A year and a half ago I randomly made a crochet duck for one of my nieces. It was a green duck. To be honest, I simply began an amigurumi shape with green yarn and after a short while I decided it would be a duck. I was hesitant about giving it to my niece because… well… it was a green duck.

But that little green duck has been very loved. He has travelled across Australia, been to museums, swirled around in the washing machine, celebrated its 1st birthday, been to school (and been expelled from school!), and generally kept a little girl company. I’ve had requests for duck accessories such as a sombrero hat, a nest, and pillows for it to sleep on which have been fun excuses to experiment with crochet and sewing.

Recently my niece sent a request for a girlfriend for the duck. A girlfriend duck that’s purple with pink dots and has red hair. Oh boy! And then the littler niece piped in that she wanted a duck too.

Because I’d made up the original duck on the fly I had to design the new ducks based on photographs and memories. The ducks v2.0 are different, possibly a little bit smaller (but still large enough to fill up little hands), they’ve got a straighter beak, and this time I wrote down the pattern as I went.

Again there’s the little bit of fear: what if my niece rejects my interpretation of the duck she had in mind? But even if that happens, I’ve had fun making it up :)

The duck for the younger niece is a more subdued colour choice but I couldn’t resist giving it green wings and an orange tail.

These toys were crocheted for the most part with Spotlight’s Moda Vera/4 Seasons 8 ply wool along with two shades of yellow Morris and Sons Estate 8 ply wool for the beaks/feet.