Suffragette Camellia – Free Knitting Pattern

There is something quietly powerful about a camellia. It blooms in the cold months, when most flowers have long since retreated, and it does so with an almost defiant elegance. It seems fitting, then, that the camellia became one of the floral symbols of the women’s suffrage movement — worn by suffragettes in New Zealand and celebrated in paintings and badges across the English-speaking world. This free knitting pattern takes that symbol and makes it tactile, wearable, and yours to knit in an afternoon.

Whether you want to make a brooch to pin to a coat lapel, a decorative flower for a hat, a corsage for a special occasion, or simply a small handmade gift that carries meaning, the Suffragette Camellia pattern has you covered. It uses only basic knitting skills, requires very little yarn, and produces a beautiful result that looks far more complex than it actually is.

Read on for the full free pattern, tips on yarn choices and colour, notes on the history behind the design, and ideas for how to use and gift your finished flowers.

The Story Behind the Suffragette Camellia

Before we get to needles and yarn, it is worth pausing on why this particular flower matters.

The women’s suffrage movement used flowers extensively in its visual language. In New Zealand, where women won the right to vote in 1893 — the first country in the world to grant this right — the camellia became a symbol of the movement. Women wore white camellias on polling day as a quiet, visible act of solidarity. The gesture was peaceful, beautiful, and unmistakable. It said, without a single spoken word: I am here, I have voted, I belong in this space.

In Britain and the United States, the suffragette movements favoured purple, white, and green — and later yellow and white — as their official colours. Flowers featured heavily in banners, badges, and brooch designs. The vocabulary of flowers, which Victorian and Edwardian women had long used to communicate meaning in a world that limited their public speech, was turned outward and made political.

Knitting, too, has its own quiet history of activism. During the suffragette era, women gathered to knit together and used the domestic space of needlework as a site of conversation, organising, and mutual support. Knitting was, paradoxically, both the activity that society expected women to confine themselves to and the activity around which women built the networks that would help them change society entirely.

This pattern sits inside that tradition. It is a small thing, a knitted flower, but small things made carefully and given with intention have always mattered.

Materials You Will Need

This pattern is deliberately designed to be accessible. You do not need specialist equipment or expensive yarn. Here is what you will need to make one Suffragette Camellia:

Yarn: Approximately 15–20 metres of DK weight yarn in your main colour. This is a wonderful stash-buster pattern — almost any DK yarn will work. For a traditional suffragette look, consider white, cream, pale yellow, or soft purple. For a more contemporary feel, deep wine red, blush pink, or forest green all produce beautiful results.

A small amount of contrast yarn in yellow or gold for the centre stamens. You will need only a few metres.

Knitting needles: 3.5mm or 4mm straight needles, or whatever size produces a firm fabric with your chosen yarn. You do not want the fabric to be too loose or the petals will look floppy.

A tapestry needle for weaving in ends and assembling the flower.

A brooch back, hair clip, or pin if you intend to wear the camellia. These are widely available from craft shops and online haberdashers.

Optional: A small circle of felt in a matching colour for backing the brooch. This gives a neat finish and helps the flower keep its shape.

Gauge: Gauge is not critical for this pattern. The finished flower will be approximately 8–10cm in diameter depending on your yarn weight and tension, but small variations in size will not affect the result.

Abbreviations Used in This Pattern

CO — Cast on
K — Knit
P — Purl
K2tog — Knit two stitches together (a right-leaning decrease)
Kfb — Knit into the front and back of the same stitch (an increase)
Sl1 — Slip one stitch purlwise
BO — Bind off (cast off)
RS — Right side
WS — Wrong side
St(s) — Stitch(es)
Rep — Repeat

Pattern Notes

The Suffragette Camellia is made up of three layers of petals, each knitted separately and then layered together to create depth and dimension. The innermost layer has the smallest petals, the middle layer is slightly larger, and the outermost layer is the largest. The stamen centre is knitted separately as a small gathered circle and attached on top.

Each petal layer is knitted as a single flat strip with the individual petals shaped along the cast-on edge. The strip is then gathered along one long edge to form the ring of petals.

The pattern uses very simple techniques — knit, purl, increases, and decreases — and is suitable for confident beginners as well as more experienced knitters. If you can knit a basic stitch and shape a simple triangle, you can make this flower.

The Pattern

Layer One: Inner Petals (make one strip)

These are the smallest petals and will sit at the centre of the finished flower.

CO 5 sts.

Row 1 (RS): Kfb, K3, Kfb. (7 sts)
Row 2 (WS): P to end.
Row 3: Kfb, K5, Kfb. (9 sts)
Row 4: P to end.
Row 5: K to end.
Row 6: P to end.
Row 7: K2tog, K5, K2tog. (7 sts)
Row 8: P to end.
Row 9: K2tog, K3, K2tog. (5 sts)
Row 10: P to end.

One petal is complete. Without breaking yarn, cast on 5 sts using a backward loop cast-on or a simple cable cast-on.

Repeat rows 1–10 four more times so that you have a strip of five petals.

After the fifth petal, do not cast on again. Break yarn leaving a tail of approximately 25cm for gathering.

Thread your tapestry needle with this tail and run it along the straight lower edge of your petal strip, passing through every stitch and every row end along the bottom of each petal. Pull gently to gather the strip into a ring. The petals should fan outward naturally. Secure the end and sew the two short ends of the strip together to close the ring. Weave in all ends.

Set aside.

Layer Two: Middle Petals (make one strip)

These petals are slightly wider and taller than the inner layer.

CO 7 sts.

Row 1 (RS): Kfb, K5, Kfb. (9 sts)
Row 2 (WS): P to end.
Row 3: Kfb, K7, Kfb. (11 sts)
Row 4: P to end.
Row 5: K to end.
Row 6: P to end.
Row 7: K to end.
Row 8: P to end.
Row 9: K2tog, K7, K2tog. (9 sts)
Row 10: P to end.
Row 11: K2tog, K5, K2tog. (7 sts)
Row 12: P to end.

One petal complete. Without breaking yarn, cast on 7 sts.

Repeat rows 1–12 four more times for a total of five petals.

After the fifth petal, break yarn leaving a 25cm tail for gathering. Gather, close into a ring, and weave in ends exactly as for layer one.

Set aside.

Layer Three: Outer Petals (make one strip)

The outer petals are the largest and form the base of the flower.

CO 9 sts.

Row 1 (RS): Kfb, K7, Kfb. (11 sts)
Row 2 (WS): P to end.
Row 3: Kfb, K9, Kfb. (13 sts)
Row 4: P to end.
Row 5: K to end.
Row 6: P to end.
Row 7: K to end.
Row 8: P to end.
Row 9: K to end.
Row 10: P to end.
Row 11: K2tog, K9, K2tog. (11 sts)
Row 12: P to end.
Row 13: K2tog, K7, K2tog. (9 sts)
Row 14: P to end.

One petal complete. Without breaking yarn, cast on 9 sts.

Repeat rows 1–14 five more times for a total of six petals on this outer layer.

Gather, close into a ring, and weave in ends as before.

Set aside.

The Stamen Centre

The stamen centre gives the finished camellia its botanical accuracy and a beautiful focal point. Switch to your contrast yarn in yellow or gold.

CO 24 sts.

Row 1: K to end.
Row 2: K2tog, rep from to end. (12 sts)
Row 3: K to end.
Row 4: K2tog, rep from to end. (6 sts)

Break yarn leaving a long tail. Thread onto tapestry needle and draw through remaining 6 sts, pulling tightly to gather. Roll the resulting small piece into a loose cylinder or puff shape and secure with a few stitches so it holds its form. Weave in ends.

Assembly

Now comes the satisfying part — putting the three layers together.

Place the outer petal ring on your work surface, right side up. Place the middle petal ring on top, offsetting the petals slightly so that the petals of the middle layer fall in the gaps between the outer petals. Thread your tapestry needle and sew the two layers together through their gathered centres.

Place the inner petal ring on top of the middle layer, again offsetting the petals to create the layered, overlapping effect of a real camellia. Sew in place through the centre.

Finally, place the stamen centre in the very middle of the flower and stitch it down securely.

If you are making a brooch, cut a small circle of felt — roughly 4cm in diameter — and sew it to the back of the assembled flower. Sew or glue a brooch back to the felt. The felt prevents the pin from tearing through the knitted fabric and gives the brooch a clean, professional finish.

If you are making a hair accessory, sew the flower directly to a clip base or onto a wide elastic band.

Yarn Colour Ideas and Variations

One of the great pleasures of this pattern is how dramatically different it looks depending on the yarn you choose. Here are a few colour combinations that work particularly well.

Classic Suffragette: White or cream petals with a yellow stamen centre. This is the traditional New Zealand suffragette camellia and looks stunning on a dark coat or a black hat band.

Purple and Gold: Deep violet petals with a warm gold centre. This combination references the British suffragette palette and is striking and bold.

Edwardian Garden: Pale blush pink petals with a soft butter yellow centre. This feels romantic and period-appropriate, and is particularly lovely for a wedding accessory or a gift for a new baby.

Modern Statement: Rich burgundy or forest green petals with a copper or bronze metallic yarn for the centre. This is a contemporary take that wears beautifully on winter coats.

Multicoloured: If you have small amounts of several pinks, creams, or purples, you could knit each petal layer in a slightly different shade. When layered, the subtle variation creates a painterly depth that closely mimics the look of a real camellia bloom.

Tips for a Beautiful Finish

A few small details make a significant difference to the final look of your flower.

Block your petals lightly before assembly. Pinning each petal strip out flat and pressing gently with a damp cloth will help the petals hold their shape and lie flat before you gather them. This is especially worthwhile if you are using a plant fibre yarn such as cotton or linen.

Offset the petals consistently. When layering the three rings, try to stagger the petals so that the inner petals land between the outer ones rather than directly on top. This is what creates the three-dimensional, spiralling effect of a real camellia.

Use the same yarn for sewing as for knitting wherever possible, so that your assembly stitches disappear into the fabric.

Do not skip the felt backing if you are making a brooch. It seems like an extra step but it genuinely transforms the finish and makes the brooch far more durable.

Make several at once. Once you have knitted one, you will find the pattern moves very quickly from memory. A set of three camellias in graduating sizes makes a beautiful cluster brooch or a decorative element for a knitted hat.

Ideas for Gifting and Using Your Camellias

A knitted camellia is one of those handmade gifts that looks effortful and luxurious while actually coming together quite quickly. Here are some ways to use and gift your finished flowers.

Pin one to a plain wool scarf or a simple knitted hat to transform it into something special. Attach one to a headband for a child’s hair accessory. Sew a cluster of three to the front of a simple tote bag for a botanical embellishment. Give a single camellia in a small kraft paper envelope with a note about its suffragette history — a perfect gift for an International Women’s Day, a birthday, or a thank-you.

If you are a knitting teacher or a group leader, this is an excellent pattern for a short workshop. Almost everyone can complete a camellia in a two-hour session, and the act of making something with this particular history attached to it tends to spark rich and meaningful conversation.

A Note on Sharing This Pattern

This pattern is free and offered with an open heart. You are welcome to make and sell items knitted from this pattern, to share the pattern with friends, and to adapt it for your own projects. All I ask is that you credit the original pattern when sharing it online and that you do not sell the pattern itself.

If you make a Suffragette Camellia, I would love to see it. Share your photographs using the tag #suffragettecamellia so that makers everywhere can find and celebrate each other’s work.

Final Thoughts

There is a long tradition of making things that carry meaning — objects that are both useful and symbolic, both beautiful and political. The Suffragette Camellia sits inside that tradition. It is a small flower made of yarn and patience, and it connects the person who makes it to generations of women who used the materials available to them to express something true about who they were and what they believed.

Knit it in white for purity and determination. Knit it in purple for dignity. Knit it in green for hope. Wear it, give it, make it again.

And as you knit, think about the women who wore real camellias to the polling station in 1893, dressed in their best, knowing that what they were doing had never been done before. Think about the ordinary, extraordinary courage of that act.

Then cast on, and add your own small stitch to the story.