Knit a Snowman by Hand or with a Circular Knitting Machine

A little while back I got a 40 peg Sentro circular knitting machine, and while I haven’t used it that much, I am trying to use it more often and learn a bit more about what it can do.

One thing that seems to be really popular to make with it this time of year is a knitted snowman, so I decided to give it a try.

The snowman’s body is a tube, which you close at the bottom, stuff, then cinch in for the “neck” and stuff the head and close it up at the top. It takes just a few minutes to make and is really cute.

I couldn’t resist accessorizing mine, so I hand knit a little garter stitch scarf and a beanie.

You could, of course, knit the snowman itself by hand, too, if you don’t happen to have a circular knitting machine (they are really fun, though, and it seems like they’re on sale a lot, or you could ask for one for Christmas). I have vague instructions for that in the post as well, but it’s just knitting a tube of whatever size you like and then finishing it in the same way.

For accessories, you can add buttons to the stomach area, knit a scarf and a hat like I did, use the knitting machine to make a hat, make a scarf out of felt or fleece…there are really a lot of options and it’s hard to resist making your snowman a whole wardrobe. Maybe that just means I need to knit more snowmen to accessorize!

If you’re looking for an even easier (in terms of finishing, anyway) knitting project to try for a circular knitting machine, you’ll want to check out my loop knit scarf, too. This is a project you can make in a few hours, and either one of them would be great for gifting!

Knitting Pattern Snowman Hat

Knit Little Snowman Holiday Ornaments

Super Sweet Christmas Ornaments to Knit

Pom Pom Snowman – How To

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.

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