There have been some very worried little mice at Flutterby Patch this week. It all started when little mouse Pip came across three wise owls.
He looked straight into their large shining eyes and quickly remembered that owls enjoy a tasty mouse meal when they can find one.
The thought of becoming a tasty meal for an owl sent poor Pip hurrying home as fast his little legs would carry him.
When he told the story to his friend Darcy she was very curious and wanted to see the owls for herself. So the two mice bravely went in search of the birds. But they had disappeared and in their place the mice found three large eggs.
Of course you won't be surprised to hear that Pip and Darcy told everyone they had discovered owls' nests and I'm sure they were a bit disappointed when I explained that the owls were actually egg cosies.
However, when they realised the birds weren't looking for a tasty meal the two mice soon made friends with the new arrivals.
These owl egg cosies are quick and easy to knit from thick yarn
Each side is a different colour
Owl egg cosy - free pattern
I used oddments of chunky yarn that I had in my stash. I also used two strands of double knitting (DK) yarn which when knitted together made an attractive chunky.
Create a tweed effect by knitting two different shades of DK yarn together.
Each owl cosy is made from two squares measuring 8cm (3in) so they make perfect projects for children who are learning to knit. Both squares can be the same colour or make them both different as I have done.
I used 4.5mm needles (US size 7) but the needle size you choose will depend on which yarn you use. The important thing is to knit 8cm (3in) squares.
Abbreviations
K - knit
K2tog – knit 2 stitches together
Method
Cast on 12 stitches and knit (garter stitch) the first 2 or 3 rows to prevent the bottom edge curling. Now work in stocking stitch (knit one row and purl the next) until your knitting measures the same length as the cast on edge (you should now have a square). Cast off (bind off). Make a second square in a contrasting colour.
Making up
Weave the long tails of yarn into the wrong side of the work.
With right sides facing outwards, use DK or a finer yarn to over sew (or blanket stitch) round 3 sides. Leave the bottom edge open.
Ear tufts
Pinch the two corners on each side to create ears and bind round with yarn to hold in place.
Wings - knit 2
Cast on 5 stitches
Row 1. knit
Row 2. K2tog, k3 (4 stitches remaining )
Row 3. K2tog, k2 (3 stitches remaining)
Cast off (bind off)
Weave in the yarn ends and then stitch the cast on edge of each wing to the sides of the owl.
Eyes
You’ll need 2 buttons for each owl face. I used 1cm buttons and cut circles of felt fractionally larger to go behind the buttons. Stitch the eyes to the felt and then stitch these to the owl.
Beak
Make two or three straight stitches for the beak in a contrasting DK yarn.
If you would like to knit the little mice you will patterns for these in my Dollytime Etsy shop and my UK Dollytime shop.
Before I go I must tell you of a lovely blog I found this week Ruttu-nuttu where I found a beautiful sweater decorated with my owl design shown below. Do pop over and take a look.
The owl design is one of the free patterns you'll find in my sidebar. If you'd like to knit this owl you'll find a graph here