Crocheted Monster Book of Monsters Pillow/Plushie

I am twelve years old and I am really into all things crocheted and all things Harry Potter. This was the perfect summer project for me and I created this original pattern on my own using my own experience with crochet and amigurumi. After trial and error and creating the plushie/pillow four times, I am finally happy enough and confident that my pattern is one that you'll love too!

In this instructable, I will teach you how to make your own cute, cuddly, and creative crocheted Monster Book of Monsters from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. And while we are at it, why not make the pillow as realistic as we can? With the help of a regular cat comb, you can make your pillow very soft and furry as well!

The stitches you will need to know are pretty simple and you will be able to whip out your very own friend or friendly monster in no time.

Materials and Abbreviations

If you know how to crochet and you love the Harry Potter series, this adorable crocheted Monster Book of Monsters Pillow is for you! And by using different eyes and different amounts of combing, you can make this cute pet your very own. The materials are not expensive, and it is a fun project to make while watching television or if you are on a car trip (not while driving of course).

This is a beginner to intermediate project and the stitches you must know are below:

Abbreviations and stitches you should know:

Chain or chain Slip stitch: slst

Single crochet: sc

Double crochet: dc

Triple crochet: tc

3 triple crochet bobble: 3 tc bobble

Front loop only single crochet: flo sc

Back loop only single crochet: blo sc

Stitch(es): st(s)

Finish off: FO

Skip: sk

The few materials you will be needing for this fun project are as follows:

J/10 6.00mm crochet hook

G/6 4.25mm crochet hook

Light Brown or tan yarn

White yarn

Pink yarn

Light grey yarn

Dark brown Yarn *optional for belt strap

Polyester stuffing

Yarn needle

4 medium sized yellow or dark brown safety eyes

Grey marker

Brown marker

Pet comb (to make furry) *optional

Scissors

Do very tight stitches or else the stuffing will show through.

Cover

(Light brown yarn)

Quantity: 1

Size J/10 6.00mm

Ch 41 sk 1 and turn;

(Row 1-8:) sc all the way across; ch 1 and turn (40)

(Row 9:) sc in next 17 sts; tc in next st, sc in next 4 sts; tc in next st; sc in next 17 sts, ch 1 and turn (40)

(Row 10:) sc in next 17 sts; tc in next st; sc in next 4 sts; tc in next st; sc in next 21 sts; ch 1 and turn (40)

(Row 11-24:) sc all the way across; ch 1 and turn (40) (Row 25:) sc 18; in next 4 sts do 1 3dc bobble; sc 18; ch 1 and turn (40)

(Row 26-46:) sc 26; ch 1 and turn(40)

(Row 47:) flo sc across ch 1 and turn(40)

(Row 48-55:) sc 26; ch 1 and turn(40) (Row 56:) flo sc across ch 1 and turn (40)

(Row 57-103): sc across (40)

Fo leaving a very large tail (5 yards long or longer)

Edging

(Light brown yarn)

Quantity 1:

Size J/10 6.00mm

Around the edge of the light brown cover, start at a corner with a new piece of light brown yarn and repeat from * to * until you have gone all the way around the cover one time. *( 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts; slst in next; ch 5 turn sk 1 st; and slst in next 2 ch; sc in next 2 ch; slst to base in the next sc.)* The corners of the monster book of monsters count as 3 stitches so you must treat them as 3 stitches when completing this pattern.

These are the little fangs/tentacles all around his body.

FO and hide the end in the body or cover.

Assembly for the book cover:
Using the pet comb lightly (as to not pull out the yarn or rip it), pull over the side of the cover’s fabric that the bobble stitches are poking out to make the long fur, just as if you were combing a cat. Continue until you get the desired effect or length. On each bobble stitch add one safety eye so that it faces the nose slits. The nose slits are the tc. Place the back of the safety eye on the opposite or wrong side of the bobble stitch to secure into place.

You do not need to worry about combing the tentacles furry because the real Monster Book of Monsters has a furry body and slimy tentacles. However, I think it would be gross to make a crocheted piece that is slimy!

Gums: (Not fangs, use pink yarn)

Quantity: 2

size G/6 4.25mm

Ch 10 sk 1 and turn;

(R1:) sc in each st across; ch1 and turn(9)

(R2:) slst in first st; sc in next 7; ch 1 and turn (sk the last st) (9)

(R3:) sc in next 7 sts; ch 1 and turn (sk the last st) (7)

(R4-5:) sc 1 in each st across (7)

FO (This is the gums/clasp)

Use white yarn for the teeth:

For the two sts you skipped on either side you are going to crochet a single tooth and cut off for each, but for the top/the whole row before you cut off you are going to sc a tooth in each st across, one tooth in each sc before cutting off and hiding the ends.

Tooth:

Quantity: 2 separate, 6 together

size G/6 4.25mm

Slst in the sc you are working in; ch 2; sk 1 and slst in next. Slst back to the same sc you are working on.

Cut off if it is separate (the two on the edge). If not, continue on to the end (x6) before cutting off.

Big Fangs: (not teeth, light brown yarn or light gray yarn)

Quantity: 2

size G/6 4.25mm

Ch 8; slst to first st to create a round; (8)

(Rd 1-3:) sc 1 in each st around (8)

(Rd 4:) Repeat 2 times *(sc2tog, sc in next 2)* (6)

(Rd 5-6:) sc 1 in each st around (6)

(Rd 7:) Repeat 2 times *(sc2tog; sc in next st)* (4)

(Rd 8-9:) sc 1 in each st (4)

FO Leaving a end of about one foot for sewing and lightly stuff pillow with stuffing.

If you have gotten to this point and you have already finished crocheting the cover, combing the fur out, placing the eyes, making the edging, making the gums and teeth and the fangs, you must be pretty excited because you are practically finished! All you need to do is crochet the book pages and assemble the book together. The pages are a strip using the blo and flo stitches to create the illusion of many pages.

Pages: (white yarn)

Quantity: 1

size J/10 6.00mm

Ch 135 sk 1 and turn

(R1:) sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

(R2:) flo sc all across; ch 1 and turn(134)

This should create a ridge between rows 1 and 2

(R3:) blo sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

(R4:) flo sc all across; ch 1 and turn(134)

(R5:) blo sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

(R6:) flo sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

(R7:) blo sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

(R8:) flo sc all across; ch 1 and turn (134)

FO and weave in the tail

On one edge you should see lots of little ridges and on the other there are none. The side with the ridges will be the side that you will see sticking out of the pillow and the other side will be touching the stuffing on the inside.

Your Monster Book of Monsters is nearly finished! All you need to do is add a dash of coloring, a bit of sewing, and a whole bunch of Harry Potter spirit!

1: Teeth and gums:

Using the light brown and grey marker, color lightly on the right side of the fabric to make his teeth "dirty". After you color on the pink gums, you may want to hand wash it lightly so that the color sets and there is no extra juice from the marker left on the gums that could rub off on other parts of him or on you when you are taking a nap.

You will want to sew the gums on the front middle part of the cover where the eyes are poking out. You will want to hide any extra ends that were on it. The other set of teeth and gums will be sewn on the opposite side of the monster book.

2. Fangs:

After stuffing your fangs, you will need to sew them on either side of the upper set teeth and gums that were sewn onto his body.

3. Book pages:

Line up the pages to the body of the Monster Book of Monsters so that the bumpy side is facing outwards. One side should be touching the first blo stitch and the other side of the pages should line up with the same blo stitch but on the other side. Using light brown yarn instead of white yarn, sew that side to the first half of the pillow. Once you have done that you will need to fold the pillow over so that the other blo stitch is touching the other side of the monster. You will then sew that side down using the same brown color yarn. Leaving a small hole on one end, you will need to stuff it however firm you like your pillows: stiff = more stuffing, fluffy = less stuffing. Once you have stuffed it the way you like it, you may sew it up completely and hide the end.

4. Buckle:

Hide any more ends if needed. You can crochet your Monster Book of Monsters a buckle to keep his teeth and gum flaps closed. However, because of the way your pillow may be stuffed, you'll need to crochet your strap the correct length to fit all the way around your pillow, plus a little extra for the buckle to fold under itself for effect. Using a darker brown yarn this time, crochet a strip of four stitches wide by the length needed to fit all the way around your monster plus eight more inches. Sew the short ends of the strap together for a closed loop. Pinch three inches of the loop together and fold it over once and then fold it back over itself again. Sew the folded over piece together so it stays shut. Then you can sew on a embroidered buckle made out of grey yarn for the final touch.

Congratulations! Whether or not you decided to make the buckle for your pillow you are done. Now you can take a stylish nap with your very own crocheted Monster Book of Monsters pillow/plushie. Let me know in the comments what you think of my design and creation, and if you decided to make your own!

(Final dimensions are 11" x 11.5" x 3")