For a little animal that lives naturally in the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa, the meerkat has become incredibly well known in the UK. These cute little members of the mongoose family have been intensively studied and filmed in the wild and of course they are the stars of those well known advertisements.

A few years ago I was given this book of Knitted Meerkat toys, and I have since made several of them. Some of them are quite fiddly to create, like the ballerina, and the sewing together is time consuming – but they’re incredibly popular and every one I made quickly sold at local craft fairs.

Last year there was little demand for Meerkats as the toy market seems to have moved on… but I still enjoy making them for friends’ children that I know will look after and treasure them! Have you tried to make these adorable toys? If you like intricate work then these are definitely for you.