The Patches Family

Straight from my knitting looms, the Patches are in town. Read their story and then try out the pattern on your knitting loom!

First we have Jack Patches, who hasn't been the same since he saw his brother get carved. Ever since then, triangles make him twitch.

Baby Spice Patches is new to the vine and she hopes to bud many friendships. But she doesn't understand why her nickname is "Pie."

Autumn Patch is ripe for the pickin' and will miss her family in the grove. She will spend the season on the porch of a nice suburb home.

Cousin Viney comes off as a seedy kind of fella but has a heart filled with mushy love.


Pumpkin pattern

Looms: Blue Knifty Knitter 24-peg large-gauge circle loom and/or Red Knifty Knitter 31-peg large-gauge circle loom; Pink Knifty Knitter spool loom

Yarn: 108 yards of Misti Alpaca Chunky, small amount of green chunky yarn for stem and leaves

Pumpkin body
Cast on all pegs with the drawstring cast-on (link to PDF instructions, developed by Brenda Myers). Follow a K2, P1 pattern all around. Knit for about 6 to 8 inches, depending on how tall you want the pumpkin. Finish with a gather cast-off.

Pull the cast-on edge closed and bring the tail end inside. Fill pumpkin with fiberfill. Pull the cast-off closed. Thread the tail end onto a tapestry needle. Bring the yarn through the center of the pumpkin to the bottom and then back to the top. Tug a little so that the pumpkin becomes fatter and dips toward the center. Tie a knot to lock the stitch.

Steam and leaf
With your green yarn and the pink spool loom, start with one stitch on the side with 8 pegs. This will be your leaf. Use garter stitch (knit one row, purl one row) unless you want the edges to curl. The size of your leaf is your preference. Increase on both sides for a few rows, knit a few more and then decrease to 3 stitches.

Wrap the yarn all around the loom and knit in the round for a couple inches. Finish with a gather cast-off and bring the yarn inside. Sew the stem/leaf to the top of the pumpkin.

Sew on some button eyes — or you can find some sew-able googly eyes at a craft store, too. For an added touch, you can twirl some cloth stem wire around a pencil and stick them into the top of the pumpkin. Now you have some one-of-a-kind pumpkins on a vine!