I had a pincushion made by my sister about 60 years ago. My daughter has it now and uses it. It is knit.
Using wool, knit a piece in garter stitch about 2 inches by 2 inches. Sew it into a circle and then fold that circle in half (so that is only half as high). Knit another 2 inches by 3 inches. Do the same and insert the first circle into the larger one. Make two more circles, each a little larger. Put circles inside the last one. The folded edges are all on one side.
After it was finished, there were some beads sewn on the outside in a random pattern, just for looks. Cute!