The Emotional Support Chicken™️... but vintage... and a Duck

[@Noel.Chmielowiec]

I remember my husband's cousin who is a programmer saying that they have rubber ducks at work, they talk to them if they can't find a mistake and during this 'conversation' they most often find what they did wrong, so maybe that could be Douglas the Yelling Duck's life mission, to listen to you while you try to find where you made a mistake in a project? And I think the eyes don't make him look too modern, he still looks vintage and very charming.

[@armedvsokord]

My husband is also a programmer and I'm learning as well. It's totally a thing. You explain to your "duck" or sometimes a person and realize that you missed a comma or made a spelling error or something else silly. It's very helpful.

[@Noel.Chmielowiec]

@@armedvsokord Nothing makes you realise your mistakes like saying out loud what you did 😂 I did it while playing with Linux, I did it while sewing and I'm doing it while knitting. 9/10 times no one knows what I'm talking about but they're glad they could help 😂 But having the ducky is better, no one will judge you, the ducky wouldn't ever judge.

[@thebe1azi500]

@@armedvsokordMy closest friend is an avid programmer (I am most definitively not) so I am frequently the figurative duck in conversations. I always find it hilarious when he goes “Thank you so much, you’ve been very helpful,” whereas I’ve just sat there nodding and making listening noises at the appropriate times for the last ten minutes 😂

[@chrissy24-7]

😂 I love this look into the engineering minds

[@beth12svist]

I'm beginning to think I may need to start using my emotional support groundhog handpuppet this way.

[@bonneswartzfager4190]

I love the screaming Douglas. When you're frustrated let Douglas say what you're thinking.

[@beth12svist]

Just what I was thinking! He's your emotional support duck. He's your anger translator.

[@Babybearcroche]

Here in Brasil, these knit or sew chicken are usually filled with sand and used as door stoppers by grandmas

[@RetroClaude]

Oh wow! Maybe I shall make one like a Brazilian grandma!

[@Babybearcroche]

@@RetroClaude haha yeah! They're super cute and nostalgic

[@meowdee]

Oh my!! I’m not a stuffie person but a stuffed door stopper? Heck yes

[@Babybearcroche]

@@meowdee if you search "peso de porta galinha" you'll find them, the most common one seem to be the black dotted one but there's all kinda of colors and styles

[@mollyn03]

WOW - my (very much not Brasilian) grandmother sewed me a doorstop like this when I was a teenager - I loved it. I had no idea this was a Brazilian tradition

[@KristenStieffel]

The bottom bit coming out two different weights because of the yarns is *exactly* the kind of thing that would happen to an auntie knitting a gift from her stash during the war. And safety eyes don’t look that different from boot buttons, which could have been used on stuffies back in the day. Excellent work!

[@amykathleen2]

When my cousin’s daughter was very young (from around 18 months to 3 years), she had two major obsessions (well, three if you include cheese): chickens - or as she called them, bawk-bawk-ies - and bags. Having absolutely no money at the time, I found a pattern online for a crochet chicken-shaped coin purse which I made from yarn scraps and a zipper rescued from a destroyed purse. I remember finishing it on the airplane and getting a lot of really strange looks. But she loved having a bawk-bawk-y bag!

[@shastahill]

Wonderful gift and memory!

[@Westibule]

I chuckled at your "yarn duck" joke! And the duck absolutely looks vintage - many modern patterns pride themselves on the resemblance to animal in question but vintage patterns have no such regard so the proportions always look a bit skewed and I love it.

[@RetroClaude]

He's certainly very charming but has only a passing resemblance to an actual duck! If it weren't for the beak I don't think I'd know what he is!

[@Westibule]

@@RetroClaude your choice of colours gives a good indication too - not many birds have a brown body and a green head.

[@mille5913]

@@Westibule😂

[@Lisa_Flowers]

The emotional support chicken is actually FOR Douglas, since he has so many things to scream about (me too Douglas)

[@RetroClaude]

Oh my god I cackled so hard at your comment 🤣🤣🤣

[@Lisa_Flowers]

​@RetroClaude I'm glad my comment made you cackle as much as your videos make ME cackle 😂

[@petapendlebury9024]

This is definitely my favourite chuckle in the comments - and there have been some good ones!

[@mk.sterud]

Douglas the Distraught Duck and Charlese the Cheerful Chicken are wonderful additions to the channel and fantastic for the stash-busting extravaganza! LOVE!🧡

[@_KarenS]

What a perfect side quest! After all the frustration of the Daisy Blouse and Hexipuff blanket, it's lovely to see both Douglas and his chicky friend give you a serotonin boost :-)

[@smolsews3760]

I don't think I've ever purchased a pattern so fast 😂

[@RetroClaude]

I hope you enjoy making him!

[@heidiclarke2333]

Normally i avoid things that are trending not yet knitted a ranunculus! But knew my son's girlfriend would love a chicken, so i knitted a pink one for her for Easter it was received with love😊.

[@PatBall-v8q]

Same here - ranunculus doesn't seem that impressive to me but - THIS DUCK!!!. I've knit 2; one for me, one for a gift. I could keep knitting them because they use so much left-over yarn from my stash and the result is so colorful. That's why I think they are catching on. Now we don't have to feel guilty about that extra skein of expensive yarn we bought and can't return.

[@KatsNook]

Playing yarn chicken while making an emotional support chicken/duck. Humour of that was not lost on me. 🤣

[@FaerieDust]

A significantly cheaper stuffing option, at least where I live, is to just get one of IKEA's cheapest pillows (Sandgräsmal is the cheapest they have in Sweden). Exactly the same stuff as what's sold as stuffing in craft and yarn shops, but it was just over 70% cheaper when I calculated the price/weight. Anyway, I love these! I wonder if I could modify one of these patterns for my toddler niece who adores magpies and crows. No one knows why - she's 15 months old, crazy about birds in general, and crows and magpies in particular.

[@norasutherlin1115]

crows and magpies are very smart birds. crow remember human faces so if your little neice could make friends with them just from being kind ❤

[@Kalanadi]

There is something magical about a knitted chicken. A few years ago, while sick with Covid, I knit two from Claire Garland's Hen pattern and they are delightful. They sit on my desk at work and everyone loves them! You've really tempted me with the Emotional Support Chicken pattern as I think it would be faster to make..... If you're ever looking for more cute scrappy stash busting plushies, I highly recommend Plod the African Flower Triceratops by Heidi Bear. It's crochet and eats up yarn scraps. I'm making my fourth one right now with handspun yarn leftovers and I am not tired of it yet!

[@ColorJoyLynnH]

I’m 65, and the first memory of polyester fiberfill is 1976 when I sewed myself a large teddybear for my 18th birthday. When I was a child, pillows and stuffed animals were stuffed with kapok (KAY-pock). It was a real problem because it was not washable. If you washed kapok, it flattened out and lost all its fluff. It was a plant fiber, kind of like stuffing Life vests with milkweed pod seeds.

[@pixypunkcraft]

Love that the Emotional Support Duck is practicing scream therapy! It's so cool!

[@samanthaschlegel1863]

I think the duck looks great. You could use your scraps to make a scarf for your duck instead of a ribbon perhaps.

[@sarah.sparkles]

Love the duck.. He looks like a Sir Montague of Quackington 🤣

[@emmadavey3892]

❤ this stash busting thing is such a cliffhanger 🤣 I NEED to know how much is left! Also I feel a busted party will be required once the stash is busted!

[@missmeg4199]

I love the duck! You should make him a little knitted shawl instead of a ribbon. I think it would be quite cute! Kinda like Jemima Puddle Duck! And now I really want to make myself a little stuffed bird. I promised myself to finish this pair of socks first and then I can go stash diving.

[@corriemcclain7960]

AWE.... so cute! Both of them. The eyes on the duck might be modern, but from a distance they look like the buttons my grandmother used to use on her handmade toys for us to play with at her house

[@rmorine6394]

Good point! I was thinking the buttons for eyes would have been perfectly vintage.

[@howcanikeepfromsinging]

Once again I have no idea about these online trends like the Harry Styles cardigan until you make a video about it…and I’m about your age 😆 I had fun knitting fruits and veggies for my nephew’s pretend shop last birthday. If you enjoy knitting small pieces, you could start some small foods for the children in your life. There’s sooo many on Ravelry, and lots of them are free, or I found Susie Johns’ book of 20 veg and one of 20 fruits at the library which started the whole thing 😅 It was quite fun, plus I enjoyed seeing people’s confusion when they asked what I was knitting, and I’d reply “A tomato” or something 😝

[@ElaineHGD]

They are so cute! I was not aware of this trend and now I think I might need an emotional support chicken/duck/bird too. Drying the duck in the oven was genius and I had a ha! Roast duck! Moment 😂

[@m.maclellan7147]

I was FLOORED when she put it in the oven, as I'm a "newbie" & was excited to see her 'blocking' the pieces !

[@beth12svist]

Haha, I had not thought of the roast duck joke, that's hilarious! I have dried things in the oven before. Not blocking, I think, but I think some socks I needed to wear soon have gotten the treatment at some point...

[@paperandtwine]

I’ve. Ever seen anyone dry their knitting in the oven before 😱 I so enjoyed this video, thank you 🤗

[@RetroClaude]

In the UK this year it rained from October to April it rained almost every day! I had to get creative 😂😅

[@paperandtwine]

@@RetroClaude I hope you don't think I was being critical, I was just amazed! I've been catching up on a lot of your content as I recover from surgery. Thank you for your very talented company

[@Zethek]

This pattern looked like it was quite fiddly, but you did an amazing job figuring out how it was all supposed to go together. I love how Screaming Douglas turned out, and the green on the head + brown/tan blending looks so duck like!! I'm looking forward to hearing "the state of the stash" update, I'm a big fan of your stash busting videos. Do you think at some point you might give us a video tour of your garden? English gardens/back yards are so different than American ones, I think it would be cool to see how it's laid out and what sort of stuff you have growing in it.

[@das_moendchen3250]

I really like the idea of The Chicken And The Duck being the channel mascotts! That would be so cute!

[@saraht855]

My friend was sad a while ago and while she was waiting for me to get there said she was hanging out with a duck for emotional support while I was there. We have been joking about being each other's emotional support duck for ages. Looking forward to seeing yours!

[@procrasticrafting]

I was already convinced I needed to make an emotional support chicken, but Douglas has charmed me so much that I'll need an duck as well! 🐔🦆

[@MichaelaDrechselova]

I found that the more I push myself (meaning the more anxious, tired, or in pain I am) the tighter my knitting is. Which is a bit annoying considering I knit to put my mind off things. 😄 It's comforting to know that you encounter something similar as well. 😊 Btw, the yarn duck joke made me chuckle. 🦆 EDIT: If you sew the bottom of the wings, your duck can hold stuff for you (tiny pocket)!

[@matthodek]

Oh goodness I love Douglas! When I was younger I was on occasion referred to as Matthew Mallard. I don't (yet?) know how to knit, so maybe I will have to come up with an equivalent sewing pattern to make my own emotional support duck. I have some duck figurines that were my dad's, but they aren't exactly cuddly... For the record, I laughed at both the yarn duck joke, and then again for you apologizing for it. It was a good pun. Great video all around. Take care! 🦆

[@cerwelt]

I know chronic illness doesn’t always show up on the outside, but you look really good in this video. Hope you’re in a good place. I’m an ordained minister, so my heart is to pray for healing for you (which I do). I crochet, knit and weave. Just can’t get knitting, but love watching you knit. I’m a seamstress as well so I enjoy your sewing videos too. I know you can’t sew right now, but it’s how I first found you. Love all things vintage as I was born in the fifties.

[@meady50]

that shape is so cuddly because real chickens are also very cuddly. You just have to have chickens that like you

[@hannahv1930]

New mascots for Claude!!!! There's probably already a comment about it but I can't be bothered to read them all you're so popular but buttons for eyes would look vintage/make do and mend and not creepy at all!!!

[@MissMVintage]

Your enthusiasm for the 40s duck and the modern chicken is so infectious! I couldn't help but smile all the way along with you. Also, that duck pun really quacked me up. I really like how you had to wing it with the modern eyes. Thanks for such a wholesome video! :D

[@GamyH]

You are now the first person I've seen mention Kapok in the modern era, I've just ordered some, because it's still available and apparently it's very nice for pillows, so I plan to machine knit a pillow and stuff it with some kapok I bought online.

[@kiknadzeknits]

The happy squealing sound you made after you picked your colours is the reason why these patterns are labelled as "therapeutic". ❤

[@janetnash]

Absolutely loved your emotional support Duck, so nostalgic. Your little chicken is so cute too ❤

[@teressebirkett3387]

In a nice way, it's lovely to see a seasoned knitter like yourself struggling. I've just embarked on pattern knitting and I've had to put down and walk away more than a few times but the duck is awesome

[@esalenchik]

The one thing I wish I’d known before embarking on my knitting journey is that knitters of any experience level have to frog, tink or simply put down a project more than once first time making each pattern. It’s simply part of knitting.

[@ellie38gwen]

Yarn chicken is forever renamed yarn duck 😂 It feels very makedo and mend that you can change the colours and decoration to have a vague idea of a different bird. I see a 1940s bird sanctuary in your stash busting future 😊

[@KateVinee]

When you held up Douglas with his wings attached, for a moment I thought you'd sewn them all along the bottom edge to make little pockets, and I thought, "Oh, what a good idea for when you're sick in bed, to keep tissues and cough drops or whatever in." Cute AND functional! But even without the pockets I love him (and the Emotion Support Chicken). Long may he scream!

[@micahmilne]

Ooh, a stash re-assessment! That's super exciting. It'll be interesting to see it all again and see if there's a clear difference, and where the holes are of what yarn you're missing, and what's still stubbornly kicking around, lol.

[@lyannecb8499]

I say kay-pok rather than kah-pok, as that's what my mum says 😊. I do prefer modern toy stuffing though, as it's washable and kapok isn't, and if I'm making soft toys, they're for young children. I use quilting safety pins to put knitted garment pieces together before making up, or crochet squares together so I can make sure they're in the right order and the right way up. Pinning the duck pieces together first might help work out how it all goes together? I love the curved quilters safety pins for knitting and crochet as they can't come out of my work till I undo them, but the curve makes them easy to find and remove when I want to.

[@brooke_reiverrose2949]

So adorable! I love them both! I really like the duck colors and stripes. And props to Mum once again ❤

[@kellynelson3186]

Just bought some supplies for my ESC .... can't wait to join you in having one 😂

[@teacheraprilrogers]

I love your duck. I teach children 6-18 knitting and crochet online. My students are all into the slight uni craze. But some don't know how go knit in the round. I live vintage patterns and knit them all the time for myself. I never thought about them for it students. Thank you cor reminding me to look to the past for patterns for my young knitters.

[@StetStitches]

Oh I love your duck (and the chicken)! This made me think of the vintage elephant pattern I knit for all the littles in my life. I’ve been considering knitting a plushie for myself, I do love me a plushie…

[@ASA-bl3hw]

Lol at drying in the oven 😂

[@RetroClaude]

Welcome to Britain 😂🌧️

[@monicasmadeinmaine1114]

@@RetroClaudewhat was the oven temp and time? New England gets pretty wet too! Thank you!

[@asilverfoxintasmania9940]

I was not aware of the Emotional Support Chicken! so thank you for that. They both turned out so well! And Douglas yelling! is so on brand for an emotional support animal! I love the eyes!

[@asilverfoxintasmania9940]

oh I did laugh at the yarn duck joke.... it wasn't that bad!

[@haycjones]

No no I love the screaming duck. It's too funny

[@sheri-rk1po]

They turned out so darn cute! I loved watching Douglas come together. His wings are perfect. And the chicken’s colors are great! Welcome to the channel, our little friends! Are you wearing the Wove wrap in one of the segments? It’s gorgeous!

[@LadyWiggin]

Oh the duck is so vintage in style. I love the color choices for the duck and the chicken. Now I want a chicken for me and a duck for the husband. We’ve raised both. And love them.

[@kathrynbassett1535]

I feel we all need a Douglas a support duck 🦆 in our lives 😊 Your video was just what I needed today made me smile so much. Sending yarny hugs from Katy from NZ 😊

[@TheEmeraldElf]

Cuter than any couch cushions you could buy and they will be right there when a movie makes you cry!

[@c0ldlight1]

This is adorable! I love it! And there is nothing quite like knitting/crocheting tiny little pattern pieces on different days to find out how out of whack your tension is. When I make little dolls I have found I need to create their limbs in the same sitting or else they come out lopsided :-)

[@madcrowcrafts]

As a crocheter I am so jealous of them both!!! I actually discovered your channel when that stash busting compilation got randomly suggested to me, and I watched it TWICE. Love your content, so excited to see more!!!

[@bookwyrms.2658]

If the duck wings are sewn along the botton and tip, they form little posckets for treasures/hankies to be help in.

[@LucindaSutherland-w2u]

Great video! Wonderful job knitting the support animals. So happy to see you wearing your beautiful sweaters while you were knitting!

[@cindyroberts6666]

I love your duck & chicken projects. Especially love the chicken isn't 'traditional' colors. 🦆🐔

[@altaroberts5105]

Ceiba speciosa - Kapokboom, Silk floss tree Kapok is the most used common name for the tree and may also refer to the cotton-like fluff obtained from its seed pods. The tree is cultivated for the seed fibre, particularly in Southeast Asia and is also known as the Java cotton, Java kapok, silk-cotton, samauma or ceiba.

[@sewingintrifocals-alisonde7778]

In California, people have kapok trees in their yards. The trees have lovely flowers in pink or cream.

[@beth12svist]

I don't follow knitting trends so I tend to learn of them from your 1940s versions. 😅 This is fun!

[@petramanos]

So lovely to see you smiling again!! Since you found them fun, you might be able to use some of your other scraps for toys. It doesn't really matter what the gauge is for a toy as long as you use the same gauge throughout. You might just end up with a family of furry friends in different sizes 😊

[@Alexis-xp1gb]

There is this cute little chicken pattern I've been putting off buying, but I think this has convinced me I need to make an emotional support bird. The duck turned out great!

[@SusieQ3]

My husband found some 80 year old woodworked toy designs and templates at an estate sale. We go to a lot of estate sales.

[@etatql]

love to see the tea rose slip on!! i wear mine nearly every day

[@RetroClaude]

I'm so glad you like the pattern!

[@JaimeRL513]

Not going to lie, I made the yarn duck joke a second before you did and then had a good laugh! Both are adorable and so happy to see knitting content. Your compilation videos are so relaxing for a knitting session. 😊

[@Thx-I-made-it]

Each time I see the emotional support chicken it gets bumped higher and higher up in my queue. Your color scheme is so! good!!

[@coreygilles847]

I love Kapok…the best thing in the world for body pillows in my opinion (at least for me) I didn’t realize people stuffed toys with it son the past…very cool ❤

[@kaytiej8311]

The satisfaction of getting those little pieces done so quickly is a dopamine hit I fully appreciate. Seeing you internally giggling was wonderful to witness.

[@mauraosullivan6084]

it's so lovely to see smaller knitting projects on your channel! i often don't have the attention span to finish longer projects myself, and this was a lovely source of inspiration for future vintage pattern hunts :)

[@azteclady]

They are both so sweet! and oh goodness, YAY for stashbusting that looks so intentional, I love the colors!

[@Siennaflower]

Both very cute!! I was thinking you could use buttons for the eyes--that seems like it would be vintagey--but probably too late now. The black eyes look fine. ❤

[@May_Flowers696]

There's something about knitting a lot of fiddly bits flat and sewing them into a stuffed animal or doll. The making might be frustrating, but the FO is always adorable. A ravelry group I'm in is making the ESC. I've resisted so far, but your cute little cuddly farmyard is pushing me toward a knitted bird of some sort.

[@llamabean529]

I came back to this and I think I will make one for my dad, he'd find it hilarious

[@fathomstars]

It is so great to see you working on projects you love making! Loved the coziness of this video and both the chicken and ducks are precious

[@cerwelt]

Love your chicken. We have twenty chickens and they are so hilarious. I have a golden pullet and her name is Marilyn Monroe and is spoiled as can be. She lives in the garage because she refuses to associate with the other chickens. She has her own apartment and if she does venture outside, she will wait at our rear door for us to pick her up and transport her to her flat! She’s a Texas chicken and girls from Texas are quite dramatic. I’m from the country in the quiet state of Montana. Boy are folks different here! Thanks for sharing. Great video.

[@martinsw4711]

These are so cute and cuddly! If you were at all interested you could make them little hats or outfits for holidays/seasons with some of your scrap. I had a neighbor who had a porch goose statue that had different color raincoats and wellies for each season. It was so cheerful.

[@cm1706]

I cannot communicate how happy I was seeing the thumbnail of this video

[@macstabby_j]

I didn't know I needed to make an emotional support chicken, and yet here we are.

[@sophie1301]

Yayayayay!!!!! I cannot wait for the stash reset video! I love these stash busting videos and I’ve watched the 6hr video twice through now. I thoroughly enjoyed watching you make your emotional support duck!

[@KristiChan1]

Douglas' silent screaming is relatable lol.

[@bootstheory]

I am unashamedly hyped for the stash reset!

[@robintheparttimesewer6798]

I chuckled at your duck home. It's so nice when you actually win! They are both very cute and will make great mascots for your channel

[@robintheparttimesewer6798]

I must apologise for not checking the very weird stuff this demonic tablet does! It will not let me fix it either! Duck home was duck joke who ever set the parameters for this tablet needs a good shaking!

[@dees3179]

When I was a child a lot of my toys were home made by my parents, grandparents and aunt. Every grandchild had a creepy knitted clown made of bits of itchy wool left over from making jumpers,….very hard wearing! I’ve still got a couple of those toys to this day even though I’m pushing fifty. I suspect a lot of them are pretty much identical to things that were played with during rationing and before. No less fun for all that. My dad even made us stilts once, but we weren’t very good at using them. Then growing up my brother and I were making a lot of our own toys and things for our younger cousins. It was just what we all did and thought normal. I know my cousin still has dogdog that I made for him. An older cousin once gifted me a toy she’d adapted from a shop bought one…..a Sindy doll that had been turned into a character from hellraiser! I was five. I kept that thing for years. Shop bought stuff was so dull……..

[@dees3179]

Pinhead! That’s what the sindy doll was cos playing as! Her hair had been replaced with sewing pins. Because that’s safe to give a five year old…..

[@pakedermsfavs9080]

Yay chicken . Haven’t fallen down that rabbit hole yet. Maybe a shawl for your critters too?😊

[@vincentbriggs1780]

They're both delightful! I hadn't heard of the emotional support chicken but I can see why it's so popular. Somewhere in my late Grandma's sewing stuff there's a very old brown pattern envelope with patterns for several different stuffed animals, so perhaps it's from around the same time.

[@saracyclesandsews]

This video was DELIGHTFUL to watch. ✨ I want to make the chicken asap. All my friends and family might need chickens too. 🐔

[@kathrynflannery2889]

I absolutely cracked up at the beak! 😂😱

[@SarianneMarttio]

What a delightful video! I was contemplating the emotional support chicken before this video but now I want a Douglas of my own! The screaming beak is super funny.

[@KelseyDrummer]

I love Douglas. He's my new favourite.

[@MegaSnowcat]

I love the Emotional Support Chicken and Douglas the Distressed Vintage Duck!

[@MrsBrit1]

I keep seeing this chicken and I'm almost to the point where I need to make one!! 😂 They really are adorable! And how cute is Douglas? A bit wobbly, but very sweet!

[@subtlefire7256]

I love that Douglas looks like he's screaming in existential terror 😂

[@claire2088]

The yarn chicken found you!! 😂

[@BYBabbra]

They are fantastic, Douglas and the Chic are now your mascots.

[@retzza]

This was just the feel good video I needed for today! Been a bit down a couple of days with a cold and this made me smile so much! ❤

[@ushere5791]

i love the duck! he's adorable! oooooh, and the chicken is adorable, too!! they both turned out great!

[@nicoleandtime]

Love this. You made me wish I could wrap my head around knitting so I could make my own Douglass

[@jeaneford6895]

I'm going to have to keep watching this as it was such fun. I only came across the emotional support chicken the day before your video was posted. Now I may have to make one for my daughter!

[@Sudsyjellyfish]

Both your birds turned out so darling 🥰 looking forward to the stashbusting reset video!

[@waqupi]

they turned out so cute