Cinema Knits

To me, one of the most enchanting elements of the magical world of the Harry Potter books and films is the Owl Post. Owls are so mysterious and beautiful. I would love to have one bring me a letter or package (a package full of yarn would be nice).

I love knitting as a way to engage with the imagination. Creating allows you to take a feeling, an idea, or an experience and turn it into something tangible. So, if your imagination is populated by a parliament of magical owls, you can take out your knitting needles and create something to express your inner vision. Below, you will find many owl themed knitting projects to inspire your creativity.

One of the most popular owl knitting patterns is Kate Davies’s owl sweater and the companion baby/child version owlet. I’ve actually knit this pattern three times! And I’m soon to embark on a fourth! This was one of the first sweaters I knit when I first began knitting and I knit a toddler sized snowy owl version:

Next, I knit it in a rusty brown yarn. I apparently didn’t take any pictures of this one when it was new, but I snapped some just now. It’s really pilled currently, as you can see, but I still love the color. Plus, I added eyes to this version!

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And, finally, this year I knit it as a red cardigan for my oldest son:

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One of the knitting projects I have planned for this fall is to knit a version for myself! I’m really looking forward to it!

If the Kate Davies owl sweater isn’t for you, here is a few more owl sweater patterns to take a look at it:

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1. Uglegenseren / Owl sweater by Ingvild Bysting, 2. Parliament of Owls by Claire Neicho 3. 21 Owl Pullover by Sandi Prosser 4. #04 Owl Pullover by Amanda Berry, 5. Owlunder – Short sleeved baby owl sweater by Kasa Amend, 6. Snowy Owl Cardigan by Elizabeth Suarez

If you’d like your owl knits on a smaller scale, there are many great owl mitten patterns available. There are so many patterns available, it was hard to narrow it down to a few! Here are some of my favorites:

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1. Pigwidgeon Mitts by Terri Kruse, 2. Night Creatures Mittens by Adrian Bizilia, 3. O.W.L. Mittens by Celeste Young, 4. Owl Mitts by Amanda Jones, 5. Owlmittens by SpillyJane, 6. Grey Eyed by Rebecca Tsai

The talented Natalia Moreva is a category unto herself. She specializes in colorwork mittens and has a number of owl mitten patterns available. Here are a few, she has even more! Aren’t they incredible?

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1. Big Owl, 2. Barn Owl, 3. Forest Owl, 4. Owl in Oaks – all by Natalia Moreva

Perhaps you prefer your owls on your head?

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1. Samsara by Svetlana Volkova, 2. Chouette by Ekaterina Filippova-Blanchard, 3. Owl Hat by Julie Grimmett, 4. The Owlery by Ingrid Carré, 5. Be Owlsome! by Ekaterina Filippova-Blanchard, 5. Who? by Sara Amoroso

Of course, some foot owls also sound nice:

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1. Owl Sock’s by Coral Bale, 2. Owlsocks by SpillyJane, 3. Fair Owl Socks by Friederike Erbslein, 4. Owlie Socks by Julie Elswick Suchomel, 5. Owl Socks by Lauren Riker (You could do the stripes in house colors! Wouldn’t be fabulous?!), 6. Owl Knee Socks by Megan Rogers

If you are looking for an owl that you can snuggle with on the couch, you could try knitting a plush owl:

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Tawny Owl by Ella Austin, 2. Barn Owl by Claire Garland, 3. Tawny Owl by Claire Garland, 4. Big Snowy Owl by Purl Soho, 5. Jumbo Hedwig Owl by Catherine A. Watson, 6. Hedwig by Sara Elizabeth Kellner

Or wrap up in an owl shawl or scarf:

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Owl Shawl – Indigo Sky by Heather Corcoran (another opportunity to use your house colors!) 2. Owl Ways scarf by Ekaterina Filippova-Blanchard, 3. Owls in the Forest Scarf by Marsha White, 4. Who’s Whooo Owl Shawl by Sharon Winsauer, 5. hedwig by tiny owl knits, 6. Tiger Owl by Greg Cohoon

Whew! That’s a lot of owls! I hope you found something that sparks your creativity in all that!

In non-owl related news, I’d like to share with you a few of the knits I’ve finished in the last month. First off, this simple top I knit for myself:

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This pattern is #11 Stockinette Shrug by Sandi Prosser. I knit it in Noro Silk Garden Light. It’s a really easy knit – just four stockinette rectangles creatively assembled. Seaming it was even enjoyable, because it felt like doing origami, though we won’t discuss the one sleeve I accidentally sewed on backwards and had to rip out and re-do! I usually don’t wear this much color, so it’s a bit out of my comfort zone, but I’m trying to wear more clothes that aren’t olive green or grey – and this top certainly is colorful. My son told me I looked like a Hawaiian sunset! It reminds me of something Molly Weasley would wear, so I think we can call it a ‘Harry Potter’ knit, if you’ll oblige me.

I also finished this sweater for my younger son this week:

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This pattern is Cracker by Martin Storey. This is the third Martin Storey design I’ve knit. I think he is such a great designer, and this sweater is no exception. The Rowan Softyak DK this pattern called for was out of my budget, so I knit it in Malabrigo Rios, which has become a favorite of mine lately. It’s affordable, beautifully dyed, and very soft. Remember all of Harry’s cabled jumpers from film one (I wrote a whole blog post about them)? This sweater makes me think of those – perfect for a Saturday morning Quidditch practice!

Tell me in the comments which owl knit featured above is a your favorite!