stocking stitch 12 rows.

Legs:

Work first 8 stitches on needle and slip remaining 8 stitches to a stitch holder.
Work 16 rows for leg and cast off.
Place stitches from stitch holder back onto needles, rejoin yarn and work 16 rows for leg. Cast off.

Making Up:

Weave in all ends. Fold bear in half along the head section ensuring legs and arms line up neatly. Pin in place if desired. Starting at an inside leg roughly an inch from the end of the leg, begin seaming the bear, following round the outside to the top of the head. Secure yarn, and seam other side, again starting near the bottom of the leg and continuing to the top of the head, with an opening now left where the legs join the body.

Create ears by running stitches across the corner at each side of the head.

Stuff bear, filling head and arms first, and then legs and stomach.

Make neck by weaving a length of yarn in and out around the bear where the arms join. Pull tight, pushing more stuffing up into the head to firm before securing the yarn and tidying the ends. Finish stuffing the bear, and seam the opening shut.

Sew buttons on for eyes, and embroider a nose and mouth. If giving to a child, embroider eyes rather than using buttons.

MY QUESTIONS:

First off I have done part of it which includes: casting on the first 8 stitches and working them for 16 rows, then I cut the yarn and put the stitches on another needle. Then I began my next 8 stitches and have worked 16 rows with it (it is still attached to my yarn). My questions include: how to work across the legs? (does this make one or two legs becasue there is another section for legs). If someone could please help me I would be overjoyed!!

2

Basically the pattern creates a two dimensional knitted bear: you knit up the legs, belly and arms, the front of the head and then down the back of the head, the back and arms and finally the legs. The bear becomes three dimensional when you fold it over at the halfway point between the front of the head and the back of the head and sew along the outer edge.
For the legs, knit across the 8sts that are on the needle, and then knit the 8sts that are on the holder so that you now have 16sts on the needle. Don’t worry that the join between the two legs is only one strand, further knitting will add to that join.
Continue with the belly directions.
Best just to post a small part of the pattern so that we don’t violate any copyright regs.

3

Thank you so much! I now understand the pattern, except I have one more question about the arms and how to cast on for both of them.

4

It says to use a backward loop at the [I]beginning[/I] of the next 2 rows, but it doesn’t work that way. A backward loop CO is done at the end of a row, but it’s not really a good one to use for more than a coupla sts. Use a knit or loose cable CO at the beginning of a row; see the Cast on videos if you’re not sure how to do that.