Biokniticry

Robots are pretty cool. Even this one, which is
stuffed with polyfill rather than mechanical
implements, is neat. I made it in the late spring/early summer of this year, but I can drag
my feet when it comes to posting. Here is the pattern:


Robot

Materials:
yarn – 85g grey
20g black
small amounts of red, yellow, blue

(I used 1 skein of Wool-ease in Grey Heather for the grey, and leftover Red Heart for the rest.)
needles – dpns – US sizes 4 & 6
stuffing
yarn needle
small stitch holder (be it metal or yarn in a contrasting color)
pipe cleaners – at least one – a dozen or so would be better
“knitting knobby” (i-cord making tool) (optional)

Body
using size 6 dpns and grey:
CO 20 sts
work 15 rows stockinette st
next row: CO 20 sts, p 40
next row: CO 20 sts, k 60
work 4 rows stockinette st

(begin button design, using intarsia)
row 1: k22 sts, knit design row, k22 sts
row 2: p22 sts, purl design row, p22 sts
alternate these rows until the end of the design, ending on a knit row

beginning w/ a purl row, work 24 rows stockinette st
next row: BO 20 sts, p 40
next row: BO 20 sts, k 20
beginning w/ a purl row, work 14 rows stockinette st
next row: BO 20 sts
cut yarn, leaving long tail for seaming

Legs (make 2)
using size 6 dpns and grey:
CO 7 sts
work 9 rows stockinette st
next row: CO 12 sts, p 19 (total sts – 19)
next row: CO 13 sts, k 32 (32 sts)
beginning w/ a purl row, work 21 rows stockinette st
next row: k13, m1, k7, m1, k12 (34 sts)
next row: purl
next row: k14, m1, k7, m1, k13 (36 sts)
next row: purl
next row: k15, m1, k7, m1, k14 (38 sts)
next row: purl
next row: k16, m1, k7, m1, k15 (40 sts)
next row: purl
next row: knit
next row: BO 16 sts, purl (24 sts)
next row: BO 17 sts, knit (7 sts)
work 13 rows stockinette st
next row: BO 7 sts
cut yarn, leaving long tail for seaming

Arms (make 2)
using size 4 dpns and black:
CO 18 sts
row 1: [k3, m1] rep (24 sts)
row 2: purl
row 3: knit
row 4: purl
row 5: [k4, m1] rep (30 sts)
row 6: purl
row 7: [k6, m1] rep (35 sts)
row 8: purl
row 9: knit
row 10: purl
row 11: [k5, k2tog] rep (30 sts)
row 12: purl
row 13: [k1, k2tog] rep (20 sts)
row 14: purl
row 15: [k2, k2tog] rep (15 sts)
row 16: purl
row 17: [k3, k2tog] rep (12 sts)
row 18: purl
row 19: [k3, m1] 3 times, k3 (15 sts)
row 20: purl
row 21: [k2, m1] 3 times, k3, m1, k2, [m1, k2] 2 times (21 sts)
row 22: purl
row 23: [k7, m1] rep (24 sts)
row 24: purl
row 25: [k2, k2tog] rep (18 sts)
row 26: purl
row 27: [k1, k2tog] rep (12 sts)
row 28: purl
row 29: [k2tog] rep (6 sts)
row 30: purl

switch to grey for claw, leaving a long black tail for seaming
row 31: k2, m1, k1 - slide rest of sts onto st holder (4 active sts)
row 32: purl
row 33: k1, m1, k2, m1, k1 (6 sts)
row 34: purl
row 35: knit
row 36: purl
row 37: knit
row 38: purl
row 39: knit
row 40: purl
row 41: knit
row 42: purl 3
fold 6 sts in half and graft them together
cut yarn, and sew sides of work to form a long skinny pocket

retrieve the 3 sts from the holder, and work the other half of the claw beginning at row 31

Head:
using size 6 and grey yarn
CO 15 sts
work 15 rows stockinette st
next row: CO 14 sts, purl row (29 sts)
next row: CO 14 sts, knit row (43 sts)
beginning w/ a purl row, work 10 rows stockinette st
next row: BO 14 sts, purl row (29 sts)
next row: BO 14 sts, knit row (15 sts)

(begin face design, using intarsia)
row 1: p2, p design row, p2
row 2: k2, k design row, k2
alternate these rows until end of face pattern, ending on a purl row

next row: knit
next row: BO 15 sts
cut yarn, leaving long tail for seaming

Antenna
using knitting knobby (or if you’ve got size 2 needles lying around)
CO 4 sts
work 10 rows of i-cord
BO 4 sts, cut yarn, leaving a short tail

if you don’t have those, on size 6 needles
CO 8 sts
work 1 row
BO 8 sts, cut yarn, leaving a short tail

Finishing
the Body
Use a yarn needle and the long tail to sew around the bottom and up the back of the body. If you wish, you may employ several pipe cleaners to form a boxlike skeleton to encourage a boxier shape. I measured and cut the pipe cleaners to twice the dimensions needed and twisted them together to make a stronger structure. It is good to fold the ends over about half an inch so the pointy wires don’t poke through the finished body. Insert the skeleton into the body. (I made a similar box for the head. I was going to make them for the legs – but the process is a bit tedious; I got lazy.) Stuff with polyfill.

the Head
Using the tails from the cast on and bind off rows, sew the corner seams on the head. Poke the two ends from the antennae (if you made i-cord, thread one tail through the center of the cord to the other end) through the top of the head, and tie it firmly in place. Insert a pipe cleaner skull if it so pleases you, and stuff with fiberfill. Sew the head to the flap on the top of the body, and sew the top of the body shut.

the Legs
Each leg is basically a long rectangular box with a triangular protrusion at the bottom to represent a foot. You knit them from the bottom (the sole) to the top. Using the cast on tail or another length of grey yarn, sew around the bottom of the sole, and up the back of each leg (the seam should be near the middle of the back of the leg). Stuff with polyfill, and attach it to the bottom of the body with the tail from the bind off. Repeat same procedure for the other leg. (Hint: look at the legs on my robot. That’s what we call “slightly overstuffed.” You may not like this look. I’m not crazy about it either.)

the Arms and Claws
So you’ve already made the skinny little pockets for the claws. This is where the pipe cleaners are not optional. Measure the pipe cleaner against a claw, bending and cutting it so that there’s a little extra length on both ends. Fold the extra length at each end over so the wire can’t easily poke through your knitting. Insert the pipe cleaner claw into the yarn claw, and use a grey yarn tail to close up any gaps in the middle of the bend. Repeat this on the other arm. Using the black tail near the claw, sew the seam up the length of each arm. Sew each arm to the body using the black yarn, so that the seam faces downward and the arm is about level with the chest buttons.

and Finally
Poke in the ends and show all your friends.







Face Design: (the o’s are grey, the x’s are black)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O X X O O O X X O O O O
O O O O X X O O O X X O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O X X X X X X X O O O O
O O O X O X O X O X O X O O O
O O O X O X O X O X O X O O O
O O O X X X X X X X X X O O O
O O O X O X O X O X O X O O O
O O X O O X O X O X O O X O O
O O X X X X X X X X X X X O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Chest Buttons: (same color scheme as head, r’s = red, b’s = blue, y’s = yellow)
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
X O O O O O O O O O O O O O O X
X O R R O R R O O Y O Y O Y O X
X O R R O R R O O O O O O O O X
X O O O O O O O O Y O Y O Y O X
X O B B B B B O O O O O O O O X
X O B B B B B O O Y O Y O Y O X
X O O O O O O O O O O O O O O X
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X