Hello!
I've adapted my Galah Parrot Pattern to create a Cockatoo - for you!
The colour changes and small alterations to the pattern are written below…
PARROT PATTERN UPDATE
FROM PARROT TO COCKATOO!
Yarns:
HEAD
A - Drops Kid-Silk shade Off-White
B - Drops Alpaca shade Wheat
C - Drops Alpaca shade White
YELLOW MARKINGS AND QUIFF
D -Rico Essentials Super Kid Mohair Loves Silk shade Yellow
E - Drops Flora Shade yellow
BODY
F -Drops Sky shade White
BEAK
G - Drops Alpaca shade Dark Grey
H - Drops Alpaca shade Mid-Grey
I used 4mm needles for the Body & 3.25mm needles for the Upper Beak.
Casted on with yarn ABC but dropped yarn AB for DEC for the yellow cheek ‘short rows’ detail.
From Page 7, I worked with yarn ACF.
BACK & TAIL (Page 14) I knitted with yarn ACD.
On Page 15, from Row 37 I worked 7 rows stocking stitch (for a longer tail).
BREAST & UNDERTAIL (Page 19) I knitted with yarn ACF.
And to match the tail length from Page 19, Row 27, I worked 7 rows stocking stitch.
THROAT (Page 23) I knitted with yarn ACF.
And for the Lower Beak (Page 24) I kept with needle size 4mm and worked with yarn ACF (I wanted the Upper Beak to look
as though it was nestling in the throat feathers).
Finally, for the Upper Beak I used yarn GH and smaller 3.25mm needles.
Here's the pattern for the QUIFF:
This is joined after you've completed the whole bird to the end of the pattern and after having made all the changes:
RIGHT SIDE
With bird's Right Side facing you, pick up and knit three stitches from A to B (moving towards the head back) (see Fig. 2)
Row 1 inc) Cast on three (or more if you want a longer quiff)
Work short rows as follows: (NOTE: work the same numbers even if you've added more cast-on stitches)
Short Row 1 P5, W+Tp
Short Row 2 K5
Short Row 3 P4, W+Tp
Short Row 4 K4
Cast off all Quiff sts. purl-wise.
Join the two side together all around (see Fig. 3).
Dampen the quiff, rub to matt the yarn and shape as desired.
NOTE: I actually felted my entire bird as follows:
NOTE: This will only work if you've used natural yarn as the yarn I used above.
Fill a washing bowl with very hot tap water and a little gentle hand soap and immerse the toy into the water to start the felting process - leave it to soak until the water cools enough for you to pull out the toy with your hands. Rub a little more soap into the toy as if you were giving it a good wash. Rinse out the soap then squeeze and gently wring out the water. Please note - your toy at this stage will look totally unrecognizable and unshapely! Rub the toy in between your hands as you do this the yarn matts together to give you the felty look you’re after - if the toy is still very damp do can this in between a towel. Continue with the rubbing/agitating and moulding until the toy is quite dry and quite felted and re-shape and mould for a final shaping - use the Shape Template to match with if you like, before placing on a radiator to dry completely.
I also glued in 8mm black eyes and then stitched blue mohair around and around the black eye to create the oval markings.
