How to Knit an Applique

Knit small appliqués to attach to quilts and clothing.

An appliqué is any piece of cloth or finished piece of crochet or knitting attached atop another piece of fabric. To knit an appliqué, simply choose a design such as a flower or ladybug, knit the piece and bind off. Knit appliqués add texture and color when attached to clothing, quilts and afghans of either cloth or yarn.

Things You'll Need

• Knitting needles, USA size 1, 2.25 mm
• Yarn, 4-ply
• Upholstery needle
• Thread

Instructions

1. Choose a design to knit as the appliqué. In this example, the appliqué design is a simple flower.

2. Cast on five stitches, slip (sl) one stitch, knit (k) three and turn. Leave the rest of the stitches unworked.

3. Purl (p) three and turn. Leave the rest of the stitches unworked.

4. K three and turn. Leave the rest of the stitches unworked.

5. P three and turn. Leave the rest of the stitches unworked.

6. K four and turn.

7. P two together, p one, p two together. Make three stitches. Turn.

8. K one, k two together and pass the first stitch over the second to reduce one stitch. Cast on four more stitches and repeat from Step 1 for the desired number of petals.

9. Finish the knit appliqué flower by snipping the yarn and passing the end through the last remaining stitch to tie off. Thread an upholstery needle and run a thread through the two stitches at the base of each petal on the back side of the appliqué. Pull the thread to gather and create the flower shape. Knot the thread and snip.

References

• Little Cotton Rabbits: Knitted Flower Pattern
• Quilt: Applique Basics