Crocheting Pete the Cat

The Pete The Cat series by James Dean is a favorite with the preschool and pre-preschool set, and my granddaughter just loves the books.  When I was introduced to Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons I became an instant groupie.  I can't seem to get the refrain out of my head:  "My Buttons, My buttons, my four groovy buttons...".. We follow Pete who just loves the buttons on his sweater as they pop off one by one.  Pete keeps his spirits up as he does simple subtraction while he loses all of the buttons on his sweater. However, there is one button that he will never lose:  his belly button. 

Pete the Cat and the Missing Cupcakes builds on math skills and supports character decisions involving friendship and forgiveness.  I plan to get Pete the Cat:  I Love My white Shoes.  This book was the first of the series and walks Pete through many colors with another delightful song.

---

Pete the Cat is interesting and special, and I was lucky to find,a pattern for making a doll for my granddaughter that would go along with her books.  Pete the Cat Amigurumi Pattern by Kristel K can be found on Ravelry.  You can also go to the website:  https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pete-the-cat-amigurumi-pattern.  Pete is made with dark blue worsted yarn and a g (4.00mm) hook. The designer uses felt for the eyes and nose.  However, I crocheted mine.  Pete wears one red sneaker with a white sole and one blue sneaker with a white sole.  I added a yellow vest instead of the long sleeved shirt for more contrast and sewed on 4 one inch groovy buttons. There is no pattern for my vest.  I just eye-balled it and crocheted and measured against the cat as I went along.   The downloaded pattern directions and photos guide the crocheter and are easy to understand.  I was happy with the finished project, and my granddaughter found him to be quite appealing.  At 19 months, her language skills are blossoming.  When she announced "Read Cat!" what else could I do?

Another source for Pete the Cat doll patterns can be found  from Sarah on the Repeat Crafter Me Website.  The designer was thrilled that the books helped her son with his language skills and was motivated to design her own version of Pete the Cat.  See: www.repeatcrafterme.com/2012/06/pete-cat-crochet-doll-html.

I am  on the lookout for another interesting character that will bring the reading process alive for my granddaughter.  Pete was easy to crochet had a dynamite personality for a doll.  Readers, do you have any suggestions?