felted nest :: a pattern

celebrate Spring by creating a whimsical felted nest and eggs!

materials

:: 200 yards of worsted weight, brown wool. i used lamb's pride for my nests and knit them double stranded.
:: 3 ounces of undyed wool roving
:: 1 ounce of blue wool roving
:: us size 10.5- 16 inch circular needle
:: us size 10.5 dpn
:: stitch marker
:: tapestry needle
:: old stockings for felting the eggs
:: fabric scraps (optional)

pattern

using your 10.5 circular needle, double strand your yarn and cast on 75 stitches. place marker and join in the round. knit in stockinette stitch until piece measures 5 1/2 inches from cast on edge.

decrease as follows switching to the dpns when necessary ::

round 1: *ssk, k11, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 65 sts
round 2: knit
round 3: *ssk, k9, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 55 sts
round 4: knit
round 5: *ssk, k7, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 45 sts
round 6: knit
round 7: * ssk, k5, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 35 sts
round 8: knit
round 9: *ssk, k3, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 25 sts
round 10: knit
round 11: *ssk, k1, k2tog. repeat from * to end- 15 sts
round 12: *ssk, k2tog. repeat from * to last 3 sts, ssk, k1- 8 sts remain. cut yarn and thread your yarn tail through remaining stitches and pull to close the hole. weave in yarn tails. here is what your nest will look like, pre felting. kind of like a big, floppy hat.




now, thread pieces of your yarn, various lengths, onto your tapestry needle and weave them randomly through your nest leaving a couple inches of tail sticking out. when felted they will look like little twigs. you can also use strips of fabric or brightly colored yarn, or anything a bird would use when making a nest!

time to make the eggs. using the undyed roving in 1 inch strips, start winding them into a ball. keep winding around and around until your egg is 25% larger than you want the felted egg to be. then cover the egg with a thin layer of the blue roving.

you will place the eggs into the leg of a stocking and tie a knot in between each one. these are baby tights that i cut the legs off of.

to felt the nest and eggs, place the nest into a pillow case and tie the top shut with a piece of yarn (do not use wool as it will felt together and make it hard for you to untie) throw the eggs and nest into the washer and add a little soap. wash them in hot water on the longest setting. check your nest every 6 or 7 minutes to see how it is felting. some yarn felts very quickly, and some may have to go through a couple cycles before it is felted enough.

after felting pull and stretch your nest while it is still wet until it is shaped the way you like. i rolled the the top down to make it more shallow and nest-like. you may have to squeeze the eggs a little to make them egg shaped. let them dry and that is it- you are done! if you would like a little birdy for your nest there is a free knitting pattern here and a free sewing pattern here. or how about an origami crane? if you create a nest and eggs from this pattern i would love to see! please make as many nests as you want for you and your friends, but do not sell items created from this pattern- thanks a bunch!

HaPpY Spring! enjoy!