Meet Tidy Little Toadstool, a cute mushroom friend eager to add an instant dose of cuteness for your desk, while helping to look after crochet hooks, pencils and pens!

The toadstool is made in two main pieces - the body and the mushroom cap. The cap has 11 spots, each one wide enough to hold a standard pen or pencil, and is joined together as you go (there is a video linked in the pattern for this step). The cap and the body are joined together with a round of crochet, and the small details are sewn on. The body of the mushroom is double-layered, and doesn’t need stuffing.

The instructions are written in US crochet terms. There are step-by-step photos detailing how to make the pieces and finish the toy. There are additional support videos linked in the pattern for the mushroom cap and spike stitch (see link in PDF or visit my blog). When made with DK weight yarn and 3.0mm hook the finished Toadstool will measure about 10cm/4in tall.

You’ll need to know how to:

・make a Magic Ring
・work in a round
・single crochet
・increase/decrease
・chain stitch
・slip stitch
・spike stitch
・treble crochet
・work over a chain
・work in front loops / back loops

The pattern can be made in a variety of yarn combinations, using thicker yarns will produce bigger toadstool. The samples use the following yarns, hooks and eye sizes:

Paintbox Cotton DK, 50g/125m, with 3.0mm hook:
1 ball/50g of white
1 ball/25g of red
and small amounts of brown and pink

You will also need some 5mm sew-on button eyes or beads and (optional) some weighted beads or steel weighting.