How to Knit a Daffodil
Complete Size - 10cm width x 33cm height x 9cm flower depth
What you will need...
Total time - 6 Hours 30 minutes Each Knitted Daffodil
3.25mm & 4mm knitting needles (UK 10 & 8, US 3 & 6)
Double knitting yarn - pale yellow and pale green
Jumbo straw (Mine was from Yorkshire Trading Co) - preferably an old one to reuse, or a paper/more environmentally friendly alternative
Ruler/ tape measure
Sewing up needle
Scissors
Before You Start...
Abbreviations
K = Knit P = Purl St = Stitch Sts = Stitches
Cast On - I use the thumb method.
Inc = Increase - by knitting into the front and the back of the same stitch, to make two stitches out of one.
Dec = Decrease - by knitting (right side) or purling (wrong side) two stitches together, making one stitch from two.
K2tog = Knit two stitches together at the same time as above (thereby halving your stitches).
Yrn = 'Yarn Over' - Loop the yarn around the end of your needle (under and over) to create a new stitch.
G-st = Garter stitch. Every row knit.
St-st = stocking stitch. Alternating a row of knit stitches (right side), with a row of purl stitches (wrong side).
Cast off - Kwise unless otherwise stated. US - bind off.
TOP TIP
Straws all vary - check your size first!
Straw length - measure the length of your straw and if need be, reduce the number of cast-on stitches proportionately to make your stem the correct size. For example, for a standard straw you may wish to reduce the number of cast-on stitches to around 50.
Straw width - this pattern is based on JUMBO-SIZED plastic straws. For a standard-sized straw you may wish to reduce the number of rows to around 7. An odd number will allow the piece to edge nicely when casting off. Check your knitted piece fits comfortably around your straw before casting off.
How to Make it...
Made up of six petals, one centre trumpet and the stem.
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Petals
Make 6
Time - 40 mins each
Size 6cm
Needles 3.25mm
Yarn Pale yellow
Cast on 4sts
Next Row - Inc K-wise into every stitch (8sts)
P 1 row
Next row Inc K-wise, K5, Inc K-wise, K1 (10sts)
P 1 row
Next row Inc K-wise, K7, Inc K-wise, K1 (12sts)
Beginning with a P row, st-st 7 rows
St-st 8 rows, decreasing 1 stitch (by K2tog or P2tog as required) at the start of every row (4sts) *
St-st 8 rows, Inc K-wise at the start, and into every penultimate stitch, of every K row (12sts)
St-st 6 rows
St-st 4 rows, decreasing 1 stitch (by K2tog or P2tog as required) at the start of every row (8sts)
K2tog to end
Cast off
Centre Trumpet
Make 1
Time 1 hour
Size 5cm
Needles 3.25mm
Yarn Pale yellow
Cast on 8sts
P 1 row
St-st 8 rows, increasing K-wise into the first stitch, and penultimate stitch, of every K row (16sts)
St-st 7 more rows
Next row K2, then (yrn, K2tog) to the end
Beginning with a K row, st-st 8 further rows.
Continue in st-st a further 8 rows, decreasing 1 stitch (by K2tog or P2tog as required) at the start of every row (7sts)
Cast off
This finished open piece will be approximately 11cm.
Stem
Make 1
Time 1 hour
Size 29 cm
Needles 4mm
Yarn Pale green
Cast on 70sts
Beginning with a P row, st-st 9 rows.
Cast off
Piece it Together...
Petals - Fold each petal piece in half at the narrow section of the piece, with right side of st-st on the outside, and oversew row ends. Complete for all six petal pieces. Sew these six completed petals together at the cast-on/cast-off edges. They will overlap - placing them together as two sets of three looks nice.
Trumpet - With right side of st-st on the outside, fold over your trumpet piece across the centre, at the 'yrn' detailing section, and oversew row ends to form the trumpet shape. Sew this completed trumpet to centre of the six sewn-up petals.
Stem - Place the stem piece around your straw, while sewing together cast-on and cast-off stitches of the stem to form the tube shape.
Pop in a nice vase with some tissue paper at the bottom for added decoration!
Make it Different!
* If short on time - garter stitch the petals. Although not as smooth or thick, it will drastically reduce the time. Just cast off at the * on the petal pattern to make it single thickness.
Cut out more time! Consider using a green straw or even a brightly coloured one for contrast, instead of the knitted stem. Even better - be kind to the environment and use a paper straw or other alternative to single-use plastic.
Behind the Scenes!
These patterns are all made up as I go along, learning from mistakes along the way. Every time I create a new pattern, I record it in the Updates part of this site (effectively my blog…) There is a story behind each creation, and this can help give you some more ideas and inspiration.
All done?
Feel free to share your successes or any other tips or suggestions by emailing me. If it's all gone swimmingly and you're ready for you next challenge, have a look at what to try next!