I found one pattern on the internet by the Happy Hooker (link to that pattern here) – and while it was good enough to give me an idea of what I was needing to do, the instructions did not do much for me or what I was trying to do. I knew that I would have to come up with something on my own. Inspired by that pattern, I bring you my version of the faux boob, or foobs as Teresa Fee calls them.
Please: If you choose to make this pattern and have any input, please comment below and let me know.
I do ask one thing: If you make a breast from this pattern, do not sell it. Use it for yourself, give it to a friend or family member, or give it away for free to either Knitted Knockers or a cancer center. The idea of this is to be for charity – to help a woman in need. Selling the finished item, either for a set price or for shipping, seems odd to me.
If you happened upon this pattern as a person who is in need of a faux boob, contact me via email and let me know. If I can squeeze it in, I will personally make your faux boob and send it your way (I need to know your cup size and your preferred colors). If you do not want me to make your faux boob, use the link to Knitted Knockers and ask them to help.
Because we all crochet with different tensions, you may need to adjust your hook size. If you are questioning what size boob you are making, reference this website that offers bra fitting measurements (link).
The Faux Boob
By Cris
Level: Intermediate to Experienced (but Beginners should give it a whirl too!)
Needed:
Standard Worsted Weight Yarn – Caron Simply Soft is a little too thin (something soft!)
Size H hook
Crochet row marker (or a safety pin or a small scrap of yarn)
Tapestry Needle
Scissors
Regular Polyfill
Abbreviations:
sc – single crochet
st – stitch
sl – slip stitch
prev – previous
rpt – repeat
btn – between
invdec – decrease
dec – decrease
yo – yarn over
NOTE: for the invdec, your hook will be working from left to right on the back rim of the boob (if you set your work down on the table, your hook will be on the edge farthest from you). To do the invdec, you will need to use the back loops only for the dec. You will put the hook through the back loop of st 1, put the hook through the back loop of st 2, yo and pull through 2 loops on the hook, yo and pull through last 2 loops on hook. Be sure to keep it tight.
If your hook is closest to you when lay it on the table, then you would go through the front loops only (you should not be doing this for this particular pattern)
You can replace the invdec with a regular decrease if you prefer.
TO BEGIN
To start this pattern, put 6 sc into the magic loop. Place your marker into the first sc. Pull the magic circle closed. Do not sl to join.
Row 1
sc in each of the first 5 sc’s of the magic circle stitches
sl into the last sc from the magic circle stitches (5sc, 1 sl)
Move your marker to the sl
ch 1
Your work is cupping “away” from you after this row. Force the cup to go the other way. This will form your nipple.
Turn your work
Row 2
The next stitch you work will be INTO the sl from the end of row 1
2 sc the first 5 st from row 1
1 sc in each of the next 2 st from row 1 (12 sc)
sl to join
Move marker to the last st made
Row 3 (begin to work in a spiral)
*sc in next st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 18 sc
Move marker to the last st made
Row 4
*sc in next 2 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 24 sc
Move marker to the last st made
Now is a good time to form the nipple. You can stitch some poly-fill inside the nipple or a small bead (my daughters idea) to hold the nipple out if you find that it is not holding its shape well. I prefer to use the tail from the magic circle to tighten up the nipple. I thread the tail onto a tapestry needle and feed it up to the side of the nipple. I weave the thread in and out of the 6 sc’s at the base of the nipple and pull it tight. This pulls those stitches in and makes a nicer shaped nipple. I then pass the tail back through to the inside of the boob and weave in the tail a few times, closing up any gaps between stitches close to the needle. I cut the tail off, leaving about 5 inches that will remain insight the faux boob.
The nipple is also a good size that if you wished to change colors, you could do so here. If you made your nipple a darker tan or brown, you could change colors to the flesh tone you are trying to emulate.
Row 5
*sc in next 3 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 30 sc
Move marker to the last st made
Row 6
*sc in next 4 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 36 st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 7
*sc in next 5 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 42 st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 8
*sc in next 6 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 48 st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 9 (go to row 16 after this row to accommodate a size A cup breast)
*sc in next 7 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 54 st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 10
sc in all st around to marked st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 11 (go to row 16 after this row to accommodate a size B cup breast)
*sc in next 8 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 60 st
Move marker to last st made
Row 12
sc in all st around to marked st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 13 (go to row 16 after this row to accommodate a size C cup breast)
*sc in next 9 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 66 st
Move marker to last st made
Row 14
sc in all st around to marked st
Move marker to the last st made
Row 15 (go to row 16 after this row to accommodate a size D cup breast)
*sc in next 10 st
2 sc in next st*
rpt btn * to end of row for a total of 72 st
Move marker to last st made
NOTE: You can go higher in cup size by simply by adding one row of sc without an increase, and then increasing the count of sc between the 2sc increase two more than the last cup size.
Row 16 – 18
sc around the total number of stitches from the last increase round worked to obtain the cup size you are working (to the marked st)
NOTE: Continue to the row indicated below that matches the cup size you have made. If you made larger than a D cup, then you need to do the following: each of the rows starts with sc’ing into a set number of stitches. Whatever the last number of stitches you made between increases for your cup size, subtract 1 from that. For example, if the last number you did was to sc into 19 st between increases, then you will sc 18 times and invdec. Continue this subtracting one stitch in between invdec as you work your way in closing the hole on the back of the boob. The below instructions only walk you through a size D cup and smaller.
NOTE: The next rows begin the decrease row. As long as your increases counted our correctly, if you are off a few stitches on the decreases, this is not detrimental. Start at the row that matches the cup size you increased too.
Row 19 (start here if you made a D cup and continue to the end)
*sc in next 9 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 60 st
Move the marker to last st made
Row 20 (start here if you made a C cup and continue to the end)
*sc in next 8 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 54 st
Move the marker to last st made
Row 21 (start here if you made a B cup and continue to the end)
*sc in next 7 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 48 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 22 (start here if you made a A cup and continue to the end)
*sc in next 6 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 42 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 23
sc in all st around to last marked st (42 sc)
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 24
*sc in next 5 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 36 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 25
*sc in next 4 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 30 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 26
*sc in next 3 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 24 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Row 27
*sc in next 2 st, invdec*
rpt btn * to end of row making 18 st
Move the marker to the last st made
Stuff your faux boob now with the polyfill
Row 28
Remove the marker
*sc in the next st, invdec*
rpt btn * until the opening is about 1/2″ in diameter
Row 29
*sk 1 st, sl in next st*
rpt btn * until the opening is closed enough to finish off
NOTE: a larger boob will require you to go around more to close the opening.
finish off the boob by cutting a really long tail. Tie off and stitch the hole shut.
There are other ways you can finish off your boob after weaving in the tail. You can:
1. Attach the tail through the nipple to make the backside of the boob concave, but be warned it will pull the nipple inward a little,
2. Stitch around the outside edge of the top of the breast to “flatten” the back side and force the boob to sit with the domed side in front and a flatter side on the back. By stitching the top you can force the top side to be thinner than the bottom, giving the breast a more teardrop shape when you look at it from the side.
I personally prefer finishing method number 2 but only half way around (the top side) as I can push the fabric anyway I want and a quick stitch around the edge makes the top side more flat and the bottom more rounded, like a real breast.
iYarny 
Shell
January 9, 2012 at 4:41 pm
What a great idea! Lighter weight than permanent fake ones, and you can change your size depending on your outfit!
Carol
February 28, 2012 at 7:42 am
Some years ago, I knitted loads of breasts for my daughter who is a midwife. She was running classes showing ladies how to check themselves for breast lumps. I used any odd colours which took the embarrassment out of it. It went down very well. Another potential use for them perhaps?
Carol
Cris
February 28, 2012 at 1:44 pm
VERY good idea! Thank you for sharing :)
Kitten_one_42
February 28, 2012 at 11:33 pm
God Bless you. I am a breast cancer survivor. I would have loved to have one of these right after I had my mastectomy. Since then I have had reconstruction surgery. I will be trying your pattern for the cancer patients in this area. Again God Bless you.
Linda
February 29, 2012 at 6:39 pm
I mentioned to a friend of mine that I had seen this pattern before and she was so excited to hear that one could
be made, so I am now getting your pattern to make for her, she will be thrilled. Thank you so much for providing
this for soo many. God bless, Linda
Tracey
May 24, 2012 at 4:10 am
Love this pattern!! Thank you so much…I can do both knit and crochet but knitting takes so much time and you have to remember what you did (purl/knit) and with a small child it's easy to forget…These also seem to work up easily so this is great!! thank you!!!! Also you can use cotton yarn or thread to cut down on the heat since worsted weight yarn doesn't breath very well!!
Rosario
September 23, 2013 at 9:51 am
It's great that you came up with this pattern. I will try to make it as a prosthetic cover. Will give you news abou it.
Stephanie
February 17, 2014 at 4:27 pm
Hey! Thanks so much for posting this! I'm making a set for a friend of my mom who had to have a double mastectomy. I'm also planning to form a chapter of Crochet for Cancer in my area, and I know this will be a wonderful gift for any other ladies who've had mastectomies.
So, first off… I am SOOOOOO confused about the invdec. You are working left to right????? Are you working left handed? This website: http://www.myhobbyiscrochet.com/2013/08/3-ways-of-decreasing-stitch-single.html has a tutorial for doing an invdec in back loops. (It's titled “The Third Way” on this page.) Is this the way you are describing that we need to do this stitch? If not, can you please post a video on how to do it? I see that you have some videos for some other stitches on your page.
Also, I'm making a size C cup. If I go from row 18 to row 20, skipping 19, like the instructions say, I am supposed to go from having 66 stitches to 54, but this does not work. Using the *sc 8, invdec* (or any dec), I have six stitches left at the end, making a total of 60 stitches in this row. To go from 66 to 54 stitches, the following pattern works for row 20: *sc in next 3 st, invdec, sc in next 4 st, invdec* Just wondering if I'm looking at this right or if my brain is malfunctioning again! :)
Thanks again for the pattern!! :)
Stephanie
February 18, 2014 at 3:28 pm
I see you deleted my comment. Can you at least help with the invdec?
Cris
February 20, 2014 at 3:11 pm
I have not deleted any comments – if it included a URL or image file it may not have posted. The invisible decrease is a decreased used for amigirumi. There is a great image tutorial of how to do it here: http://www.crochetspot.com/how-to-crochet-single-crochet-invisible-decrease/
Jamie Sucré
January 21, 2015 at 6:33 pm
I too have been having the same problem with the stitch count while decreasing as Stephanie. I am decreasing from the D size.. Instead of being able to end the row with the 9sc, invdec, I am ending up with an extra 6 stitches at the end, making it 66 stitches, and not 60. I am doing the decreases correctly.
Cris
January 21, 2015 at 6:46 pm
Hmmm I wI’ll have to work through it and re-validate the counts
Julie Inan
February 2, 2015 at 5:12 am
I wonder if there is a photo of this you could share? My niece, a student midwife has asked for one – the picture she shared with me is knitted, Thanks so much for sharing the pattern, much appreciated. x
angie
February 24, 2015 at 3:55 pm
Im curious, I’m going to be making one for a friends mom. If I’m making a c cup and its stuffed with just fiberfill will it be heavy enough to counteract the weight of the surviving breast while wearing a bra?
Nora
November 6, 2015 at 6:27 pm
Thank you for Sharing this pattern. I will be making some for myself. I am a two time breast cancer survivor.
magathastar
November 21, 2015 at 1:44 pm
Thank you so much for this pattern! I got to make boobs for my girlfriend. She’s trans and this will help her feel more comfortable until she can be on hormones long enough to grow real boobs.
Also, I think you need to go to row 16 a row earlier than each size indicates or the count comes out wrong on the decreases…
Cris
November 23, 2015 at 9:15 am
As always, i am so glad people are able to fet great use from this pattern!
Thank you for the feedback. This is definitely a pattern I want to revisit as I’ve made some improvements.
scarlet shadows
December 8, 2015 at 4:32 am
thank you for this pattern :) it also helps transgender women that haven’t started hormones yet or even with the different sizes trans women like me can switch out a smaller size as the the real ones are growing in.. :D super helpful for us with low income thank you sooo much :D
scarlet shadows
December 8, 2015 at 5:00 am
ok so im working on my first d cup boob, and im where alot of people are having trouble at the invdec aka decreases.. i think if you do the same number of sc as you did during the increases and just substitute the increase with a decrease, wont have the extra stritchs.. i just tried that and i got back all the way back around.. hope this helps :D
shawny64
February 16, 2016 at 12:08 am
Thank you for this pattern. My only daughter is expecting a baby soon, She doesn’t remember me breastfeeding her younger brothers. I thought this faux boob would make it easy and less embarrassing for both of us as I teach her what I feel is important about successful nursing. She is going to love it. I can hear the squeals of delight even now!
Claire
March 13, 2016 at 6:59 am
Avez vous le modele (picture) en photo? Merci d’avance j’ai l’explication au crochet mais je voudrais voir la photo. Claire de Belgique
Teresa
December 4, 2016 at 1:47 pm
I do not require one but remember a friend who could not afford to buy a prosthesis so used kleenex to stuff her bra, I wish I had known about something like this before now, she has passed on but I am going to try to make these and donate to the Cancer Clinic or hospital here. Thank you for sharing this pattern I am sure it has and will help many women who have to deal with this sort of loss.
Wendie
January 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm
Is there any pictures for this project, I’d like an idea as to what the finished product looks like.
Jo Kolstee
March 6, 2017 at 7:48 am
I was so excited to see these breast prosthetics available for those in need. I am 65 years old and a two time cancer survivor. Mastectomies in 2002 and right tonsil cancer in 2016. I am unable to swallow due to chemo and radiation so use a feeding tube implanted in my stomach for liquid nutrition. So, now my blouses are just flat at the breast area but stick out at the stomach area where I have to tape the long tube across my stomach when I am not feeding myself. I am just a mess ! would love to have a pair of these in a light color but I do not know anything about knitting or crochet. Is there anyway I can order 2 size 34 B. I would pay someone to make me a pair or even two pair. Thank you so much.
Joyce
March 25, 2017 at 5:31 pm
a wonderful idea and sounds more comfortable – I would really like to have the directions which I haven’t been able to run off from your site.
Ju
April 23, 2017 at 6:15 pm
Thank you-it will be made fir me and be so greatfull
Bumgarner
June 3, 2017 at 9:45 am
Thank you for the pattern. I teach knitting and crochet at our senior center and one of the ladies decided to ask for help in obtaining a pattern. She had a knit blob and wanted to try a crochet one fork herself. The class decided to try and contact our Cancer Center,and see if we could form a help unit and supply them with some boobs.
Alene Todd
November 30, 2017 at 4:01 pm
I am having a lady to make this for me. I do not know how to crochet. Can I get a copy of the directions mailed to me because she doesn’t have internet. Please. My address is Alene Todd ,5042 Country Meadows, Brandon, Ms. 39042
Sophie from France
May 30, 2018 at 3:08 pm
Thank you so much for this pattern, Cris!
I will make some to bring to our pharmacy so they can offer them to the ladies who need them. Maybe I should also bring a basket of them to our hospital.
Sophie x
Elena
December 20, 2018 at 6:06 pm
We were discussing breast cancer survivors in my chronic pain site and someone mentioned crocheted boobs. My grandma had both removed. She has since passed. I would like to make these. What is a good place to donate these to? I think mama would like to make some as well.
Cris
December 31, 2018 at 7:27 am
Knittedknockers is the actual group to take them BUT you can always reach out to your local hospital and ask
Pat
June 8, 2021 at 11:43 am
Would love to have a set. I do not crochet or knit