Cactuar Cactus Knitting Pattern

I’m going to admit at the top here that I had no idea what a cactuar was when I first picked this pattern to write about. I just thought it was cute and would fit well into my continuing series of whimsical knitting patterns.

If you know what it is you can skip this paragraph. This little guy is an anthropomorphic cactus in a running pose that has been featured in the Final Fantasy video games and is considered a mascot of the game. It has been both an enemy and a summon and is known for being elusive and for its dangerous 1000 Needles attack (thanks, wiki fandom!).

This design from Fibrously uses worsted weight yarn in green and a little bit of black for the features. It’s worked in the round in pieces, with the body worked in one piece and the legs, eyes and mouth are worked separately and sewn on after stuffing.

Of course you could work it in a different weight of yarn if you want to make a bigger or smaller cactuar. You can check out the different versions that have been made over the years on the pattern’s Ravelry page. They look like they are of various sizes, and one person noted working with yarn held double to make a bigger version. You could also try working it with blanket yarn to make a really huge version that’s super huggable despite being a cactus creature.

You can find the pattern at Fibously.

If you want to check out some more whimsy-filled knitting patterns, you can knit a hot air balloon, some nesting cats, a super cute pigeon, some silly goose socks, or a family of hats that look like mushrooms. If you’ve knit something fun like these patterns I’d love to hear about it and have you share a pattern if there is one!

[Photo: Fibously]

There are two schools of thought when it comes to instructional books about knitting. Either focus in one particular technique or kind of knitting (stranded knitting, say, or brioche) or try to cover a little bit of everything in a reference book that knitters will use throughout their careers.

The Knitting Book by Frederica Patmore and Dr. Vikki Haffenden aims to be the second kind. The subtitle is: a step-by-step guide to creating imaginative projects for the home and to wear. I’m not sure it does that, exactly, but it does include a quick look at a lot of different techniques and stitch patterns you might use in your projects.

A “guide to creating imaginative projects” sounds to me like it’s about design, but this book is not. There’s 1/3 of a page about altering patterns that only talks about how to add length to a sleeve and adjust where the increases go.

There’s nothing about measuring your body (the section on choosing a size in a pattern only suggests measuring a garment you already own), general garment construction, ease or stitch pattern multiples. The section on gauge (which is the last third of the page with choosing a garment size and altering patterns, discussed above) just says to knit a swatch, block and measure it to compare to a pattern, with no discussion on how you might use your swatch to design your own project or alter a pattern to meet your gauge.

If you ignore the subtitle, what you will find is a lot of information about different kinds of knitting and various techniques you might want to try on your projects. There are 20 cast ons and 15 bind off options, for instance, all discussed before you learn how to knit or purl. (Another quibble I have with this book is the order in which things are presented, but that’s relatively minor.)

You’ll find quick hits on increases and decreases, twists and cables, lace, colorwork, textured effects like fisherman’s rib and brioche, loops, mosaic knitting, double knitting, decorative stitches, shadow knitting, bias knitting, mitered squares, entrelac and more. There are tips for selvedge stitches, knitting with beads, adding buttonholes, picking up stitches and more.

A few patterns at the back give knitters a taste of some of the techniques included, but they’re not rated by skill level and the first one is a bias knit gradient scarf worked in six different colors of mohair, which isn’t a thing I’d wish on any beginner.

And I guess that’s maybe what my issue with the book is. I don’t know if it’s meant for beginners and it doesn’t seem to, either. I feel like this book would be overwhelming to new knitters and doesn’t really give you a place to start or all the information you might need to do projects well.

The variety of techniques included is fun, and there are also stitch patterns in the back you can use on your own projects, but again it doesn’t really provide any guidance for how to design your own projects so I don’t know how helpful all of that is.

I want to like books like this because having one reference that helps you with a lot of different things is great, I’m just not sure this is the one. If you can find it at your library or local book store and flip through it before buying, I think that would be a great idea to see if it’s a book that would be helpful for you.

And if you have this book and love it please let me know! I’m sure it’s good for someone I’m just not sure who.

About the book: 336 pages, hardcover. Published 2026 by DK. Suggested retail price $40.

Have you read?