Crochet Baby Yoda Frenzy

If you’re a knitter or crocheter, raise your hand if you’ve been asked to make a Baby Yoda? And most likely, not just once. I think that’s every single one of you. And by a show of hands, how many have done it? My hand is up. I’m feeling a bit like a doctor or a mechanic. You know, everyone asking for advice or help? As a crocheter, I do get asked to make this or that for someone, but nothing like the requests I’ve gotten for making Baby Yodas. This brings up the question of whether to sell versus giving them away. I hadn’t really thought I was going to sell them at all. But then, I changed my mind.

If you’re a fan of the show (The Mandalorian) and a crafter/artist of any kind, one of the first thoughts after seeing that adorable little face, was how to recreate him. I know that happened to me. I wanted to make him. I NEEDED  to make him. I especially wanted to make him for my hubby who is a mega fan of all things Star Wars. I daydreamed about it for a bit, imaging how I would go about making him, from yarn colors, yarn types, to what kind of eyes. I looked at images of the show and envisioned how I would approach making him.

But then, he was already all over the internet in all his crochet glory. I guess everyone had the same idea. I forged ahead to make one for hubby and my first attempt was fun but I wasn’t totally satisfied with it.

Not bad for a first attempt.

Hubby loved it but I tried a second one and we all loved that one. I felt I got the proportions right and the face got better too. It got so good, hubby kept it!

Yep, I’m the better one!

Still better

By this point, hubby had posted images of the first one on his Facebook and Instagram, and he was inundated with requests from coworkers, clients, and friends wanting one. They were willing to pay too. I was asked by several of my own friends and family for one.

Making dolls is my jam so I loved making the Baby Yoda, but there is only so fast I can crochet. I knew I couldn’t meet the demand. I told hubby I wasn’t sure I wanted to get into selling them. I also had to consider how many I was willing to make for my close family and friends. The answer to that is two, not counting hubby of course, In the end, I made one for my niece (that I finished at Disneyland), and I made a smaller one for my other niece.

Small and cuddly

I’m also making some at work for the kids. I already made the one from yarn scraps and I have some small ones in the works.

I was worried at first people wouldn’t like my version of Baby Yoda but his friend had already expressed how much he liked the picture he saw of that first one I made. Hubby had already taken (stolen) that second one I made, so he agreed to let me sell his first one. He shared with me how his friend reacted when he got it, and I was so grateful he did. Apparently his friend was ecstatic. It’s super awesome to able to bring that kind of joy to someone with crochet.

He was smiling and was super happy. You’ll just have to trust me.

I posted about my trip to Disneyland with hubby’s new doll and the one that was almost done. I was surprised by the incredible reaction to the dolls. I follow many crochet artists on Instagram, so I had been seeing crocheted Baby Yodas everywhere. I think I was desensitized to it. In my head, it was just another crochet Baby Yoda, no big deal. But just because I was used to seeing them everywhere didn’t mean everyone else was.

That reaction prompted me to tell hubby I would make some more for the people who wanted to buy them. I’m going to go at my own pace so that it stays fun and not overwhelming. Each doll is a little different as I tweak the previous version to get something better. I have a main pattern now that I like (it’s not written down of course) and notes on things I don’t want to forget (like how I make the ears) but it’s a fluid process.

The ears for the first doll. 

Yep, these are my notes. Second set of ears were a little different.

As I make a new one, I keep to the basics but adjust, depending on how it’s looking. This keeps me loving what I do.

You’d think I was getting tired of making him, but I’m not. I enjoy challenging myself to make each new one just a little better than the last one, and if I make a few people happy by selling them their very own Baby Yoda, even better. I’m not going to be selling on Etsy or strangers. There are a lot of versions out there already, so they don’t need my contribution. I’m keeping it local to people we know or friends of people we know. I also know it’s short lived. In fact, it already seems to be dying down. So I’ll enjoy it while I can. 🙂