One of the best knits

Imagine my horror the other night when I showed this to my husband:

And he had no idea why I was so excited. Apparently, he never read Calvin and Hobbes as a child. It was my absolute favorite comic growing up. The artwork was stellar:

The stories and jokes were fresh and hilarious. Calvin had so many little worlds conjured up... You couldn't help but fall in love with Calvin's huge personality and his equally-entertaining sidekick, a stuffed tiger named Hobbes.

So there are two patterns for Hobbes that I love. The one pictured above is the My Free Hobbes pattern by Ann Stiver-Balla, which is just fabulous and so accurate to Hobbes in toy form, which is how everyone except Calvin perceived him:

And there's this knitting pattern, which shows Hobbes in the form the reader (and Calvin) are more used to:

This is the Tall Tiger pattern by BrowneyedBabs. Although I like the aesthetic of the first pattern more, this one is definitely the character we all know and love. Extra mega bonus points to the designer for his lovely, expressive face and great tutorials on her blog. Plus, it's knitting, whereas the first is crochet, so my sad lack of skills make the determination, there.

It's funny to me, because I'm not usually big on knitted toys. In all honesty, it's because I just don't want to figure out where to keep them afterward. I do suggest that you try making toys if you haven't already, because you learn so many new tools, innovative ways to make shapes, and you can experiment with colorwork without worrying about the wearability of messing it up. Also, if I'm being entirely honest, there's nothing quite like making something and having it come 'alive' in front of you. I love my sweaters, but they are not little beings to me.

Not going to lie- I'm already scouting yarn for this. I'll want an acrylic for washability, for sure. Anyone have a suggestion? And what are your favorite toy patterns? Childhood comics?

- YX

(Just a few more days on August's giveaway!)