Patterns & Materials

Our full range of patterns (with needle and wool requirements) can be found our web shop. At present there are over a hundred 1:12th (one inch) scale and 1:24th (half inch) scale knitting patterns, covering the period from the13th Century to the present day. We also have a range of Traditional British knitting patterns, including, Arans, fishing ganseys and Shetland Lace.

• All 1/12th scale patterns can be adapted for 1/16th scale by knitting with needles two sizes smaller.
• Men’s patterns can be knitted for 1/12th scale ladies or youths by using size 21 needles instead of size 19 needles.
• Most patterns contain more than one item, a few patterns may also contain crochet, these are all clearly marked.
• All patterns come with a 1/12th or 1/24th scale pattern for your little people.
• Some patterns are graded as suitable for Intermediate or experienced knitters. This refers to knitting in miniature as well as full size. If this is your first attempt at miniature knitting try a simple pattern first.
• Although all our patterns are all written in ENGLISH, we can offer translations for knitting terms in Dutch, French, German, Italian and Spanish via our web shop.

Miniature crochet patterns

We have a range of miniature crochet patterns in both 1:12th (one inch) and 1:24th (half inch) scale. These are mainly for household items and Christmas decorations from Victorian times to the present day.

Patterns for small Teddy Bears

As Teddy bears have different proportions to humans we have designed some patterns, which are suitable for small teddy bears.

Pattern design service

If you are unable to locate a 1/12th or 1/24th scale pattern that suits your requirements please contact us. There is no extra charge for this service (unless the pattern is not likely to be suitable for offering to other customers-see below), but time must be allowed for the design to be prepared, knitted up and photographed for the pattern. All our patterns are for items, which would originally have been knitted or crocheted. We have used a little leeway to include jersey items such as track suits, trousers and nightwear. We aim to miniaturise real items and will only include items that look right in 1/12th scale. We do not design 'dolls clothes' such as crocheted ball gowns, which would never have originally existed.

Please remember that some patterns will not adapt well to 1/12th or 1/24th scale and it may not be possible to design a pattern. There are certain restrictions to designing patterns in 1:24th scale such as:
1. Only a small number of stitches can be used, which makes children’s and baby clothes extremely difficult to design effectively.
2. There are not many dolls available in this scale that can be easily dressed in miniature knitting or crochet. As the garments are so tiny there is very little room to manoeuvre arms and legs into the garments. Sewing garments up on the doll does not always work with knitting and crochet, as stitches often need to be picked up for neckbands, etc.
3. Some items do not adapt well to this small scale and the stitches look too large, this is particularly the case with crochet work, where gaps between stitches would be several inches/cms in real size.

NOTE: If a pattern is required that would not meet these criteria, then a charge will be made for time taken to design the pattern. This will be considerably more than the cost of the pattern.

New patterns are added to the range throughout the year and ideas for new patterns are always welcomed.

Please note: ALL patterns are copyright and may not be reproduced in any form (including knitted up) for commercial gain without written permission from Buttercup Miniatures.

Knitting needles, crochet hooks and yarn

We make our own range of knitting needles, which are available in both single pointed with colour coded knobs & double pointed sets of four. We also make cable needles in various sizes & stitch holders. Should you require knitting needles made to a longer length than our standard lengths, please contact us.

Knitting needle size comparisons

UK size  Metric size  US size
   14          2.00 mm         0
   15          1.80 mm         -
   16          1.50 mm       3/0
   17          1.40 mm         -
   18          1.25 mm       4/0
   19          1.00 mm       5/0
   20           0.90 mm         -
   21           0.80 mm         -
   22           0.70 mm       6/0
   23           0.61 mm       7/0 
   24           0.55 mm       8/0
   25           0.50 mm         -
   28           0.38 mm         -

We stock some of the smallest sizes of crochet hook available today.

Crochet hook size comparisons
English  Metric      US Steel
2.5         1.50 mm     6
3            1.25 mm     8
4            1.00 mm    10
5            0.75 mm    12
6            0.60 mm    14 
 -            0.50 mm    15 
 -            0.40 mm    16

Yarns
We carry a large stock of mothproofed 1-ply woollen yarns, cottons and occasionally some acrylic and fancy 1-ply yarns. We have stocks of fine crochet cottons (80 and 100 count) and also some Turkish Tatting threads No 70. The full range of colours can be found on the web shop.

Haberdashery

We also carry a stock of small bags of polyester filling, fine net pieces, small beads, 2 mm silk ribbons and occasionally fabrics suitable for use in dolls houses.