Bunny Pillow Pal in Red Heart Super Saver Economy Solids - LW2667

Bunny Pillow Pal Knitting Pattern – LW2667 by Red Heart

The Bunny Pillow Pal (LW2667) is a charming knitted stuffed bunny that doubles as a functional pillow, designed by Nancy Anderson and published by Red Heart. The finished piece measures an impressive 21 inches high by 19 inches wide, making it a generous, huggable companion perfect for children. It is sized to fit over a standard soft pillow insert, giving it both decorative and practical appeal. Whether used for napping, travel, or visiting relatives, this bunny pillow pal is a delightful handmade gift knitted in a child's favorite color.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a single stuffed bunny-shaped pillow cover and character complete with a three-dimensional rounded head, long bunny ears, and a body large enough to encase a standard pillow insert. The bunny is worked in the round for the head and key dimensional sections, giving it a fully sculpted, soft sculptural appearance. The design is rated beginner difficulty, making it accessible to newer knitters who are comfortable with basic knit and purl stitches and simple shaping techniques.

Materials Used

• Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver Economy Solids in 373 Petal Pink (Color A) – 2 skeins, and 722 Pretty 'N Pink (Color B) – 1 skein. This is an aran weight yarn, and it is held double throughout the pattern to create a thicker, sturdier fabric.
• Knitting Needles: 8mm (US 11) standard knitting needles for flat sections such as the ears.
• Double Pointed Knitting Needles (DPNs): 8mm (US 11) for working in the round, particularly for the head construction.
• Pillow Insert: A standard soft pillow insert is used as the inner form. Knitters are advised to check the cover for fit before finishing, as pillow stuffing and sizes can vary.
• Additional stuffing material is used to firmly fill the head and ears for a three-dimensional effect.

Gauge

The pattern requires a gauge of 12 stitches and 16 rows equal 4 inches in Stockinette stitch using a double strand of yarn. Achieving the correct gauge is important to ensure the finished bunny reaches the intended dimensions and fits properly over the pillow insert.

Techniques Used

• Knitting in the round using double pointed needles – used to construct the rounded, seamless head of the bunny. This technique creates a tube or sphere shape without seams, ideal for three-dimensional stuffed pieces.
• Flat knitting – used for sections such as the ears, worked back and forth in rows.
• Holding yarn double – throughout the entire pattern, the aran weight yarn is held with two strands together, effectively creating a bulkier fabric with excellent stitch definition and durability.
• Circular shaping with increases and decreases – the head is shaped by working systematic increase rounds to build the sphere outward, followed by decrease rounds to close it, a classic method for knitting stuffed spherical shapes.
• Stuffing and finishing – the head is stuffed firmly before closing, and yarn tails are woven through stitches to close any remaining holes neatly.
• Casting on a small number of stitches and joining in the round – the head begins with just 6 cast-on stitches joined carefully to avoid twisting, a foundational technique in circular knitting.

Stitches Used

• Knit stitch (K) – the primary stitch used throughout, forming the Stockinette fabric on the right side when working in the round.
• Purl stitch (P) – used in flat sections such as the ear rows to create Stockinette fabric when working back and forth.
• Inc (Increase) – Knit in front and back (KFB) – worked by knitting into both the front and back loop of the same stitch to add one stitch.