Fierce or Sleepy Dragon Part Two of Three ~ Stuffing and Shaping The Pieces



Stuffing and Shaping the dragon pieces,

For the written pattern please click here
Part three (assembly) page here

There is also a video series on youtube for every single part of this dragon, I show how to crochet each row, how to stuff and shape, I've left nothing out. 14 videos in one playlist here





Dragon BODY AND HEAD:
If you had troubles stuffing the body as you went through the written pattern, not to worry, you can add more stuffing and shape now. Note the shaping of the body here. Where we did majority of the hdc's at the start of the pattern is the belly. Stuff the belly full, shape as you stuff. A little further up is where we will attach the arms then above that is the neck. The part where we did the majority of hdc's in the neck area is the back of the neck. Take advantage of the spaces inside as you stuff. Take your time!

The head has a couple rows of hdc's and that is the top of the head. Stuff and shape accordingly
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HOW TO MAKE THE SPIKES:
Lay the tail flat with the finishing yarn tail in the center. Make a ridge on the tail by pinching the top surface of the tail all the way down to the tip of the tail.

The start of the ridge should be about an inch tall getting gradually shorter to the tip. Use the yarn tail and weave in and out through the bottom of the ridge you made to hold the shape.

To make the spikes, insert yarn through the tip of the tail and ch1. Now working along the very top of the ridge you made, 1sc in next space, 1hdc in next space, 1sc in next then sl st next space.

That was the beginning of the tail now for the rest of the tail repeat this sequence to the last spike: ch2 then 3dc in next space, 1sc next space then sl st next space. Repeat.

There should be a bit of space between the last spike and the edge of the tail when you get to the other end, just put 1sc in the next couple spaces and f/o. Weave yarn tails in.







SHAPING AND SEWING THE WINGS TOGETHER:
I did not design left and right. There are 4 pieces that make up the wings. 2 outer wings, same color as body and 2 inner wings that are made with an alternate color.

Lay them out first to see how they will look. View the photos below to get the idea of how they will look when they are done.

I did my very best to explain how to crochet these pieces in the written pattern. If you have troubles view the video.


First stretch out the outer wing with your fingers, especially stretch out the longest tip of the outer wing. Lay the inner wing on top, you should be able to see the outer edge of the outer wing all the way around.

Use a strand of yarn the same color as the outer wing to sew the pieces together. Go along the edge of the inner wing, make short stitches and pull tight, once you pull tight you should no longer see the darker color yarn.


Once you have the inner and outer pieces sewn together add the pipe cleaner.
Here I sewed in one pipe cleaner but later on with my other dragons I used 2. It's up to you how many you use. If you use 2, just twist them together for easier handling.

Lay the pipe cleaner on top of the outer wing's edge. The ends of the pipe cleaner should meet each other at the rounded part of the wing so that no ends ever poke through in the future. Whip stitch it in place, all the way around, taking your time to follow the shape of the wing.

If you have a similar colored pipe cleaner to the color of your out wing it will be a bit easier. As you can see I used black here and it worked out fine. I just had to make sure there were no spaces between my whip stitches and I completely covered up the pipe cleaner.

Cut off excess pipe cleaner


Once you have the pipe cleaner sewn in place you can now shape the wing. Pinch the tips together and shape the top edge as desired.


SHAPING THE EARS:
These are pretty easy, just roll and sew the end like a taco. Make sure that you roll the wrong side facing the inside of the roll. Also make sure to roll in the opposite direction when you roll the 2nd ear. You want the ears to look the same once they are sewn onto the dragon!


FINGERS:

I won't go into how to make fingers here as it is a whole tutorial in itself. I do have a video for this arm and hand on youtube here.


EYES:

There are 2 different eye patterns. One for the Fierce dragon and one for the Sleepy looking dragon. For the Fierce dragon, the pupils are added just by wrapping a different color yarn. Feel free to play around with different style eyes if you want to as these are pretty basic. Video here







RIDGES ON THE HEAD:

You can make the dragon's head change looks quite a bit by adding in ridges just like we did for the tail. Pinch the part you want to have a ridge then weave a yarn tail in and out along the bottom of the ridge to hold its shape.

Then you can add in some sc's, dc's and hdc along the top of the ridge to make it tall or short, sharp or softer looking. I start the beginning of the ridge by inserting and pulling the yarn through, ch1 then 1sc, 1hdc and if I want a tall spot then add in a 1dc or 2.

Feel free to play around with different looks. For the fierce dragon the ridge got sharper looking ridges by adding in dc's in the middle, the sleepy looking dragon has more rounded ridges for a softer look and he didn't get a ridge on the snout.


The mouth should be sewn on after the head is sewn to the body. Please wait for the assembly section for the mouth part. A ridge can be added to the mouth as well but after it is sewn to the head.


HOW TO ASSEMBLE THE DRAGON here


Copyright 2016 Author: Sharon Ojala - Amigurumi To Go, All rights reserved



Comments

  1. The different eyes give your dragon a different look. I like both dragons, but I like the sleep dragon eyeballs the most. Thank you.

    Have a nice day, Margaret

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love this pattern so much. Thank you. I am making it with Aunt Lydias' Bedspread weight. I will try to post pics.

    ReplyDelete
  3. zou heel graag bij jouw een paar haak lesen willen volgen .
    ik Nathalie Prins ben helemaal verlieft op jouw prachtige haakwerken meid ga voor al zo door top
    Groetjes
    Nathalie Prins en op Facebook

    ReplyDelete
  4. Where are the directions for spikes on the back of the body?
    Thanks Patty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. on this page you are commenting on. I just added red headings to each section so it'll be easier to see. Scroll up and look for, HOW TO MAKE THE SPIKES:

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  5. Hi Sharon,
    I'm in the process of making Sleepy Dragon for our 10 year old grandson he is going to love it and I appreciate how you have explained the entire process step by step and with videos too. Thank you for sharing your talent. :D

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi there

    I would like to make sleepy for my great niece but can not find the print friendly link. Coul you help me out?
    Thank you so much

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. you have to be viewing from a computer to see the print friendly, it's at the bottom of the pattern page (above comments)and usually on the right side, depending on your browser.

      Delete
  7. Sharon, your patterns are amazing! The very first amigurumi I made was your monkey...3 years and hundreds of amigurumis later, I think your designs are the best! Thank you so much for posting your patterns!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. thank you so much! That was really awesome to hear and was nice of you to say. Happy crocheting!

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  8. Where do I find the pattern for the white belly? Or the yellow bellt? Thanks in advance. P.S. these are adorable, I'm making them for my tomboy grand daughter 😊

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the belly patch is in the written pattern that is called part 1, you can find that link at the top of this page OR go to the introductory post for the dragon and there you will find links to all the videos and to all 3 parts and other helpful info about the dragon. Highlight and copy this link https://www.amigurumitogo.com/2016/06/dragons-in-my-kitchen-free-pattern-with.html

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  9. Though its time consuming, the end product is amazing. I am making these Dragons, the way you hv explained makes it simple, interesting & easy to follow. Thank you

    ReplyDelete

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