Valley Yarns Snow Family Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Snow Family: Knitted Toy Snow People

What Is Being Made

The Valley Yarns Snow Family pattern creates a charming set of three knitted snow people in graduated sizes. Finished heights range from 5 inches (small) to 7 inches (large) after stuffing. These soft, sculptural toys are designed as winter decorations or quick handmade gifts, and can be customized with hats and scarves using the included scarf pattern.

Techniques Used

This beginner-friendly pattern employs seamless, in-the-round knitting construction, which eliminates the need for seaming and creates smooth, professional-looking toys. The snow people are worked on double-pointed needles (dpns) from a cast-on base, with strategic decreases shaping the body and head. The pattern demonstrates fundamental toy-making techniques including gauge adjustment for sizing, strategic decreasing for shaping, and stuffing methods using fiberfill combined with plastic pellets or rice for weighted bases.

Stitches and Stitch Techniques

• Stockinette stitch (St st) as the primary fabric, worked in the round for a smooth surface
• Knit 2 together (k2tog) decreases for shaping the body and head
• Knit 3 together (k3tog) decreases for final shaping
• Garter stitch (knit every row) for the scarf component

Materials and Yarn Specifications

The pattern uses three different Valley Yarns products to accommodate the three size options, allowing knitters to choose their preferred finished size and yarn weight:

• Small snow person: Valley Yarns Huntington (75% Superwash Merino Wool/25% Nylon, 50g/218yds) in colors 0010 Natural (main color), 4150 Red, and 7062 Porcelain Blue
• Medium snow person: Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK (100% Extrafine Merino Superwash, 50g/137yds) in colors 01 Natural and 07 Red
• Large snow person: Valley Yarns Valley Superwash (100% Extrafine Merino Superwash, 50g/97yds) in colors 261 Natural and 502 Blue

Each size requires one skein each of the main color and contrast colors specified. Needles are sized accordingly: US size 2 double-pointed needles for small, US size 4 for medium, and US size 7 for large. Gauges vary by size (7.5 stitches per inch for small, 5.5 for medium, and 5 stitches per inch for large in stockinette stitch worked in the round), ensuring proper proportions at each finished size.

Additional Materials

Beyond yarn and needles, the pattern requires a tapestry needle for finishing, scraps of orange yarn in fingering, DK, or worsted weight for embroidered noses, black yarn for embroidering eyes and buttons, and fiberfill stuffing combined with plastic pellets, rice, or similar weighted material to create stable, poseable snow people with proper balance.

Pattern Design Credit

Pattern #628 Snow Family was designed by Amy Stephens.