DIY Life

Just like the change in the year, everything old is new again, right? In the last few years, I've watched the media icons of my childhood and early teen years become popular again with today's kids (and with nostalgia buffs around my own age). The Transformers are the most obvious and, it seems, successful resurgence, but the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have also regained a lot of ground lost in the mid-to-late 1990s.

Craftster user atsuko created these adorable amigurumi Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles -- the whole team! -- for her young daughter's Christmas present. She cobbled the pattern together from other simple patterns, with permission.

They're simple to crochet, and if you want to leave off the "Teenage Mutant Ninja" part, they'd probably also make pretty cute just-plain-turtles; advanced crocheters could even try to make little outfits for them. You need worsted weight yarn in two shades of green, a yellowish shade, and the colors for the masks. According to Wikipedia, they are:

• Blue for Leonardo (the "good boy")
• Red for Raphael (the "bad boy")
• Orange for Michelangelo (the "funny one")
• Purple for Donatello (the "smart one")

Turtle power!

If your child loves their stuffed animal, you know that it would be simply impossible to take that ratty old and under-stuffed toy, replace it with a new one and still survive. What's the solution? You'll have to do it yourself. You are Mom/Dad after all and you can fix anything, right? I wouldn't know where to start, until I found these clear instructions from WeeSandy at eHow. Here's a quick summary. If you need more details, she even diagrams a ladder stitch and problem solves little issues you might have along the way.

Materials

• Teddy
• Polyester fiberfill
• Needle
• Strong thread, matching the bear's fur color
• Sharp Scissors

Re-Stuffing Teddy

1. Practice your ladder stitch on a piece of scrap fabric
2. Clip a thread along the seam (unless there is already a hole) and open it enough to fit stuffing
3. Stuff Teddy
4. Use the ladder stitch to close the seam
5. Slip Teddy back into your child's sleeping arms