The half term holiday has come and gone and what a wet and windy week it was too, starting off as it did with the St Jude’s day storm. We woke at dawn on the Monday to feel the house vibrating with the force of the winds and just in time to hear and see a huge branch snap from the very large willow tree next to the house. Amazingly there was no damage (apart from the poor tree itself) so we were lucky.

This week we’ve returned to welcome term time routines again and I’ve been really drawn to hedgehog knitting. In fact I’ve found myself just a little obsessed with trying to make the biggest one possible. I normally make them in the second from smallest size here but have got out my fattest needles and some super bulky yarn.

All of these are made from my little oddment hedgehog pattern the only difference is the needle size and type of yarn (Details about yarns used are listed below)

I do think it would be rather fun to make and even more humongous hedgehog as a footstool / pouffe but have not yet managed to track down any thicker wool. Roving has been suggested but I’ve not yet found any that would suit. Still the largest chap so far is rather useful as a doorstop (I stuffed him with a stocking full of rice surrounded by toy stuffing so he has a nice weight to him).

I always think of hedgehogs when the leaves start falling and especially around Bonfire night. We regularly have hedgehogs around in our garden, though whether Herbert is still among them is probably unlikely given the hazards that hedgehogs encounter each day. We don’t often see them but we sometimes hear them. They take the food that we leave out and often leave a little hedgehog calling card (hedgehog poo is quite distinctive!). We also have a hedgehog house under a bush in our garden and a hedgehog hole in our fence so that they can get in and out of the garden easily.

Sadly, our poor native hedgehogs are in decline and really need all the help they can get. I’ve registered as a Hedgehog Champion over on Hedgehog Street, it’s a nice thing to involve children with and there’s a great pack that they send out which gives plenty of advice and ideas of how to help. If you’re a fan of our sweetest native mammal please come and join.

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Yarns and needle sizes for hedgehogs in the topmost pictures above:

From largest to smallest:

1. 10mm needles with Bergere de France Chambery yarn for the body and 6mm needles with Katia Peru yarn held double for the face and feet. 26cm long

2. 8mm needles with J C Brett Rustic yarn for the body and 4mm needles with Katia Peru yarn for the face and feet. 18cm long

3. 8mm needles with Bergere de France Highlands yarn for the body and 4mm needles with Katia Peru yarn for the face and feet. 18cm long

4. 6mm needles with Rowan Drift yarn for the body and 3.25mm needles with Rowan Tweed Aran yarn for the face and feet. 15cm long

5. 3mm needles with Rowan tweed DK yarn for the body and 2.75mm needles with Rowan Felted Tweed DK yarn for the face and feet. 9cm long

6. 2.75mm needles with Rowan Fine Tweed yarn for the body and 2.25mm needles with Rowan Fine Tweed yarn for the face and feet. 6cm long

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