Behold the Dice Bag!

Tremble at the most fearsome of dice bags: The Beholder! The multi-eyed monster of D&D lore!

This is my first pattern, a result of not really liking any of the Beholder bags I found and being too stubborn to make something else.

The skills used in in this pattern are as follows (all in US crochet terms):

• Magic Ring or Magic Circle (MR)
• Single crochet (Sc)
• Single crochet increase (Inc)
• Invisible decrease
• Finishing off
• Running stitch
• Whip stitch

For an excellent tutorial on Magic Rings, check out Planet June for a video tutorial!

As a time-saving measure, I held the yard double for the body; working with two strands of the same colour yarn can be a little tricky, but it works up much quicker than single yarn.

This pattern is worked in continuous rounds, not joined, and it’s strongly recommended that you keep a stitch marker at the beginning of the working row. This pattern is also a little customizable, the measurements I used are here but if you prefer a taller Beholder you can add a few rows, if you want a smaller one skip some of the Sc around between rows 7-12. The opening for the mouth is similarly customizable; for a wider mouth ch more in row 13, for narrower do fewer. The important bit is to keep the same number of chains as stitches. This can also be bade into a stuffed toy by skipping the open mouth and crocheting a continuous ball!

Stitches which are between ** should be treated as a unit and repeated together. For example, with "*sc 1, inc* around" the entire round would be sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc.

The supplies you'll need for this project are as follows:

• Yarn colour A for body and eyestalks
• White yarn for eyes
• Yarn for irises (this is a good stash buster for using the ends of balls)
• Black yarn or other dark colour for main pupil
• Black or dark pipe cleaners for eye stalks
• 6.5mm and a 4mm crochet hook - or the sizes to match gauge
• Zipper - matched the body colour, but white or red could work well too
• Sewing needle and thread to match your yarn and zip
• Scissors
• Tapestry needle

Holding the yarn double and working from top to bottom with your larger hook:
R1: Sc 6 in MR (6)
R2: Inc 1 in each stitch (12)
R3: *Sc 1, inc* around (18)
R4: *Inc, sc 2* around (24)
R5: *Sc 1, inc, sc 2* around (30)
R6: *Inc, sc 4* around (36)
R7-12: Sc around (36)
R13: Sc 2, chain 17 and skip 17 sc. In the 18th st, sc back into the row below. Sc until the end of the round.. (36)
R14: Sc 2, sc in each st of chain, then continue sc in the base (36)
R15-17: Sc around (36)
R18: *Sc 2, invisible decrease, sc 2* around (30)
R19: *Sc 3, invisible decrease* around (24)
R20: *Sc 1, invisible decrease, sc 1* (18)
R21: *Invisible decrease, sc* around (12)
R22: Invisible decrease around (6)

Fasten off the bottom.

The Zipper attachment is probably the most tricky part of assembly and I like to get it out of the way early. Having the zip in also gives some stability to the body, which I’ve found makes sewing on the eyes somewhat easier. First thing to do is figure out how wide you actually want the zip to open; put a stop stitch there to keep the zip from separating unintentionally while you sew it.

Turn the body inside out and anchor the start of the zipper to one side of the mouth with a few stitches on the inside. I’ve found it’s easier to give a preliminary attachment using a running stitch the entire length of the zipper, then secure it using a whip stitch around the outer edge. Just remember to keep the zipper partly open so you can turn it right-side in after you’ve finished!

The eye stalks are made using the smaller hook with single held yarn in white and the body colour. This is also where you'll use the pipe cleaners. I like the look of 5 stalks, but you can make more or fewer to your preference.

In the body colour:

R1: 6 in MR (6)
R2: Switch to body colour; Inc around (12)
R3: Sc around (12)
R4: *Invisible decrease, sc* around (9)
R5-6: Sc around (9)

Insert a pipe cleaner between rows 1 and 2 (the white magic ring and the first row of colour); sort of arc it over so each end goes through the opposite side of the magic ring with a long tail going down the inside of the stalk. I usually twist the short end around the longer to prevent slipage. Pull until it's flush with the eye.

R7-21: Sc around (9) Fasten off and leave tail for sewing
This is another customisable portion; if you’d like a shorter or longer stalk you can have more or fewer rows.

For the main eye, single yarn with smaller hook in white:

R1: Sc 6 in MR (6)
R2: Inc 1 in each stitch (12)
R3: *Sc 1, inc* around (18)
R4: *Inc, sc 2* around (24)
R5: *Sc 2, inc, sc 1* around (30)
Leave a long tail for sewing

For the smaller eyes, two passes on either side of the pipe cleaner made a nice iris; I used scraps of red and yellow I had left over from earlier projects but any colour works. Stuff any extra yarn into the stalk to give it a little form. The main eye is more easily embroidered after attaching to the body, so let's get started on that.

Above the hole for the mouth, use the tapestry needle to sew around the perimeter of the eye. Tie off the end and If you have a lot of extra yarn you can hide it behind the eye itself by pulling it with the smaller hook. Beholders have a sort of V-shaped iris and pupil, so starting with the iris colour give loose passes laying down the yarn.

You don't have to go completely around the back of the eye; looping through the edge of the eyes will save on yarn and bulk (see photo). Don’t pull tightly or the eye will pucker and become distorted. Once you have a pupil size you like, finish off and hide the tail behind the eye. Follow the same process for the pupil, again hiding the tail behind the eye.

To attach the eye stalks:

Feed the end of the pipe cleaner through the body where you want the eyes to be placed. Mine were long enough to go down through the body and back up into the stalks. Sew aroud the perimeter of the stalk's base using the tail and finish off by dragging the end ad loosing it in the stalk. Repeat for each eye

This size Beholder has an interior capacity about the size of a grapefruit (or a pomegranate. or a large softball) so it should be up to the challenge of holding quite a few dice.

Finished model generously on loan from the recipient for the purposes of taking photos and reverse engineering the pattern.