Cactus Pincushion

Yay to all cactus lovers! This pincushion was designed as part of Bunny McCarrots Kit (not yet available on Etsy, the link will come later. However, they are available upon request).

And it's an amazing last-moment project on its own. It took me less than an hour to complete the pincushion while documenting the process. And it's scrappy-scrappy! The finished cactus is about 2-3" tall.

So, you'll need:

- 2.5 mm crochet hook (or B/2),
- DK scraps in green (-ish), brown for the soil and terracotta or beige for the pot (or any colour you like),
- scissors,
- tapestry needle,
- a bit of polyesther stuffing.

The terms used are the US terms.

The details are worked in spiral rounds unless otherwise stated.

The abbreviations:
Rnd - round,
ch. - chain,
st(s) - stitch(es),
sl st - slip stitch,
sc - single crochet,
fpsc - front post single crochet,
hdc - half double crochet,
incr - increase (2 sc worked into 1 st),
hdc incr - half double crochet increase (2 hdc worked into 1 st),
WS - wrong side,
BLO - back loop only.

Start with green and BRANCHES (make 2):
1 Rnd: Ch. 2, 6 sc into the 2nd ch. from the hook = 6 sc,
2 - 3 Rnd: sc around = 6 sc,
4 - 5 Rnd: 2 sl st, 4 sc = 6 sts,
6 - 7 Rnd: sc around = 6 sc. At the end of Rnd 7, finish off, leave a long end for sewing. The slip stitches create the natural bending. Stuff lightly.

BODY:
1 Rnd: Ch. 2, 6 sc into the 2nd ch. from the hook = 6 sc,
2 Rnd: incr around = 12 sc,
3 - 12 Rnd: 12 sc. At the end of Rnd 12, finish off, cut the yarn. Stuff lightly.

SOIL:
Join yarn into any sc of Rnd 12 of the BODY,
1 Rnd: (incr, sc) - repeat 6 times = 18 sc,
2 Rnd: (2 sc, incr) - repeat 6 times = 24 sc, finish off, cut the yarn.

POT:
Join each Rnd with a sl st.
1 Rnd: Ch. 2, 6 sc into the 2nd ch. from the hook, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 6 sc,
2 Rnd: incr around, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 12 sc,
3 Rnd: (1 hdc incr, 1 hdc) - repeat 6 times, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 18 hdc,
4 Rnd: fpsc around, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 18 sc,
5 Rnd: (1 incr, 5 sc) - repeat 3 times, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 21 sc,
6 Rnd: (6 sc, 1 incr) - repeat 3 times, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 24 sc,
7 - 8 Rnd: sc around, sl st into the 1st sc, ch. 1 = 24 sc,
9 Rnd: holding the Pot and Body with Soil pieces WS together, working through both thicknesses:
sc around, stuff as you go lightly, sl st into the 1st sc,
10 Rnd: sl st around, finish off, weave in the ends.

 

For Rnd 10 of the Pot I tried different sts: BLO sl st, crab st and (ch.1, sl st) into every sc. They all make the pots look different. So, improvise!

Sew on the Branches and decorate with pins :)