Rainbow Donkey

Body With white yarn, ch 2 Rnd 1: 6 sc in 2nd ch from hook. Rnd 2: 2 sc in ea sc around. (12) Rnd 3: * sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Rnd 4: * 2 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (24) Rnd 5: * 3 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (30) Rnd 6: * 4 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (36) Rnd 7: * 5 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (42) Rnds 8-15: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 16: Dec 6 times over next 12 scs, sc in ea of the next 30 scs. Place a stitch marker (or waste yarn) in last sc of rnd. (36) Rnds 17-19: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 20: Making sure you are lined up with the stitch marker at the beg of rnd 16, sc 15, dec 6 times over next 12 scs, sc 9. (30) Rnds 21-24: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 25: * 4 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (36) Rnd 26: * 5 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (42) Stuff this half of the body before continuing with pattern. Rnds 27-34: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 35: * 5 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (36) Rnd 36: * 4 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (30) Rnd 37: * 3 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (24) Rnd 38: * 2 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Stuff the rest of the body. Rnd 39: * Sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (12) Rnd 40: * Sc, sk, rep from * 5 more times. (6) FO, leaving a long tail. Thread the tail through FL of remaining 6 scs. Pull hole closed and weave in ends.
Legs (Make 4) With black yarn, ch 2. Rnd 1: 6 sc in 2nd ch from hook. (6) Rnd 2: 2 sc in ea sc around. (12) Rnd 3: *sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Rnds 4-6: Sc in ea sc around. Switch to white yarn. Rnds 7-17: Sc in ea sc around. FO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Stuff and sew the open end of each leg to the underside of the belly.
Neck With white yarn, ch 2 Rnd 1: 10 sc in the 2nd ch from hook. (You may need to use the magic ring method to accommodate 10 scs.) Rnd 2: Sc 2 in ea sc around. (20) Rnd 3: *4 sc, inc, rep from * 3 more times. (24) Rnd 4: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 5: *3 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (30) Rnd 6-10: Rep rnd 4. Rnd 11: * 4 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (36) Rnd 12: Rep rnd 4. FO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Push the male end of the doll joint connector up through the middle hole in the top of the neck. Stuff the neck and sew to the body. It might be easier to secure the neck in place with pins before sewing.
Eyes (Make 2) Cut felt into 3 circles, each with a diameter of about 1”. Using black, white, and blue floss and a satin stitch, embroider the pupil, iris, and reflection on 2 of the 3 circles. Cut the third circle in half, then trim each into a half-moon shape. Using hot glue or fabric glue, attach each semicircle on the top half of the eye as an eyelid. Set the eyes aside for now.
Head With beige yarn, ch 2. Rnd 1: 6 sc in 2nd ch from hook. (6) Rnd 2: 2 sc in ea sc around. (12) Rnd 3: * sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Rnd 4: * 2 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (24) Rnds 5-7: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 8: * 2 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Switch to white yarn. Rnd 9: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 10: * 2 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (24) Rnd 11: Rep rnd 9. Rnd 12: * 3 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (30) Rnd 13: Rep rnd 9. Rnd 14: * 4 sc, inc, rep from * 5 more times. (36) Rnds 15-21: Rep rnd 9. Rnd 22: * 4 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (30) Rnd 23: * 3 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (24) Rnd 24: * 2 sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (18) Now is a good time to sew on the eyes that you had set aside earlier and embroider the nose and mouth with black embroidery floss. Note: in placing the eyes, I found it helpful to stuff the head first, pin on the eyes, and then remove the stuffing in order to sew them on. Push the male end of the doll joint connector through a hole in the bottom center of the donkey’s head. Thread the washer and female end of the joint on. Pop the two pieces together to attach the head to the neck. Stuff head. Continue with pattern to finish head. Rnd 23: * sc, dec, rep from * 5 more times. (12) Rnd 24: * sc, sk, rep from * 5 more times. (6) FO, leaving a long tail. Thread the tail through FL of remaining 6 scs. Pull hole closed and weave in ends.
Ears (Make 2) With white yarn, ch 2. Rnd 1: 4 sc in 2nd ch from hook. (4) Rnd 2: Sc in ea sc around. Rnd 3: 2 sc in ea sc around. (8) Rnd 4: * 3 sc, inc, rep from * 1 more time. (10) Rnd 5: * 4 sc, inc, rep from * 1 more time. (12) Rnds 6-12: Rep rnd 2. Rnd 13: * 4 sc, dec, rep from * 1 more time. (10) Rnd 14: * 3 sc, dec, rep from * 1 more time. (8) Rnd 15: * 2 sc, dec, rep from * 1 more time. (6) FO, leaving a long tail for sewing. Flatten ear and lay on top of beige felt. Trace around the ear with a fabric pencil. Cut felt about 1/4″ in from the traced line. Attach this felt appliqué to the ear with white thread and a blanket stitch. Sew each ear to the donkey’s head.
Unicorn Horn With white yarn, ch 2 Round 1: 4 sc in 2nd ch from hook. (4) Round 2: Sc in each sc around. Round 3: * Sc, inc, rep from * 1 more time. (6) Rounds 4-5: Rep rnd 2. Round 6: * Sc, inc, repeat from * 2 more times. (9) Round 7-10: Rep rnd 2, slst in next sc. FO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Stuff horn lightly, place between eyes, and sew to head.
Mane For each color of the rainbow, cut about 24 pieces of yarn, each about 5 inches long. Starting at the top of the head, insert your crochet hook into a sc hole and up through an adjoining hole. Grab the middle of two strands of the red and pull through the stitch. Pull the free ends of the yarn through the loop and pull tight to secure (like latch hook). Repeat this for at least two more sts between the ears. (This space may vary depending on how you placed the ears. Mine was four sts wide, so for each color, I added 3 rows of hair with each row consisting of 4 sts.) Repeat for the rest of the colors. Trim hair if desired. I liked how wild the hair on my Rainbow Donkey was, so I didn’t trim it at all.
Tail For each color of the rainbow, cut 4 pieces of yarn about 10 inches long. Mix all the strands together, keeping them relatively even on the ends. Locate a spot of the donkey’s rump where you want to add the tail. Using the crochet hook, pull the strands about halfway through this st and let them drape over. Trim if needed.
Heart on Rump Cut a heart out of felt. I’ve found the easiest way to do this is to start with a square piece of felt. Turn it so that it’s a diamond and cut a square notch into the top corner. Then round all the corners except the bottom one. Ta-da, you have a heart. Adhere the heart to the rump with hot glue or fabric glue.