Onigiri Drawstring Pouch Free Knitting Pattern
There is something quietly magical about knitting a small object that holds meaning beyond its function. The onigiri, that beloved triangle of Japanese rice wrapped in nori, has become a cultural icon well beyond the borders of Japan — a symbol of comfort, home cooking, and the kind of food that someone who loves you makes with their hands. Translating that shape into a knitted drawstring pouch is one of those projects that feels instantly special the moment you cast on. It is portable, beginner-friendly, and results in something genuinely charming that you can use every single day. Whether you are tucking in a small gift, storing earbuds, or carrying a little stash of candy, this onigiri drawstring pouch brings a smile to whoever sees it.
This free knitting pattern walks you through every step of creating your very own onigiri pouch. The finished object is roughly the size of a real rice ball — about four to five inches tall and four inches wide at its widest point — making it perfect as a coin purse, jewelry bag, or even a sweet handmade gift for a friend who loves Japanese food culture, anime, or simply adorable handmade things.
What You Will Need
Before diving into the pattern itself, let’s gather materials. One of the best parts of this project is that it requires very little yarn, meaning you can use scraps from your stash without buying anything new.
Yarn: You will need approximately 80 yards of worsted weight yarn in white or cream for the rice portion of the pouch. For the nori band at the bottom, you need about 20 yards of black or very dark green yarn in the same weight. If you want to add a rosy cheek detail, a tiny amount of pink or blush yarn or embroidery floss will do the trick.
Needles: US size 7 (4.5mm) double-pointed needles or a set of short circular needles for small circumference knitting. A 9-inch circular needle works wonderfully for this project if you have one.
Other supplies: A tapestry needle for weaving in ends and seaming, a stitch marker, scissors, a small amount of polyester fiberfill if you want the pouch to hold its shape more firmly, and about 24 inches of black or dark green ribbon or twisted cord for the drawstring.
Gauge: 18 stitches and 24 rows over 4 inches in stockinette stitch. Gauge is not critical for this project, but keeping it consistent will affect your final size.
Finished dimensions: Approximately 4.5 inches tall and 4 inches wide, before adding the drawstring.
Understanding the Onigiri Shape
Traditional onigiri are roughly triangular with slightly rounded sides and a flat bottom, wrapped partway up with a rectangular strip of nori. Our knitted version captures this aesthetic through a combination of in-the-round stockinette knitting, strategic decreases that form the pointed top, and a color change band near the base to mimic the nori wrap.
The pouch is worked from the bottom up. You begin by casting on for the base, work upward in the round with the nori color, switch to white yarn for the rice portion, shape the top with decreases into a soft triangle point, and then finish with a drawstring channel at the very top. The result looks unmistakably like an onigiri from the moment you begin the color change.
The Pattern
Abbreviations
CO — cast on
BO — bind off
k — knit
p — purl
k2tog — knit two stitches together (right-leaning decrease)
ssk — slip, slip, knit (left-leaning decrease)
pm — place marker
sm — slip marker
rnd — round
st/sts — stitch/stitches
RS — right side
Section One: The Base
Using your dark green or black yarn, CO 36 stitches. Join to work in the round, being careful not to twist your cast on. Place a stitch marker to indicate the beginning of the round.
Rounds 1–8: Knit all stitches every round. (36 sts)
This creates the nori band at the bottom of your pouch. The stockinette in the round creates a clean, smooth fabric that nicely represents the flat surface of dried seaweed. Some knitters prefer to work these rounds in a very slightly textured stitch to represent the subtle grain of nori, which you can achieve by alternating one round of knit with one round of purl — but the standard stockinette reads beautifully as well.
Section Two: The Rice Body
Switch to your white or cream yarn. Do not cut the dark yarn yet; you can carry it loosely up the inside for a few rounds if you intend to add a second thin nori stripe later, or simply cut it and weave in the ends.
Rounds 9–30: Knit all stitches every round. (36 sts)
This long stretch of white stockinette creates the plump body of the rice ball. It should feel satisfyingly squishy if you are working at the recommended gauge. The fabric will naturally want to roll at the color change, which is perfectly fine — it adds to the three-dimensional, wrapped look of the finished piece.
If you want to add the traditional small facial expression that appears on cartoon onigiri (two dots for eyes and a small curved mouth), you can use a length of black embroidery floss or dark yarn to embroider these features onto the front panel of the pouch once you have finished knitting. Wait until the pouch is completely done before adding the face, as it is much easier to embroider on a finished and blocked piece.
Section Three: Shaping the Triangle Top
This is where the onigiri shape really comes to life. You are going to begin decreasing in a way that pulls the round pouch into a soft triangular point at the top. The key is to place your decreases symmetrically so that two “shoulders” form naturally on either side of the center front.
Before beginning the decreases, divide your stitch count mentally into three sections: a front panel of 12 stitches, a back panel of 12 stitches, and two side sections of 6 stitches each. You will be decreasing at the transition points between these sections.
Setup: Rearrange your stitches if necessary so that your beginning-of-round marker sits at the right side seam. Count 6 stitches past the marker and place a second marker for the left side seam. This gives you the front 12 stitches between the two markers.
Round 31: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (32 sts)
Round 32: Knit all stitches.
Round 33: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (28 sts)
Round 34: Knit all stitches.
Round 35: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (24 sts)
Round 36: Knit all stitches.
Round 37: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (20 sts)
Round 38: Knit all stitches.
Round 39: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (16 sts)
Round 40: Knit all stitches.
Round 41: K1, ssk, k to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm — repeat from to once more. (12 sts)
Section Four: The Drawstring Channel
Now you will work the channel through which your drawstring will be threaded. This is worked back and forth in flat knitting rather than in the round, creating a small hem that can be folded over and seamed.
Turn your work so you are looking at the wrong side (the inside of the pouch). You will now work flat rows.
Row 1 (WS): Purl all 12 stitches across.
Row 2 (RS): K2tog, yo — repeat across. (12 sts — the yarn-over eyelets form the drawstring holes)
Row 3 (WS): Purl all 12 stitches.
Row 4 (RS): Knit all 12 stitches.
Row 5 (WS): Purl all 12 stitches.
Bind off all stitches loosely. Fold this small flap to the inside of the pouch along the eyelet row and seam it down gently using your tapestry needle, forming a channel along the inside top edge of the pouch.
Section Five: Closing the Bottom
Turn the pouch inside out. Using your tapestry needle and a length of matching yarn, close the bottom of the pouch with a Kitchener stitch or a simple running stitch seam across the cast-on edge. Weave in all ends securely.
If you are adding fiberfill to give the pouch body, do this before you completely close the bottom seam. A small pinch of fiberfill — really just a tablespoon or two — is all you need to give the pouch that plump, pillowy rice-ball look. Too much stuffing will prevent the pouch from functioning well as a bag, so use restraint here.
Turn the pouch right side out. Admire the shape.
Section Six: The Drawstring
Cut two lengths of black or dark green ribbon, cord, or twisted yarn, each about 18 to 20 inches long. Using a tapestry needle or a safety pin, thread one cord through the eyelet channel from left to right, all the way around, and back out on the left side. Thread the second cord from right to left through the same channel, all the way around, and back out on the right side. Tie each pair of cord ends together with a knot or a small bow. When you pull both cords simultaneously, the top of the pouch will gather and close into a neat point, reinforcing the onigiri silhouette even further.
Optional Embellishments
A plain white onigiri pouch is lovely, but a few optional details can take it from cute to absolutely irresistible.
The Face: Using black embroidery floss, embroider two small circles or dots for eyes about one-third of the way down from the tip of the pouch. Add a small curved line beneath for a smile. A couple of lazy daisy stitches in pink for the rosy cheeks on either side of the face area is the finishing touch that makes this pouch look like it stepped straight out of a children’s anime.
The Sesame Seed: Some onigiri patterns are plain rice, but others are seasoned with sesame. A few small French knots in beige or tan yarn scattered across the white body of the pouch make a sweet textural detail.
Filling Color: If you want to hint at a specific onigiri filling — salmon pink, tuna mayo cream, pickled plum crimson — you can work a single round or two of color in the very center of the white section, at around round 19 or 20, using just a few stitches of your chosen color on the front panel only, mimicking the filling that peeks through the nori when an onigiri is bitten into. This is a bit advanced in terms of intarsia or duplicate stitch technique, but even a few duplicate stitches of salmon pink after the fact creates a charming effect.
Tips for Success
Working small circumference knitting can feel awkward at first, especially for knitters who are new to double-pointed needles or short circulars. A few things that help: keep your tension even by not pulling too tightly at the transition between needles, use a locking stitch marker or a small piece of contrasting yarn as your round marker rather than a slip ring that can fall off, and work slowly through the decrease rounds to make sure your ssk and k2tog are oriented correctly.
Blocking this pouch is not strictly necessary, but a light steam or a gentle soak followed by careful shaping will help the triangle tip look crisp and the nori band lie flat. Pin the shaped pouch to a blocking board or a folded towel and let it dry completely before threading the drawstring.
This is also an excellent project for using handspun yarn if you spin your own fiber. A slightly textured, loosely spun yarn in natural undyed white or cream has an organic quality that looks incredibly rice-like, especially contrasted against a tightly spun, deep black commercial yarn for the nori band.
Sizing Options
The pattern as written produces a pouch approximately the size of a standard convenience store onigiri, which is about the right size for storing earbuds, a few coins, lip balm, or a small folded note. If you want a larger pouch — say, for storing a phone, a cosmetics pouch, or a larger gift — simply increase your cast-on by multiples of four stitches and add extra rounds to the body before beginning the decrease section. A cast-on of 48 stitches with 10 extra body rounds will give you a pouch roughly half again as large.
For a miniature version — perfect as a gift tag or charm — cast on 24 stitches and reduce the body rounds to 14 before beginning the decreases. The mini version is almost aggressively adorable.
Gifting and Using Your Onigiri Pouch
This pattern makes an exceptional handmade gift. A set of three pouches in different sizes, wrapped in tissue paper and placed in a small box, makes a beautiful present for a birthday, a housewarming, or a celebration of any kind. Fill them with small treasures — a few pieces of chocolate, a folded gift card, a handwritten message — and you have something that feels personal and thoughtful in a way that nothing store-bought can replicate.
The pouch also works beautifully as a stitch marker holder, a small notion bag for your knitting kit, or a decorative piece sitting on a shelf or tied to a bag strap. The construction is sturdy enough for daily use as a coin purse, especially if you use a tightly spun, durable wool or a cotton-wool blend.
Sharing your finished pouch on social media is always encouraged — if you share on Instagram or Ravelry, consider tagging it with the phrase #onigiripouchknit so that others can find your creation and be inspired to make their own.
A Note on the Pattern
This pattern is offered free of charge for personal and handmade gift use. Please feel free to knit and gift as many of these pouches as you like. If you sell handmade goods and would like to sell finished pouches made from this pattern, you are welcome to do so as long as you credit the pattern source. Written reproduction or redistribution of this pattern itself without permission is not permitted.
Knitting connects us to each other, to tradition, and to the everyday beauty of handmade objects. Making an onigiri pouch is a small act of joy — quick enough to finish in a single weekend, meaningful enough to keep or give with pride. Happy knitting.
