As my dog-fashion post last week [3]indicated, I've been thinking about ways to make my dog [4] look more dapper.
I decided yesterday to try making him a Valentine's Day bow tie, with two hearts making up the bow part of the bow tie.
[5]It took a little trial and error, but I finally made it work. It is adorable, and would be cute for any pet, or even a for a Valentine's Day photo of a baby or toddler.
I started with a red worsted weight yarn (just a small ball left over from another project) and a size F crochet hook.
I used this amigurumi pattern [6] to make two stuffed hearts. They're adorable by themselves. The first one 
[7]was a bit of a challenge, but the second one was easy peasy. That's normal for me.
I originally thought I'd use a tiny heart as the middle section of the bow tie, and made one using this pattern. [8] But when it came time to put together the bow, it just looked messy.
Instead, I single-crocheted a small strip for the middle using the same yarn and hook. It was three single crochet stitches wide and about eight rows tall.
I also single-crocheted the tie part of the bow tie, with a strip about five single-crochets wide. I'm not sure how long it was. I just made it long enough to fit - without being too tight - around Milou's neck.
[9]To assemble the bow tie, I tied the pointy ends of the heart together, using a needle threaded with the same red yarn. I then sewed the smaller strip to the middle, and then attached the middle of the bow to one end of the tie strip.
I cut a small piece of velcro (the kind with the sticky back) and stuck the scratchy side on the back of the bow. I stuck the soft side to the other end of the tie after making sure it wasn't twisted.
I don't like using velcro with crochet because it can make the yarn all fuzzy, but I wanted to use a closure that would come unstuck if Milou got caught on something. I figured putting the rough side beneath the actual bow would keep that part from getting damaged.
[10]Also, this is obvious, but if you are making this bow tie for a relatively helpless creature, please let him or her wear it only while you're supervising.
The result is adorable. Doesn't Milou look like a cute litle Valentine?
Really glad you mentioned that pets (and young children) shouldn't wear something like this unless they're under direct supervision - as a long-time pet owner (or pet guardian, or whatever the correct lingo is these days) it astonishes me to see how often people neglect basic (and pretty obvious) rules of safety.
Anyway, I'm not usually a fan of pets in clothes but Milou is just cute as a button and he looks very dapper dressed in his V-day duds!
Thanks! And yes, I try really hard not to do anything stupid that would endanger his life, and I would never want anything bad to happen to someone else who tried this. Hence, the disclaimer!