Halloween Toys to Knit

I love knitting pumpkins and other fall and Halloween decor, but one thing that’s extra fun to knit this time of year, especially if you have little kids, is Halloween dolls and toys. These are fun to tuck into Halloween goodie bags or countdown calendars and can be used as decor when the kids don’t play with them anymore.

This sweet pumpkin bear from Hobbi is a great option for beginners because it’s knit flat in pieces and seamed together. It also uses super bulky yarn so you can stitch it up in no time.

If you’re looking to go the opposite direction in terms of size, the mini pumpkin spirit from MLindDolls might be the thing for you. Worked in superfine yarn, it looks a bit like a mandrake with a pumpkin head. You can find the pattern on Ravelry.

Knit up some wee ghosties in whatever weight of white yarn you have handy with this pattern that’s a free download on Ravelry from Theresa Dixon Kappus. They’re worked in the round from the bottom up so you can make them as tall as you like, too.

This pumpkin doll decoration from Etsy seller Claire Fariall Designs would be super cute sitting on a bookshelf or mantle. The pumpkin parts are worked flat and seamed, and you can use DK or worsted weight yarn. The arms and legs are made with I-cord and finished off with little garter stitch leaves. (I also love her little baby designs — a pumpkin, witch and skeleton — which would be great to make for little ones to play with or carry around.)

A creepy cute collection of knitting patterns for keychains would make great gifts for your trick or treaters with allergies. In this collection from Fluff and Fuzz on Etsy you’ll find a black cat, witch hat, bat, spider, Frankenstein’s monster, vampire, ghost and pumpkin. They’re all worked flat and use DK weight yarn, so they’re a great way to use any leftovers you have on hand.

Knitting and travel are two hobbies that are highly compatible. Travel often involves waiting or time spent on planes, trains, boats, etc., time that can easily be filled by knitting, a portable and productive craft you can do most anywhere (and yes, you can take your knitting on a plane most of the time).

Krista Ann combines knitting and traveling regularly and ended up visiting every continent in 2022 with her knitting needles along for the ride. The Wandering Knitter explores travel, knitting and learning new knitting skills no matter where you are.

This isn’t a book for beginners, but if you’ve wanted to learn techniques like brioche, cables, lace, colorwork, mitered squares and short rows, there’s a set of more beginner level patterns followed by ones that are bigger, more detailed or required a little more skill. For example a brioche washcloth is the beginner pattern, while a brioche sweater (with unexplained exceptionally long sleeves) is the stepped up project. A basic mesh lace scarf becomes a more complex lace kerchief. A giant mitered square cowl graduates to a mitered square tote bag.

Interspersed among the patterns are essays about traveling to different continents and what she saw there. There are also tips for traveling with your knitting and tips for reading charts, but no tutorials for knitting skills (other than a written explanation of how mosaic knitting works).

Some of the projects would be useful to have when traveling, such as fingerless gloves, a warm headband or a colorwork hat. The travel angle is an interesting hook for a book, but I would have enjoyed essays more about specific incidents or shopping for yarn in a different country or something more than the general essays about things she’s liked and places she’d like to go back to.

Still, if you’re looking for a skill building book that doesn’t focus on the basics but gives you some wearable, attractive accessories, this book is a good one to check out. Just maybe make the sleeves shorter if you knit the sweater.

About the book: 128 pages, paperback, 20 patterns. Published 2026 by Quarry Books. Suggested retail price $24.99.

Have you read?