Whit's Knits: Candy Corns!

Ghouls, graveyards and goblins, Halloween can be harrowing! But where there's creep, there's also merriment: parades, painted faces and candy corn!

Candy corn, this most classic of Halloween goodies, also happens to be one heck of a good looking object! Like all of our most cherished holiday candies - candy canes, gelt, jelly beans - candy corns aren't really loved for their flavor. They're adored because they cause us to conjure the rituals and details of the day, to relive in our minds a lifetime of Halloweens. It's not the power of sugar; it's the power of good design!

These little knit sweeties will ensure that candy corn is a part of your Halloween tradition, year after year. Line them up on your windowsill; arrange them on your mantle with some candles; or pop them into a big bowl on your hall table. They're kinda irresistible.

I knit up my set of Candy Corns with Brown Paper Packages' Trio, a beautiful silk and wool blend. The shine of the silk brings an unexpected elegance to these little guys, which I love! And Trio is actually a needlepoint yarn, making it the perfect choice for knitting up palm-sized objects like these!

Get started on your own bunch of knitted confections!

The Materials

For 10 Candy Corns:

• 11 total skeins of Brown Paper Packages' Trio, 50% wool and 50% silk.
  
  • 5 skeins of Big Canary (Keep your tails on the short side in order to get every last yard out of this color!)
  • 4 skeins of a mix of Marmalade and Clementine
  • 2 skeins of White

• A set of US #5 double pointed needles

• Some stuffing

• Some lentils for weighing down the Candy Corns' bottoms. I used about 2 teaspoons for each.

The Pattern

Gauge

5 3/4 inches = 1  inch in stockinette stitch

Finished Size

5 1/2 inches around the base and 3 1/2 inches tall

Begin

With the yellow yarn, cast on 8 stitches to the double pointed needles.

Join for working in the round, being careful to not twist the stitches.

Round 1: Knit into the front and back (kfb) of each stitch. 16 stitches

Round 2: Knit.

Round 3: [Make 1 right (m1r), k4, make 1 left (m1l), k4] 2 times. 20 stitches

Round 4: [M1r, k6, m1l, k4] 2 times. 24 stitches

Round 5: [M1r, k8, m1l, k4] 2 times. 28 stitches

Round 6: [M1r, k10, m1l, k4] 2 times. 32 stitches

Round 7: Purl.

Here's what the bottom looks like on the needles:

And here's what it will look like in the end:

Continuing with the yellow yarn...

Rounds 8-13: Knit.

Round 14: [Ssk, k8, k2tog, k4] 2 times. 28 stitches.

Cut the yellow yarn and join the orange.

Rounds 15-19: Knit.

Round 20: [Ssk, k6, k2tog, k4] 2 times. 24 stitches

Rounds 21-24: Knit.

Round 25: [Ssk, k4, k2tog, k4] 2 times. 20 stitches

Cut the orange yarn and join the white.

Rounds 26-28: Knit.

Now use the cast on tail to sew the bottom hole closed and bring the tail to the inside of the piece. Turn your candy corn inside out and weave in all the ends.

Return the piece to right side out and fill the bottom with two teaspoons of lentils. Then fill the rest of the candy corn with stuffing. I preferred my candy corns plump, but not overly stuffed!

Round 29: [Ssk, k2, k2tog, k4] 2 times. 16 stitches

Rounds 30 and 31: Knit.

Round 32: [K2tog] 8 times. 8 stitches

Add a lttle bit more stuffing to the very top, then cut the yarn and sew it through the remaining stitches. Sew the tail through to the bottom of the Candy Corn and trim it.

Now make some more!