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Little

London Landmarks

London has building bits that are dripping with history. The landmarks may have stony faces, but underneath they’re bursting with tales to tell. Tottering past them with your camera and guidebook, you can spy hundreds of years of London’s stories built into their bricks and mortar.

Make yourself some Little London Landmarks by stitching a Baby Big Ben, a Tiny Tower Bridge and a Pint-sized Parliament Telephone Box. Employ bits of the city as bookends, doorstops, letter racks or terribly fancy pincushions. Then, if you make enough bits of the city, you can stomp about them roaring in radioactive Godzilla style. RAAAAARRRGHHHH!

BABY BIG BEN

Difficulty: London Local

Size: Approx. 25cm (10in) high

Gauge: 20 sts and 30 rows = 10cm (4in) in pattern

BONG! BONG! BONG! Big Ben is the giant bell that dwells in St Stephen’s Tower. It’s as Londony as it gets when it comes to London landmarks, and you can stitch your own with the greatest of ease. It should really be called Small St Stephen’s Tower. Baby Big Ben is wrong, but lovely to say out loud.

Unlike the real clock tower, there won’t be many tourists peering up at this one snapping photos – unless you’re desperate for your Baby Big Ben to feel giant, in which case put it on a very high shelf and invite camera-toting tourists into your house.

GUBBINS

Needles

Pair of 4mm (US size 6) needles

Yarn

25g (7/8oz) light browny-yellow DK (worsted) for tower walls

15g (½oz) dark grey DK (worsted) for roof

Small amount of any colour DK (worsted) for area under Big Ben

15g (½oz) gold DK (worsted) for clock area

Other bits

Stuffing

Heavy filling to stabilize base of tower (steel shot, sand, tiny pebbles, baking beans or, if you’re really rich, gemstones)

Felt for sewing cube-shaped container for heavy filling 4 wooden clock face buttons or ordinary buttons with clock faces drawn on Thick cardboard or foam for shaping sides

PATTERN

Sides of Tower (make 4)

Cast on 11 sts in light browny-yellow yarn.

Row 1 P, k to last st, p.

Row 2 K, p to last st, k.

Rows 3–16 Rep row 1 (odd) and 2 (even).

Row 17 P across.

Row 18 K, p to last st, k.

Row 19 P across.

Rows 20–26 Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows). Row 27 P across.

Row 28 K, p to last st, k.

Row 29 P across.

Rows 30–36 Beg row 2 rep row

Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows). Row 37 P across.

Row 38 K, p to last st, k.

Row 39 P across.

Rows 40–46 Beg row 2 rep row

Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows).

Row 47 P across.

Row 48 K2, *p, k, rep three times from *, p, k2.

Row 49 P2, *k, p, rep three times from *, k, p2.

Row 50 K across.

Row 51 P2, k7, p2.

Row 52 K2, p7, k2.

Rows 53–58 Beg row 51 rep row 51 (odd rows) and 52 (even rows).

Row 59 P across.

Row 60 K2, *p, k, rep three times from *, p, k2.

Row 61 P2, *k, p rep three times from *, k, p2.

Row 62 K across.

Change colour to dark grey yarn for roof.

Row 63 P across.

Row 64 P across.

Row 65 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (9 sts).

Row 66 P across.

Row 67 K across.

Row 68 P2tog, p to last 2 sts, p2tog (7 sts).

Row 69 K across.

Row 70 P across.

Row 71 K2tog, k to last 2 sts, k2tog (5 sts).

Row 72 P across.

Row 73 K across.

Row 74 P across.

Row 75 K across.

Row 76 P2tog, k, p2tog (3 sts). Row 77 K3tog.

Thread yarn through st.

Polymer clay makes good clock face buttons if you can’t get your paws on buttons like the lovely carved wooden ones I used. Poke holes in where the ends of the hands should be and sew through them to show the time.

Clock Areas (make 4)

Cast on 10 sts in gold yarn. K 10 rows.

Cast off (bind off).

Area under Big Ben

Cast on 11 sts in any colour yarn. Work 10 rows st st.

Cast off (bind off).

Prepare for rude jokes. Baby Big Ben does look a bit dodgy before you sew on the gold bits.

FINISHING

Sew all four sides together, from roof to bottom of tower.

Stuff top of tower.

Cut four 12 × 5.5cm (4 ¾ × 2¼in) rectangles of cardboard or foam. Place inside to hold up Big Ben. Stuff, leaving 5cm (2in) at bottom. Cut felt to make a 5cm (2in) cube. Sew felt into a cube, leaving top open. Fill cube with heavy filling and sew top closed. Place cube carefully in bottom of tower.

Sew Area under Big Ben onto bottom of tower to secure cube. Sew gold clock areas on to each face of tower.

Embroider tip of tower with gold yarn. Sew on clock face buttons.

ALL CHANGE

Baby Big Ben has a basic skyscraper shape. A little silver and fewer purled ledges could turn it into Canary Wharf, one of your own city’s church towers, or general bits of cityscape.

TINY TOWER BRIDGE

Difficulty rating: Black Cab Driver

Size: Approx. 22cm (8½in) high

Gauge: 20 sts and 30 rows = 10cm (4in) in pattern

The first test of proving yourself a real Londoner is not confusing Tower Bridge with nearby London Bridge. London Bridge is the one you can see Tower Bridge from. Tower Bridge is the one with the towers. London’s Tower Bridge was born in 1886 and is impressively made of 70,000 tons of concrete and 1,100 tons of steel. Tiny Tower Bridge won’t use quite that much in materials. It will, however, be just as impressive. Honest, guvnor.

GUBBINS

Needles

Pair of 4mm (US size 6) needles

Yarn

50g (1¾ oz) light browny-yellow DK (worsted) for tower walls

25g (7/8 oz) dark grey DK (worsted) for roof

Small amount of light blue DK (worsted) for walkways and bridges

Small amount of white DK (worsted) for embellishing walkways

Other bits

Stuffing

Heavy filling to stabilize bases of towers

Felt for sewing envelope container for heavy filling

Silver embroidery thread

Gold embroidery thread

Thick cardboard or foam for shaping sides

PATTERN NOTES

You’ll need to make two Towers to create each end of the bridge. Each Tower consists of Front, Back, two Sides and one Under Bridge. There are two Walkways and two Bridge bits to join them up.

You are going to grumble at how many very similar bits of this you have to knit. Sorry about that.

PATTERN

Fronts and Backs of Towers

Left Leg (make 4)

Cast on 5 sts in light browny-yellow yarn.

Row 1 P, k3, p (5 sts).

Row 2 K, p3, k.

Rows 3–10 Rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows).

Row 11 Inc1 twice, k2, p (7 sts).

Row 12 K, p across.

Row 13 Inc1 twice, k4, p (9 sts).

Row 14 K, p across.

Leave sts on needle.

Right Leg (make 4)

Cast on 5 sts in light browny-yellow yarn.

Row 1 P, k3, p (5 sts).

Row 2 K, p3, k.

Rows 3–10 Rep row 1 (odd) and 2 (even).

Row 11 P, k2, inc1 twice (7 sts). Row 12 P to last st, k.

Row 13 P, k4, inc1 twice (9 sts). Row 14 P to last st, k.

Leave sts on needle.

Knit bits of this in public and then weird people out by telling them you’re knitting Tower Bridge when they ask.

Front (make 2)

Starting with Right Leg, knit across both legs to join them.

Row 15 P, k across to last st, p (18 sts). Row 16 K, p across to last st, k.

Row 17 P across.

Row 18 K, p to last st, k.

Row 19 P across.

Rows 20–26 Beg row 16 rep row 15 (odd rows) and 16 (even rows).

Row 27 P across.

Row 28 K, p to last st, k.

Row 29 P across.

Rows 30–36 Beg row 16 rep row

Beg row 16 rep row 15 (odd rows) and 16 (even rows). Row 37 P across.

Row 38 K, p to last st, k.

Row 39 P across.

Rows 40–46 Beg row 16 rep row

Beg row 16 rep row 15 (odd rows) and 16 (even rows).. Row 47 P across.

Row 48 K across.

Change colour to dark grey yarn for roof.

Row 49 P across.

Row 50 P across.

Row 51 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (16 sts).

Row 52 P across.

Row 53 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (14 sts).

Row 54 P across.

Row 55 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (12 sts).

Row 56 P across.

Row 57 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (10 sts).

Row 58 P across.

Row 59 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (8 sts).

Row 60 P across.

Row 61 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (6 sts).

Row 62 P across.

Row 63 K2tog, k2, k2tog (4 sts).

Row 64 P across.

Row 65 K2tog twice (2 sts).

Thread yarn through sts.

Place small, energetic pet rodents on your tiny monument and pretend that they’re oversized sewer rats freed from London’s underbelly and hungry for the city’s supply of cheese.

Back (make 2)

Rep instructions for Front.

Tower Sides (make 4)

Cast on 11 sts in light browny-yellow yarn.

Row 1 P, k to last st, p.

Row 2 K, p to last st, k.

Rows 3–16 Rep row 1 (odd) and 2 (even).

Row 17 P across.

Row 18 K, p to last st, k.

Row 19 P across.

Rows 20–26 Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows). Row 27 P across.

Row 28 K, p to last st, k.

Row 29 P across.

Rows 30–36 Beg row 2 rep row

Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows). Row 37 P across.

Row 38 K, p to last st, k.

Row 39 P across.

Rows 40–46 Beg row 2 rep row

Beg row 2 rep row 1 (odd rows) and 2 (even rows). Row 47 P across.

Row 48 K across.

Change colour to dark grey yarn for roof.

Row 49 P across.

Row 50 P across.

Row 51 K2tog, knit to last 2 sts, k2tog (9 sts).

Row 52 P across.

Row 53 K across.

Row 54 P2tog, purl to last 2 sts, p2tog (7 sts).

Row 55 K across.

Row 56 P across.

Row 57 K2tog, k to last 2 sts, k2tog (5 sts).

Row 58 P across.

Row 59 K across.

Row 60 P2tog, p, p2tog (3 sts). Row 61 K across.

Row 62 P across.

Row 63 K2tog, k (2 sts).

Row 64 P2.

Row 65 K2tog (1 st).

Thread yarn through st.

Under Bridge (make 2)

Cast on 11 sts in light blue yarn.

Rows 1–35 Work in st st starting with k row.

Cast off (bind off) all sts.

Bridge and Walkways (make 4)

Cast on 3 sts in light blue yarn.

Rows 1–40 K across.

Cast off (bind off).

Gold and silver embroidery thread make everything classy. You will want to embroider everything in sight once you start.

Have self-control or you’ll end up overblinging. No one likes an overblinger. Less is more.

FINISHING

Sew together long edges of front, back and sides of each tower.

Sew together two sides of roof, leaving the other two open.