A very good colleague friend of mine is switching jobs, and I needed something to give her so she never forgets me. We have the most wonderful relationship, based on traded giggly insults and I adore her. I overheard a conversation she had about the recession and caught her saying “We’re living on beans!” (don’t panic – she can still afford to heat the indoor pool and maintain the yacht…), so naturally, I figured I could treat her to lunch as her leaving present. And as she teases me over my urge to cosy everything with yarn, this humble can of beans obviously needed to be yarny too :)

Whilst this is obviously a very tongue-in-cheek present and knitting pattern, once the beans have been scoffed, it makes a pretty holder for pens, knitting needles, flowers, etc and appeals to my recycling side.

I’ve added a front pocket – to keep paperclips in perhaps? And one of the flowers is hot-glued to a little bulldog clip so it can be removed and perform bulldog-clippy duties.

The whole thing can be whipped up in a few hours, doesn’t use a lot of yarn and makes an ideal little present. It’s mainly knit in the round, with a knitted pocket and crocheted flower embellishments.