Why Not Knit Yourself a Pigeon?

When it comes to adding whimsy to your knitting, nothing quite does it like knit amigurumi or otherwise knitting animals. And I haven’t seen anything (well, knitting patterns anyway) that made me smile recently like Bill the Pigeon did.

This pattern from Knit for Victory has a few stripes like a rock pigeon, but don’t be intimidated by his fancy looks. This pattern is actually really easy as it’s knot flat in pieces and sewn together when the knitting is done.

It calls for DK weight yarn, which makes a pigeon that’s about 12 cm/4.7 inches tall, perfect for perching in your hand. Of course you can also make it with worsted weight yarn to get a bigger bird if you want. And don’t feel the need to stick to nature’s color choices on this one. Use whatever little bits of yarn you have in your stash to make the stripes, or just leave them off if you’d rather.

The eyes are made with a bit of felt and black beads, but you can also embroider eyes on if you’re making this for a little kid.

The pattern is available on Etsy, or you can purchase a full kit to make your own knit pigeon direct from Knit for Victory. The kit includes the yarn, stuffing, felt, beads, thread and a Pigeon Club button. You’ll need to supply your own knitting needles and sewing needle but otherwise you’ll be all set to make your own cute knit pigeon. The kit comes in a cute box if you want to buy it to gift to someone else for them to make as well.

I hope you’ve been enjoying the funnier patterns I’ve been sharing this month. If you’re a designer who has some whimsical patterns, or there’s an off-the-wall design you’ve made and loved, you can share it in the comments or click on “suggest a DIY” at the top of the page and tell me all about it!

[Photo: Knit for Victory]

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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