They're modelled on the giant pacific octopus, the main features are the head part, which leans backwards and has a slight fold where it attaches to the body. There's then a bit of a waist, before it separates out into the arms.
The first one turned out a little more cute and cartoonish than I'd hoped - its body is too big and round, and the tentacles are too short. I think the big problem though is that the eyes don't point outwards, so it's natural to see it as just having a big face, rather than seeing the eyes pointing sideway. Regardless, it's pretty cute, and reminds me a lot of the dumbo octopus. I really like how it stands up too - I'd consider adding a suction cup to the underside so it can be attached to things.
The second one I'm much happier with! He has a real angry glare to him, and his features look great. The main differences here are the tentacles are much longer, the head is a bit narrower and the waist more pronounced, and I've reworked the colours to give a bit more emphasis to the head. And of course the eyes now come in little capsules so they protude and point outwards properly.
Knitting these did make me realise quite how often the things I knit seem to end up having tentacles. Going to try knitting a few more land-based things next!
Happy knitting,
Hugh.
