A final catch-up post for our recent weekend meetings and it's an important one to share as we'd love to keep the poppy making project going during these difficult times. We've found knitting and crocheting these poppies can have a soothing effect - like a lot of crafting can - and it's even helped some of our members sleep better or stop their fingers straying to the biscuit tin! We had a lovely get together at Rivo Lounge recently, where we discussed the best poppy patterns to use and got Teresa going with knitting her first one. A few days later Gill led the Happy Hookers through the crochet pattern she's found the easiest make and everyone had made one or two poppies by the end of the session. We've found these flowers are an ideal way for less confident knitters and crocheters get to grip with these crafts, as there's enough repetition in them to get the techniques embedded into 'muscle memory', and it's great to achieve something tangible so quickly.
See below for the resources we're using, with the hints and tips we've found along the way to make these makes easier. If anyone else wants to join us, you're most welcome. No wool? No problem - Fiona P has some spare to share like the ball shown above, or a quick shop online should give you what you need. Otherwise do give us a shout if you need wool, knitting needles or a crochet hook and we'll see what we can do to help. We've also had donations of black buttons should you need them, or you'll see later in the Poppy Patterns 1 section there is a way of making them using black wool. Michelle has some black wool to spare if you don't have any, so let her know if you'd like some centres made for you.
Poppy Patterns 1 - BBC Radio Nottingham (NB link opens as a PDF. Thanks to Sue Maddick from Hardenhuish WI for the link)
The two knitted patterns are fine and produce poppies of around 3 to 4 inches in diameter, depending on the needle size used and how tightly you knit. Beginner or impatient knitters may like to try the 5,000 Poppies patterns first (see below) as the patterns there involve less stitches and rows
If you knit tightly and find knitting 3 stitches together difficult for row 5 on the Easy garter/knit stitch pattern (see above left), try the following alternative - it should be easier and has the same effect: slip 1 stitch, then knit the next two stitches together, and pass the slipped stitch over the knitted stitch. Hey presto! 3 stitches become one. Repeat across the row and you should have 40 stitches left on your needle at the end.
The crochet patterns are relatively complicated and our crochet expert Gill doesn't really rate them - see below for recommended crochet makes from Gill and Wendy. If you do decide to tackle them, note the first pattern Three petal crochet poppy is in US notation
The pattern for the separate black poppy centre in the knitting patterns is also a good standby for other patterns if a) we find we don't have enough black buttons; or b) you don't want to convert part of a totally red wool pattern to use black wool; or c) if you're like Michelle whose early crochet makes had a hole in the middle where no button could be fixed on. Tip: for the larger poppy makes, increase the number of stitches cast on to 20 as the 16 given in the pattern results in a relatively small centre.
Poppy Patterns 2 - 5000 Poppies (NB link opens as a PDF. Thanks to Pewsham WI's Olga Tucker for the link)
The two knitted patterns work well and produce poppies of around 2 to 3 inches in diameter, depending on how tight your knitting is and whether you decide to go for the 6 or 8 row option. The photo above shows the smaller versions of Lynn's Easy Knitted Rib Stitch pattern on the left and Lynn's Easy Knitted Garter Stitch (i.e. using knit stitch only) on the right.
If you don't have any black wool for either knitted pattern, complete it in red and add a black button instead
Gill doesn't recommend the crochet pattern - see the alternative makes she and Wendy have used
Poppy Patterns 3 - Wendy's crochet pattern recommendation - created by Noon Tide Design on Ravelry (NB link opens as a PDF)
Note this pattern is in US notation - a conversion guide to UK notation is included in the pattern
This pattern is quick to do as two of the steps are worked in double treble crochet and there are just 5 steps for the completion of the stitched part of the design. A poppy of around 3 to 3.5 inches in diameter is the result.
No button? No problem. See the alternatives shown in the photo above. Either knit one as shown in the photo on the right (cast on 20 stitches and then cast them off. Roll up into a ball and sew in the poppy's centre), or convert part of the pattern to use black wool. The middle photo shows steps 1-3 of the pattern worked in black wool and the left hand photo, just steps 1-2.
Poppy Patterns 4 - Gill's crochet pattern from Bagoday Crochet
There is a tutorial available on YouTube for this one.
The great thing about this pattern is the bulk of it is in the same stitch, which really helped beginner crocheters like Michelle produce a poppy at Happy Hookers recently.
The photo above is for the fully worked pattern... the one on the right shows the change of colour as directed on the pattern. Michelle didn't have any black wool at Happy Hookers, so she made hers in red and then added a knitted black centre afterwards using the pattern given in Poppy Patterns 1 above
Gill's notation of the pattern is below. Note that it's in US notation, so the double crochet (DC) instructions should be converted to treble crochet stitches. Of course you could use double crochet by way of variation to produce a smaller poppy. Gill also shows where the full pattern can be stopped earlier to produce a smaller poppy.
Other hints, tips and FAQS - let us know if you have a question and we'll add the answer here
US to UK pattern notation conversion - you'll see the notes on a couple of the patterns in the above sections are marked as being in US notation. If you don't know how to convert them to the UK ones we usually use, there's a guide here. I've chosen this link because it describes what you need to do for each stitch as well as giving the notation conversion.
What is a yarn needle shown in some of the patterns? This is a large eyed, blunt needle through which thicker wools can be threaded to weave in wool ends or to sew edges together. You may also know it as a tapestry needle.
What about the white and purple poppies? Purple poppies are used to remember the animals that were caught up in the World Wars and the white ones are for peace. We're concentrating on making red poppies for this project, especially as red wool appears to be the easiest colour to source.
Not ready to tackle the crochet patterns, but happy to crochet a flat circle in whatever stitch takes your fancy? These look really good made to around 3 inches in diameter with a black button, darned centre, or knitted button added. The photo above shows a flat circle with a darned centre - Bella Coco has a flat circle tutorial video if you need it.
I'm not getting on with using black wool where it's shown in the above patterns. That's OK, just use red for the whole make and add the black component later. You may find working black wool is easier in natural light if you've only made them with the light on so far.
A lot of the patterns refer to using a pin or brooch - ignore this step. Each poppy needs two long-ish tail ends of wool for attaching the poppy to the background fabric we're using for the project. These will usually be a couple of the ends from the actual wool you're using - make sure they're at least 20cm long and spaced either side of your poppy.
Need some more crochet guidance? Have a look at our Happy Hookers learn to crochet guide - it has links to lots of videos and other information to help you.
What shall I do with my poppies once I've made them? Hang onto them for now and Michelle will collect them in when circumstances allow. Chippenham's VE celebration on May 8th is postponed, so the final poppy cascade will be put together for a later date.