Lovely octopus/flower brooch perfect for beginners. Very easy pattern in which you use the basic techniques: cast on, knit, purl, increase, decrease and bind off. You make lots of little pieces, so if you make a mistake, there's not going to be too much ripping. I called it Dalia because it sounds much better than Chrysanthemum which is what it really looks like. Yarn: Lia Merina - $50\%$ babyalpaca/ $50\%$ merino wool 50 gr/ 120 meters / 130 yards per ball. Amount: Main color 50 gr / 120 meters/ 130 yards for the petals 20 meters / 22 yards of first contrasting color for the leaves. 9 meters / 10 yards of a second contrasting color for the pistils. Needles: $4.5\;\mathsf{m m}$ (US7) Gauge: Inthiscasegauge isn'timporantf youkit igheryou'lledpwithamallerbrh and if you knit looser you'll end up with a larger brooch. Size: Approximately $20\subset\mathsf{m}\;/\;8$ in diameter. Difficulty: Easy: forfirs time knitters using basic knit and purl sitches, minimal shaping.
NOTES
The petals are made with the main color, the leaves are made with a small amount (7 meters/7.5 yards for the small leaf and 9 meters /10 yards for the large leaf) of a second color and the pistils are made with an even smaller amount (9 meters /10 yards) of a third color.
INSTRUCTIONS
SMALL PETAL (make 15) Cast on 5 stitches with the long tail cast-on method, leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail. Knit 8 cm in stocking stitch (knit one row, purl one row), ending with a wrong side row (Ws). Next row: bind off 5 stitches, leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail.
LARGE PETAL (make 10)
Cast on 5 stitches with the long tail cast-on method, leaving a $20\subset\mathsf{m}\,/\,8$ in tail. Knit 11 cm in stocking stitch (knit one row, purl one row), ending with a wrong side row (ws). Next row: bind off 5 stitches, leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail.
SMALL LEAF (make 1)
Cast on 5 stitches with the long tail cast-on method, leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail Knit 15 rows in garter stitch (knit every row). Begin increasing. Row 16: k 2, M1, k 1, M1, k 2 (you will have 7 stitches) Row 17 and all odd number rows: knit Row 18: k 3, M1, k 1, M1, k3 (9 stitches). Row 20: k 4, M1, k 1, M1, k 4 (11 stitches). Row 22: k 5, M1, k 1, M1, k 5 (13 stitches). Row 24: k 6, M1, k 1, M1, k 6 (15 stitches). Begin decreasing. Row 26: k 5, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 5 (13 stitches). Row 28: k 4, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 4 (11 stitches). Row 30: k 3, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 3(9 stitches). Row 32: k 2, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 2(7 stitches). Row 34: k 1, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 1(5 stitches). Row 36: k2tog, k 1, k2tog (3 stitches). Row 38: sll, k2tog, psso. Bind off remaining stitch leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail
LARGE LEAF (make 1)
Cast on 5 stitches with the long tail cast-on method, leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail Knit 15 rows in garter stitch (knit every row). Begin increasing. Row 16: k 2, M1,k 1, M1, k 2 (you will have 7 stitches). Row 17 and all odd number rows: knit Row 18: k 3, M1, k 1, M1, k3 (9 stitches). Row 20: k 4, M1, k 1, M1, k 4 (11 stitches). Row 22: k 5, M1, k 1, M1, k 5 (13 stitches). Row 24: k 6, M1, k l, M1, k 6 (15 stitches). Row 26: k 7, M1, k 1, M1, k7 (17 stitches). Row 28: k 8, M1, k 1, M1, k 8 (19 stitches). Begin decreasing. Row 30: k 7, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 7 (17 stitches). Row 32: k 6, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 6 (15 stitches). Row 34: k 5, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 5 (13 stitches). Row 36: k 4, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 4 (11 stitches). Row 38: k 3, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 3(9 stitches). Row 40: k 2, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 2(7 stitches). Row 42: k 1, k2tog, k 1, k2tog, k 1(5 stitches). Row 44: k2tog, k 1, k2tog (3 stitches). Row 46: sl1, k2tog, psso. Bind off remaining stitch leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail PISTILS (make 5) With your third color: Cast on 16 stitches leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail Bind off 16 stitches leaving a 20 cm / 8 in tail.
FINISHING
You wil have noticed the petals have a tendency to roll up forming a tube. To take advantage of this effect, sew the 20 cm / 8 in tail left from the bind off along the back of each petal with a few stitches, joining both sides as you go along. \*Join the petals randomly in groups of three or four and tie them together with the cast on tails making a knot at the base. \*Bend each pistil in half and tie it with a knot at the base. Tie the 5 pistils together. \*Make a Bouquet with petals and pistils leaving the latter in the middle. When everything is in place, cut the remaining tailsleaving them approxiamtely 4 cm $\textit{/}1\ \%$ in long. \*Sew the tail from the bind off end of both leaves along the side of each leaf so it doesn't show. \*Artistically sew both leaves to the base of the bouquet with their cast on tails. \*Sew the safety pin to the back of the leaves.
ABBREVIATIONS
$\circledcirc$ Lia Knits 2006
This pattern is property of Lia Knits and may be printed for personal, non-commercial use only. You may not resell copies of this pattern nor the finished items made using it.
