Meet Rusty the Red Panda! This adorable fella is our newest curious critter crochet pattern. This playful panda is sure to be a fantastic addition to your fiber art project collection!
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Red pandas are the cutest animals on earth!
Ok….ok…I agree. That is a highly bold and broad statement, and I am sure some of you out there are going “no way! you forgot about *fill in also incredibly adorable creature name*, but I think we all can agree that red pandas hold a spot pretty firmly at the top of the list. I have had a red panda on my list of must makes for some time now, and figured that now is the perfect time for Rusty to debut!
Rusty has absolutely strengthened my approach to future critters, marking a milestone in my crochet journey. His design forced me to stretch some of my techniques, and in doin so, it has also solved some puzzles I have had on my design table for a long time! I am so proud of how this alluring Ailuridae has turned out. He has definitely stolen the hearts of myself and my tester team. Will yours be next?
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Crocheting Rusty
Rusty is an upper end intermediate pattern. Be sure to break out your yarn needle, stitch markers and pins for this fella. You will be working in the round, and in rows with some joins as you go. I have added many pictures along the way to help make him as easy as possible to create for any seasoned crocheter. I have also included a text only print formatted version for those who wish to work with a paper pattern in front of them.
Red Panda Materials
Rusty is created using 4 colors of worsted weight yarn and a 4mm hook. Red pandas have a pretty distinct color palette about them and if you want to be as close as possible you are looking for black, white and rusty orange and red shades. I chose Vanna’s Choice yarn by lion brand. This is a solid worsted weight yarn that I find works well for amigurumi. You will need 100g of the Rust and Black, with The main color will use about 60 yards with less than 40g of each Brick & White. You can absolutely choose to use a different weight 4 yarn. I used big twist yarn for the colorful version you will find within the pdf.
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Rusty the red panda uses 21mm safety eyes, and an 18mm nose. While you can use a 15-20 mm nose size variance and still have him turn out handsome, I highly suggest sticking with 21mm eyes for worsted weight yarn. His eyes are used as a focal point of the face construction. I got both my eyes and my noses from the amazing Suncatcher Craft Eyes .
Rusty has optional whiskers. To make these I used .46mm satin silver beading wire, and secured in place after threading through with a dab of E6000 glue.
Rusty’s crochet pattern can be found for purchase in my Etsy, Ravelry , Lovecrafts, & Amigurumi.com shops!
Make sure to join us in June for this for a Crochet CAL featuring Rusty in our community Discord server!
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Fun Facts about Red Pandas!
- Red pandas have their own genetic family to which they are the only remaining species: Ailuridae
- Red pandas are classified as carnivores, however their diet consists of mainly bamboo (up to 20000 leaves a day!)
- The red panda is the original panda
- Are located in Asia. These animals are classified as endangered with less than 10,000 population in the wild.
- Use their long tails as a blanket when they sleep.
[…] However the wonderful thing about crochet is that you can choose any colors that you wish! (check out my purple and aquamarine Rusty here!) You will also be using 21mm safety eyes for Rusty. I get mine from Suncatcher Craft eyes. If you […]