DIY Knit Pouf Pattern: easy home decor project

Sharing a tutorial for this DIY Knit Pouf Pattern, as well as video instructions to help you make your own chunky knit pouf!

I recently spied some square poufs/ottomans, which provided ample inspiration for my own knit pouf.

Let me digress here just a sec…can we all agree that ‘pouf’ is a funny little word!?  And it’s so widely used right now that I felt compelled to do a little ‘pouf’ research. 

The word ‘pouf’ can apply to a hairstyle, a headdress, a gathering of fabric, and a low, padded footstool. Since ‘low, padded footstool’ is not nearly as fun to say as ‘pouf,’ let’s march forward on our DIY Knit Pouf!

But, all that being said, I don’t want to exclude anyone who might prefer to call the pouf a knitted footstool or a knitted ottoman…or a knitted low, padded footstool, for that matter. We are equal opportunity pouf-ists here.

This square pouf was made per the wishes of my daughter, who requested that I make it in a yarn that would blend in with her bunny Remie’s gray fur.

Luckily, we did find a yarn that fit that order, and this pouf was made in short order.

Materials Needed DIY Knit Pouf Pattern (pouf measures 21″ at its widest)

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• 660 yards of Bernat Maker Big  or Big Twist yarn.(I really enjoyed knitting with this yarn. It’s a cotton tube filled with nylon fluff…it knits up quickly and easily.)
• US 19 (15mm) Knitting Needles; I used these circular needles.
• Fill. I used a 5-lb box of Poly-Fil.
• 60″ of fabric, at least 40″ wide. I found a fabric that blended with my yarn, but you could always find a contrast instead.
• Sewing Machine
• Heavy Duty Sewing Machine Needles (I went through 4 needles)
• Chunky Crochet Hook, size J or above 

 
If you would like a pouf of a different size (not to be confused with a horse of a different color!), I’ve calculated the yardage needed for various sizes and the number of stitches to cast on. Remember that once you stuff your knitted footstool, it will be slightly bigger than the size you knit.

How much yarn do you need for your Knit Pouf? How many stitches should you cast on? 

• 14″ pouf sides need 330 yards of yarn, cast on 18 stitches
• 16″ pouf sides need 396 yards of yarn, cast on 20 stitches
• 18″ pouf sides need 594 yards of yarn, cast on 23 stitches
• 20″ pouf sides need 726 yards of yarn, cast on 25 stitches

DIY Knit Pouf Pattern Instructions (for a 19″ cube)

Gauge….5 stitches and 8 rows = 4 inches

• Cast on 24 stitches and, using the seed stitch, knit until work measures 19″. Cast off. (If you need a tutorial or refresher on the seed stitch, pop on over here.)

  

• Repeat this 5 more times until you have 6  knit squares.
• Cut your lining fabric into 6 squares measuring 19″ by 19″
• Pin the lining fabric to the knit fabric and sew the lining to the knit square on the cast-on and cast-off edges.
  • The knit fabric will want to stretch more than the lining, so be mindful that your 2 layers are lining up.
  • Have your knit fabric facing down, with the lining fabric against your sewing machine foot. Otherwise, the sewing machine foot will get stuck in the knit loops. Ask me how I know.
  • Go slowly and pull your fabric through from the back…your feeder might not be able to feed the thick fabric. If you go too fast, you are likely to break the needle…ask me how I know.
• Once you have the lining sewn to all 6 pieces of knit fabric, attach 4 pieces together along the unseamed sides. This will form the square base of your knitted ottoman.

  

• When you have the base sewn, attach one of the remaining 2 pieces to the four sides to form the top of the pouf.
  • Pin the top to the side pieces and make sure that each end of the top fabric ends up in the corners of the side pieces.
  • The thickness of 2 knit pieces will make it very difficult to turn the fabric at each corner. Instead, after you end each side, lift your needle and move it to the next side, ensuring the needle lines up at the end of the previous seam.
• Repeat this process on three of the sides for the bottom of the pouf, leaving one side open to stuff.
• Stuff with PolyFil and sew up the seam using a crochet hook to thread the yarn through the stitches. The 5 lb box of Poly-Fil ALMOST filled my pouf, so I used the stuffing from an old pillow to add a bit more instead of running to the store.  If you size down your pouf an inch or two on each square, the 5 lb would probably be just fine.

For what it’s worth, I tried the little ‘beans’ for bean bags and ended up with a ‘blob’ instead of a pouf.

• Weave the opening closed using a crochet hook and a piece of yarn.
• Make i-cords to finish the seams of the pouf. I made 4 2-stitch i-cords 19″ long and 2 more 2-stitch i-cords approximately 22″. Just measure along your top seam to ensure you have a long enough cord to go all around the top and bottom.
  • Using your US 19 circular needles, cast on 2 stitches.
  • Ensure your working thread is on the left side and in the back of your 2 stitches. Knit those 2 stitches.
  • Slide those 2 stitches across your circular needles so your working yarn stays on the left and in the back of your work. Knit the stitches again.
  • Keeping the working yarn in the back will form a tube when you pull it across the back.
  • Repeat this process as many times as you need to get your desired length.
  • Cast off and weave both tails into your i-cord with a crochet hook.
• Sew the shorter i-cords to your cube to cover the side seams. Then sew the longer i-cords along the 4 sides of the top and bottom, covering the ends of the shorter i-cords as you go.

  

And that, my friends, is a wrap! This really was an easy project.  The squares knit up quickly, and sewing the knitted footstool was easy…but you just can’t rush that sewing machine needle.

Here’s a video showing the making of the knitted pouf.

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