Easter chick free knitting pattern

Here's my knitting pattern for a little Easter chick! He (or she) is quick and simple to knit - why not knit a chick or two as little Easter gifts or decorations? The free knitting pattern is below.

This little chick is worked in stocking stitch, on a pair of 4mm (UK 8, US 6) knitting needles using DK yarn.

Tension: 6 sts and 8 rows per square inch (if your tension is slightly less or more than this, don't worry. This is such a tiny project that it won't make much difference! The darker chicks that I knitted had a tension of 6 sts and 7.5 rows per square inch and turned out fine.) Each chick is approximately 7cm tall.

You will need:

Oddments of yellow DK yarn

yellow felt

yellow cotton thread in the same shade as the felt

2 x 3mm black beads

black cotton thread

polyester stuffing

a glass pebble (the sort that you use to fill vases, or put in a bowl of floating candles)

Head and body (make 1)

Cast on 8 sts.

Row 1: *inc 1, k2, inc 1*, repeat from * to * to end (12 sts).

Row 2: purl.

Row 3: *inc 1, k4, inc 1*, repeat from * to * to end (16 sts).

Row 4: purl.

Row 5: *inc 1, k6, inc 1*, repeat from * to * to end (20 sts).

Row 6 – 12 : beginning with a purl row, work st st.

Row 13: *k2tog, k6, k2tog*, repeat from * to * to end (16 sts).

Row 14: purl.

Row 15: *inc 1, k6, inc 1*, repeat from * to * to end (20 sts).

Row 16 - 20: beginning with a purl row, work st st.

Row 21: k2tog to end (10 sts).

Row 22: purl.

Cut yarn, leaving a 12 inch tail, and run yarn through remaining sts on needle.

Wings (make 2)

Cast on 2 sts.

Row 1: inc 2 (4 sts).

Row 2 – 4: beginning with a purl row, work st st.

Row 5: k2tog to end (2 sts).

Row 6: purl.

Cast off remaining sts.

Making up

Sew up the side seam, starting at the head and stuffing as you go (you can use the yarn that you ran through the stitches on the last row). When you get to the base, insert a glass pebble to give the chick a little stability. Sew up the remainder of the seam.

Run a length of yarn around the chick's neck and pull tight to create the neck shape. Secure with a knot and sew the ends in (I have used blue yarn in the photo to make it clearer, but use yellow yarn on your own chick!)

Sew wings into position, either side of the body.

To make the beak, cut out a yellow felt diamond shape, 1cm each side.

Fold the beak in half and sew a few stitches along the fold line to hold the beak together. Sew the beak onto the head, using yellow thread.

Make the eyes: sew two beads onto the face using black thread.

Have fun knitting an Easter chick!

Please do not reproduce this pattern without my permission. Thank you!

If you enjoyed this pattern, watch out for my book Knitted Birds, which will be published by Search Press in September 2015. You'll be able to knit over 20 different birds and make a woolly flock of your very own. Join my mailing list to keep up to date with my book and future free patterns...