Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Knit a Hot Air Balloon

by

I’m fully willing to admit that the headline on this post sounds weird. And maybe it is a little weird to knit a hot air balloon.

But you know what? After seeing this pattern from Butterfly Love1 on Etsy, I kind of want to knit a hot air balloon.

These would be super cute in a nursery or kid’s room, a playroom, a teacher’s classroom (especially and art teacher, or in the library, or really anywhere that kids might be).

And honestly kids aren’t the only ones who deserve whimsy in their lives, so if after seeing this pattern you kind of want to knit a hot air balloon for yourself, too, I give you permission to do so if you need it.

The pattern is knit flat in stockinette stitch, and I’d guess it uses sock yarn by the size of the knitting needles called for. Which is great because you can easily make a striped balloon that is both adorable and a great use of all your leftover yarn from your socks and other projects.

These balloons even have a little basket made out of a stack of buttons to make it look like a hot air balloon and not just a regular, earth-bound balloon. Though of course those would be cute, too.

One of the comments on the pattern says this comes out big, but the pattern description doesn’t specify what size it is supposed to be. It might still be fun to use bigger yarn and make a huge balloon. They could also maybe be used as pillows in addition to having them hanging from the ceiling.

I wouldn’t be surprised if, having made one, you will find all sorts of reasons you need to knit more.

You can grab the pattern on Etsy. I’d love to hear about it if you make one!

[Photo: Butterfly Love1]

Have you read?

Pencil Knitting Patterns

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns! 

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil. 

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn. 

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point. 

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up. 

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.