Continuous Knit Teddy Bear
For people who don’t like to cut or sew their yarn for each part of a stuffed animal. The entire stuffed animal is done with 1 continuous strand of yarn.
Gauge
9 sts = 2 inches
8 rows = 1 inch
Makes a bear that is ~12 inches tall and ~10 inches wide.
Supplies
Stuffing
4-ply acrylic yarn
Size 6, 16” circular knitting needles (double pointed needles work as well)
Size F crochet hook (optional)
(You can use whatever yarn, needles, and hooks work for you as long as it’s consistent throughout the pattern. I'm just listing what I used in case you want a bear the same size as mine.)
Skills needed
How to garder stitch in the round, how to pick up stitches along an edge, how to cast on using a single strand of yarn, and (optional) how to single and double crochet
Abbreviations
BO = bind off
CO = cast on
Dc = double crochet
Inc 1 = increase 1
K = knit
P = purl
Sc = single crochet
St(s) = stitch(es)
Leg 1
CO 15
1-49: garder st
50: K15, CO 15 sts, do not cut the yarn
Leg 2
1-50: garder st the 15 sts you just added while saving the other 15 sts for later
The picture below shows what the project should look like after row 2 of the second leg.
Important!
Do not knit the 15 sts from leg 1. Only knit the 15 sts from leg 2 for 50 rows.
After row 50 do not BO. Save all 30 sts for the body.
This is what the project should look like after row 50 of leg 2.
Body
Pick up 15 sts along the bottom edge (CO edge) of the leg you just finished (leg 2).
K 15 sts from leg 1 (you may have to take your needle out of the sts and turn it around to do so).
Pick up 15 sts from the bottom edge (CO edge) of leg 1.
You now have 60 sts on your needles and you can start knitting in the round. First place a st marker on your needle so that you know when each round starts and ends.
Rounds 1-25: garder st
After a couple rounds you may want to put a pin or a marker in round 1 so you know where to start counting rounds.
Your project should look like this after 25 rounds.
If you are on a purl round then add one more round so that you are on a knit round for the next part.
Round 26: K 15, CO 20, K 30, CO 20, K15
You should now have 100 sts on your needles.
(Arms)
Rounds 27-43: garder st all 100 sts
If you are on a purl round then add one more round so that you are on a knit round for the next part.
Round 44: K 12, BO 26, K 24, BO 26, K 12
You should now have 48 sts on your needles.
(Head)
Round 45: P 48
Round 46: K 48
Round 47: P 48
Round 48: *K 8, inc 1* 6 times (54 sts)
Round 49: P
Round 50: *K 9, inc 1* 6 times (60 sts)
Rounds 51-75: garder st
Round 76: BO all sts and do not cut the yarn
Using a size F crochet hook, sc around the edge of the bear sealing all openings. Don’t forget to stuff the bear as you go.
I like to dc 5 in the corners of the head to make some cute ears.
Now you can cut the yarn and weave in the ends.
If you don’t know how to crochet you can cut the yarn leaving a really long tail and sew all the openings shut.
The bear may look a little plain at first, but if you add a face and a scarf, he becomes a classic.
