If you need something small to knit as a last-moment Christmas gift, use as a Christmas tree ornament or maybe send abroad without paying too much for postage, this is your (snow)man.

He is not exactly a scaled-down version of my Merry Snowman; I just aimed at a similar realistic look. The shaping techniques are the same, but the actual structuring is somewhat different. His hat is almost the same as the bigger snowman’s hat, but hey, a snowman gets whatever old hat is available for him – or, on a more serious note, I just liked this hat better than any provisional smaller versions.

This tiny friendly snowman is worked in the round starting from the middle of the bottom with the disappearing loop cast on (or another circular cast on of your choice, or even the long-tail cast on and a bit of extra sewing). The body and head are worked in one piece (no picking up stitches). The arms are worked separately in the same way and then sewn to the body; they enclose entirely their own stuffing. The hat is knitted separately and sewn to the head. The scarf is the only piece that is worked flat.

The pattern involves kfb increases, SSK decreases and i-cord knitting – and just one double decrease for the nose.

Yarn information (these are the amounts for my prototype or my test-knitters’ snowmen, so you may need more or less):
Worsted weight:
• About 30 – 35 m (33 – 38 yards) in white for the body and arms
• About 8 m (8 3⁄4 yards) in brown for the hat
• Scraps in dark brown or black for the mouth
DK weight:
• about 6 m (6 1/2 yards) in peach for the scarf
• Scraps in orange for the nose

Other tools and materials:
• toy stuffing (very small amount)
• five small black buttons (or two safety eyes and three buttons)
• sewing thread and sewing needle for the buttons
• tapestry/yarn needle
• stitch marker (optional)
• 4 or 5 pins (optional)
• any placement markers for the face (optional)