Hello, and welcome to my squishy crochet tabby cat pattern! It reminds me of Mog the cat, from the beautiful illustrated story books by Judith Kerr. Perhaps I should pretend that it was planned, but the truth is that it is a happy accident! I had a lot of fun watching my cat’s cute, slightly anxious little face emerge from the yarn, but developing the pattern hasn’t been without hiccups. I realized too late in the day that the stripes aren’t quite symmetrical at the front, and I didn’t have enough yarn left to start over. But hey, do you know what else isn’t perfectly symmetrical? Actual cats. What I have done in this pattern tutorial though is include the colorwork pattern I used, and a corrected version for a more symmetrical finish if you want it.

And when you’re done, you can make them an adorable black or calico companion too!

Materials

To make a stripey, squishy cat of your own, you’ll need:

• Yarn for the body and ears. I’ve used gray for the background, and black for the stripes. But you could have dark brown stripes on a tan background. Or make a ginger tabby from dark and pastel orange hues. These yarns can be in any weight or fiber, as long as they are all the same weight. I’ve used Cygnet’s Jellybaby yarn in black and pearl gray.
• White yarn for the tummy patch (optional). This needs to be the same weight as the yarn for the body – I’m using Jellybaby yarn again.
• Yarn for the eyes. Cat’s eyes can be orange, yellow, blue or green – take your pick! I’ve used some scraps of Stylecraft Special DK in duck egg – mostly because my black cat already has yellow eyes and my calico cat has green eyes, so I wanted something different again. This yarn needs to be lighter weight than the yarn for the body – I’ve got notes about that coming up.
• Yarn for the nose, mouth and whiskers. This could be pink, peach, or black – whatever you already have a handy scrap of that works against your background color. I’m using Paton’s Cotton DK, in nougat. I think the smoothness of cotton is very effective for embroidering whiskers! This yarn also needs to be lighter weight than the yarn for the body.

Tools

You’ll also need:

• Crochet hooks. For the black, gray and white yarns, use a crochet hook one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends – this helps your amigurumi hold its shape, and prevents stuffing poking out between the stitches. For your light yarns, use the hook size recommended on the wrapper.
• Safety eyes. Notes on size down below!
• Toy stuffing. Such as Poly-Fil.
• Stitch markers. Or scraps of brightly colored yarn.
• Darning needle.

Notes on size

The yarn you use for you cat’s body will determine how tall it turns out, and also what weight of yarn you need for the eyes and nose, and what size safety eyes you need, to keep everything in proportion.

Weight of the body and ear yarns	Finished squishy height (approx., not including ears)	Yarn weight to use for the irises and nose	Diameter of safety eyes
DK	4 inches	Lace	12mm
Worsted (aran)	5 inches	Superfine/sock	12mm
Bulky	6 inches	Fine	16mm
Super bulky	7 inches	DK	16mm
Jumbo	8+ inches	Worsted	20mm

Pattern notes

This pattern is written in standard US crochet terms. The stitches and abbreviations used are:

Ch chain stitch
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Hdc half double crochet
Inc increase (make 2 sc in the same space)
Hdc-inc increase using half double crochet (make 2 hdc in the same space)
Dec decrease

For the decreases, I recommend using the invisible decrease method, which is ideal for amigurumi projects:

• Insert the hook into the front loop only of the next two stitches (below left).
• Yarn over the hook and draw it through both front loops (two loops remaining on hook).
• Yarn over and draw it through both loops (below right).

Squishy crochet tabby cat pattern

Let’s get started with the biggest part of this project – the body. The stripes are achieved with color changes in rounds 6 to 23. As promised, I’m going to give you that section of the pattern twice – once as I made it in the photos accompanying this pattern, and once with some small changes to make the front of the cat more symmetrical.

Body

I’m going to use ‘black’ and ‘gray’ throughout to describe the colors. If you’re using other colors, you’ll work it out!

Rounds 1 – 5

Using your background color, make either a magic circle, or chain four and join them with a slip stitch into the the furthest chain from the hook to make a 4-ch loop.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)

That’s the last of the increasing round – the next section of the pattern is worked in continuous single crochet. If you’re not already using a stitch marker to keep track of where one round ends and the next one begins, now is a good time to start!

Rounds 6 – 23 (Sarah’s version)

• 6th round: 18 black, 8 gray, 14 black sts
• 7th round: 16 black, 11 gray, 13 black sts
• 8th round: Gray
• 9th round: Gray
• 10th round: 15 black, 14 gray, 11 black sts
• 11th round: 15 black, 14 gray, 11 black sts
• 12th round: Gray
• 13th round: Gray
• 14th round: 15 black, 15 gray, 10 black sts
• 15th round: 16 black, 14 gray, 10 black sts
• 16th round: Gray
• 17th round: Gray
• 18th round: 16 black, 15 gray, 9 black sts
• 19th round: 17 black, 14 gray, 9 black sts
• 20th round: Gray
• 21st round: Gray
• 22nd round: 18 black, 13 gray, 9 black sts
• 23rd round: 18 black, 13 gray, 9 black sts

Rounds 6 – 23 (amended, more symmetrical version)

I’ve underlined the differences, for good measure.

• 6th round: 18 black, 8 gray, 14 black sts
• 7th round: 16 black, 11 gray, 13 black sts
• 8th round: Gray
• 9th round: Gray
• 10th round: 15 black, 14 gray, 11 black sts
• 11th round: 15 black, 14 gray, 11 black sts
• 12th round: Gray
• 13th round: Gray
• 14th round: 15 black, 14 gray, 11 black sts
• 15th round: 16 black, 13 gray, 11 black sts
• 16th round: Gray
• 17th round: Gray
• 18th round: 16 black, 13 gray, 11 black sts
• 19th round: 17 black, 12 gray, 11 black sts
• 20th round: Gray
• 21st round: Gray
• 22nd round: 18 black, 12 gray, 10 black sts
• 23rd round: 18 black, 12 gray, 10 black sts

Now you can set aside your black yarn. And if you have any loose ends that need tying off inside the body, this is the time to do it. As you can see, the inside of my cat is really something at this point!

Rounds 24 & 25

Continuing in your gray yarn only:

Spread the body out flat in front of you, and make note of how many stitches it is to the corner indicated by the blue arrow. For me it’s 15, and it should be about the same for you, but don’t worry if it’s a couple more or less!

• Single crochet to that corner. The next stitch is the new start/end point for the final rounds. This makes sure the non-stripey area ends up on your cat’s belly, not their side!
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 26th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)
• Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Set the body to one side for now.

The belly patch (optional)

Using your white yarn:

• Make a magic circle, or ch4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: Sl st, sc, hdc-inc, hdc, inc, sc 2, inc 2, sc 2, inc, hdc, hdc-inc, sc, sl st (22 sts)
• 4th round: Sl st 3, inc, hdc-inc 2, *sc, inc* 5 times, sc, hdc-inc 2, inc, sl st 2 (33 sts)

Cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail all the way through the last slip stitch.

The ears

Making two, starting with a magic circle or 3-ch loop. That’s not a typo – the tips of the ears have just 5 stitches in the first round, so a loop of three chain stitches is all that’s needed.

• 1st round: 5 sc (5 sts)
• 2nd round: 5 inc (10 sts)
• 3rd round: *Inc, sc 1* five times (15 sts)
• 4th – 7th rounds: Sc all the way round

To finish, slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the tail right through the slip stitch. I forgot to take a photo of how they should look, so please enjoy this one from my calico cat pattern:

You can sew the ears to the body now if you like, but I prefer to do it after the body is stuffed and closed, so I can make sure they stand up right.

The eyes

This cat’s doleful expression hinges in part on their large, round eyes. Make two.

• Magic circle or 4-ch loop to start.
• 1st round: Sc 8 into the to center.
• 2nd round: Inc 8 times (16 sts)

To finish, slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the tail right through the slip stitch. Set them to one side for now.

TOP TIP: If you don’t love their diameter on your first attempt, try remaking them with a bigger or smaller hook.

The nose

The nose is the only part of this pattern that isn’t made in rounds.

• Make a foundation chain of 3.
• 1st row: Skip the first chain from the hook, and inc into each of the other two stitches (4 sts).
• 2nd row: Sc across (4 sts). NOTE – no turning chain.
• 3rd row: Sc across (4 sts). NOTE – no turning chain.

Cut the yarn leaving a tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the last stitch.

Assembling your tabby cat

Now all your kitty parts are ready, let’s put them together and bring your cat to life!

First attach the safety eyes. Push the stems though the centers of the irises and into the body. They should be roughly 8 stitches apart, between rows 10 and 11. But if you’re working with lighter or heavier yarn, the best position might be slightly different – it’s ok to eyeball it!

Push the backs onto the eyes, then fill the body firmly with toy stuffing. Now pick your crochet hook back up and add one more round to the body:

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Slip stitch once, and pull the yarn tail right through the slip stitch. Thread it onto a darning needle, and close the hole that’s left using mattress stitch through the front loops only.

Finishing touches

Use the yarn tails on the irises to sew their edges against the body. For the best effect, sew down two stitches at a time through the back loops only.

Feed the remaining yarn tail out through the back of the body and leave it there for now.

Sew down the second eye and feed the yarn tail out through the same spot on the back of the body as the first. Knot them together, and poke them inside the body. The stuffing will anchor them in place.

Sew the tummy patch on with the flat bottom edge sitting roughly flush with the bottom of round 22.

Attach the ears to the top of the head, approximately 2 inches apart, and slightly forwards of halfway back. You can tie up the yarn tails in the same way as for the irises.

Finally, sew on the nose so the top edge is about level with the bottoms of the irises. Embroider whiskers and a mouth using the grid pattern in the single crochet stitches to guide you.

Project complete!

I hope you’ve enjoyed working on this project. I’d love to know which version of the pattern you followed down in the comment section. For more of my squishy amigurumi patterns – from bubble tea and a bear, to a cactus and a cow, don’t forget to visit us here.

The post Squishy Crochet Tabby Cat Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Miaow! Welcome to my squishy crochet calico cat pattern. Not only is she irresistibly cute, she’s a really fun project for practicing colorwork. Obviously she’s a girl, because the genetic rules of pattern inheritance in cats mean that all calicos are female. Depending on the yarn you use, she can either be big enough to cuddle, or small enough to sit on a desk or shelf as a lucky mascot for whoever’s lucky enough to own her. Calico cats are believed to bring good fortune in several cultures, including the USA, Germany and Japan – you could crochet a calico cat for yourself, for someone starting a new business, or a new home owner. Or just anyone who loves cats! And then you should probably make them a black and tabby buddy too!

Materials

To make your own crochet calico cat, you’ll need:

• Yarn in black, orange and white. Or gray, pastel orange and white for a lovely, soft-hued dilute calico cat. The only requirement is that all three yarns are the same weight. I’ve used Cygnet’s Jellybaby yarn in black, tangerine and white. Jellybaby is a super bulky yarn, and in the next section I’ve got some details about how the size of yarn you choose will affect the size of your finished cat.
• Lighter yarn in orange, blue or green for the eyes, and pink or peach for the nose, mouth and whiskers. I’m using up some leftovers of Stylecraft special DK in the shade pistachio, and Patons cotton DK in the shade nougat. I think the smooth finish of the cotton makes really effective whiskers!
• Crochet hooks. One for your heavier yarns, and another one for your lighter yarns. Amigurumi holds its shape better when the tension is tight, so I recommend using a smaller hook than the wrapper on your heavy yarns recommends. For the lighter yarns, use the size recommended on the wrapper(s).
• Safety eyes. Notes on size down below!
• Stitch markers. Or scraps of yarn in a contrasting color to help keep track of where each round starts and ends.
• Toy stuffing. Such as Poly-fil.
• Darning needle.

How big will your cat be?

This pattern works for any weight of yarn, and the yarn you choose determines how big it turns out. The yarn you choose for your cat’s body also governs what size yarn you need for the eyes, nose and mouth, and what size safety eyes are the right scale.

Weight of your black, orange and white yarns	Finished squishy height (approx., not including ears)	Yarn weight to use for the irises and nose	Diameter of safety eyes
DK	4 inches	Lace	12mm
Worsted (aran)	5 inches	Superfine/sock	12mm
Bulky	6 inches	Fine	16mm
Super bulky	7 inches	DK	16mm
Jumbo	8+ inches	Worsted	20mm

Pattern notes

This pattern is written in standard American crochet terms. The stitches and abbreviations used are:

Ch chain stitch
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (2 sc in the same space)
Dec decrease

For the decreases, I recommend using the invisible decrease method, which is ideal for amigurumi projects:

• Insert the hook into the front loop only of the next two stitches (below left).
• Yarn over the hook and draw it through both front loops (two loops remaining on hook).
• Yarn over and draw it through both loops (below right).

Notes on changing color

To replicate a calico cat’s gorgeous markings on your crochet squishy, this pattern involves a lot of color changes! There are three main ways of changing color between one stitch and the next:

1. Finish the last stitch in your old color, and start the next stitch with your new color. This method is simplest, but the old color ‘bleeds’ a bit into the area of new color. Usually crocheters want to avoid that, but actually I think it wouldn’t matter much here. The color changes in real cats’ fur aren’t perfect straight lines either!
2. Finish the last stitch of the old color with the new color. To make your last stitch, insert the hook and draw through a loop of the old color, so you have two loops of the old color on the hook. Then put the new color over your hook and draw it through both loops to complete your single crochet.
3. Finish the last stitch in your old color, unhook your hook and insert it downwards behind the front top loop and left leg of the last stitch. Draw through a loop of your new color, and gently pull the tail of the old color to free it from the top of the stitch. To see a video of crocheter Jaqui-Len Thurman using this technique over on Insta, click here. It produces essentially the same result as option 2, but you finish the last stitch in the old color and incorporate the new color retrospectively. Some people feel it’s just making extra work, but when doing I find it helps with counting colorwork to finish the last stitch in each color!

Notes on carrying out-of-use colors

As for the colors you’re not using (for example the black and white yarns, while you’re crocheting in orange), again you have 3 choices:

1. Carry them inside the stitches of the color you are using. There’s a detailed, illustrated example of this technique in this diagonal granny square tutorial. It’s a great way of managing two colors, but it’s not really practical with three colors or more.
2. Carry them as floats. This is the same technique, but instead of trapping your yarns inside every stitch of the other color in use, just trap them in every 4th or 5th stitch. The exposed sections of yarn in between each trapped spot are known as floats. This is a good way to avoid cutting your yarn and dealing with lots of loose ends later. Just take care to make sure your floats are long enough that they won’t affect the tension when you stuff your cat later.
3. Cut the yarn. Each time you change color, cut the yarn leaving a 2 or 3 inch tail. Once you’ve made a few stitches in the next color, knot the yarn tails together.

You can work with whatever feels most comfortable. I’ve used a combination of all three techniques for this project, depending on the size of the gap I need to bridge between dropping a color and picking it back up again. Since fluffy chenilles don’t tend to unravel or come loose easily, I could even cut the yarn and leave the ends loose, then have a big knotting session near the end.

Squishy crochet calico cat pattern

The biggest, most complex part of your calico cat is its body, with its beautiful pattern of black, orange and white patches. Start with your orange yarn and make a magic circle, or chain four stitches and slip stitch into the furthest chain from the hook to make a loop.

1st round

Orange yarn: 8 sc (8 sts)

2nd round

Orange yarn: 8 inc (16 sts)

If you haven’t already started using a stitch marker to mark the end of each round, I encourage you to grab one now!

3rd round

Orange yarn: Sc 1
Black yarn: *Inc, sc 1* x3
Orange yarn: *Inc, sc 1* x4, inc

(24 sts in total)

4th round

Black yarn: *Sc 2, inc* x4
Orange yarn: *Sc 2, inc* x2, sc 2
Black yarn: Inc, sc 2, inc

(32 sts in total)

5th round

Black yarn: *Sc 3, inc* x4
Orange yarn: *Sc 3, inc* x2, 2 sc
Black yarn: Sc 1, inc, sc 2
Orange yarn: Sc 1, inc

(40 sts in total)

And the (no doubt welcome) news is that that’s the last of the increasing rounds too. Rounds 6 to 23 are simply worked in continuous single crochet.

6th round

19 black sc, 1 white sc, 12 orange sc, 3 black sc, 5 orange sc

This is the last time it will still be flat enough to take a clear top down photo, so here’s how it’s looking right now:

Rounds 7 – 24

This next stage is all about building up the body, with it’s lovely mosaic of colors:

• 7th round: 18 black , 4 white, 11 orange, 2 black, 5 orange
• 8th round: 1 orange, 17 black, 5 white, 10 orange, 3 black, 4 orange
• 9th round: 1 orange, 16 black, 7 white, 9 orange, 3 black, 4 orange
• 10th round: 1 orange, 16 black, 8 white, 9 orange, 2 black, 4 orange
• 11th round: 1 orange, 15 black, 10 white, 6 orange, 4 black, 4 orange
• 12th round: 1 orange, 14 black, 12 white, 4 orange, 6 black, 3 orange
• 13th round: 1 orange, 14 black, 14 white, 7 black, 4 orange
• 14th round: 3 orange, 11 black, 15 white, 6 black, 5 orange,
• 15th round: 4 orange, 8 black, 17 white, 7 black, 4 orange
• 16th round: 5 orange, 7 black, 17 white, 7 black, 4 orange
• 17th round: 8 orange, 4 black, 18 white, 7 black, 3 orange
• 18th round: 12 orange, 19 white, 6 black, 3 orange
• 19th round: 13 orange, 17 white, 8 black, 2 orange
• 20th round: 14 orange, 15 white, 11 black,
• 21st round: 14 orange, 15 white, 11 black
• 22nd round: 17 orange, 9 white, 12 black, 2 orange
• 23rd round: 18 orange, 7 white, 12 black, 3 orange
• 24th round: 24 orange, 12 black, 2 orange

Now you can drop both the black and white yarns altogether. We’ll use just the orange to close the body, but before we start, flip it inside out and knot together any loose yarn tails while they’re still easy to get at.

Decreasing the body

In orange:

• Sc 10. The next stitch after this is the new start/end point for the final rounds. This makes sure the white patch ends up on your cat’s belly, not their side!
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 26th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)
• Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Set the body to one side for now.

The ears

You’ll need two – they can be both black, both orange, or mismatched like mine. Start with a magic circle or 3-ch loop. That’s not a typo – the tips of the ears start small, so a loop of three chain stitches it all that’s required to start.

• 1st round: 5 sc (5 sts)
• 2nd round: 5 inc (10 sts)
• 3rd round: *Inc, sc 1* five times (15 sts)
• 4th – 7th rounds: Sc all the way round

To finish, slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the tail right through the slip stitch. You can add the ears to the body now if you like, but I prefer to set them aside and do it after the body is filled and closed. It’s easier to make sure they stand up straight that way.

The eyes

Cats are famous for their bewitching eyes, so safety eyes alone aren’t going to cut the mustard for this project. We need big, beautiful irises as well. If you don’t love the size they turn out on your first attempt, try remaking them with a bigger or smaller hook.

• Magic circle or 4-ch loop to start.
• 1st round: Sc 8 into the to center.
• 2nd round: Inc 8 times (16 sts)

To finish, slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the tail right through the slip stitch. Set them to one side for now.

The nose

The nose is the only part of this pattern which isn’t worked in rounds.

• Make a foundation chain of 3.
• 1st row: Skip the first chain from the hook, and inc into each of the other two stitches (4 sts).
• 2nd row: Sc across (4 sts). NOTE – There is no turning chain.
• 3rd row: Sc across (4 sts). NOTE – There is no turning chain.

Cut the yarn leaving a tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the last stitch.

Assembling your cat

Before you stuff and close the body, secure the eyes. Push the safety eyes through the center of the irises, and into the body roughly 7 stitches apart, between rows 10 and 11. This is just a rough guide, and you can eyeball a better position if it doesn’t quite look right.

Push the backs onto the safety eyes, and fill the cat’s body with toy stuffing. Stuffing always squashes down a bit over time, so add as much as you can without distorting the shape. Then make one more round of crochet:

• 27th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Slip stitch once, and pull the tail right through the slip stitch. Poke in a little more stuffing if it will fit, then use mattress stitch through the front loops only to close the hole.

Next, use the yarn tails on the irises to sew the edges against the body. I suggest picking up two stitches at a time, through the back loops only.

To tie off the ends, feed them both out through the same spot on the back of the body, knot them together, and poke the knot inside the body. The stuffing inside the body will anchor the knot in place.

Next add the ears. The inside edge should be roughly level with the space between rounds 2 and 3 on the body, and I think they look best sitting ever so slightly forwards as well. Sew them in place with the yarn tails, which you can deal with in the same way as above.

Finally, sew on that cute nose, so the top sits roughly level with the bottom edge of the irises. Use more pink yarn to embroider on a mouth and whiskers using the grid pattern in the single crochet stitches to achieve a symmetrical finish.

Project complete!

I hope you’ve enjoyed it – I’m sure your squishy is beautiful!

Here she is with my black crochet cat squishy, and my tabby cat squishy. You can see everything else I’ve reimagined in squishy crochet form – from fruit and veg to bubble tea, canned goods and animals right here.

The post Squishy Crochet Calico Cat Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Hello and welcome to my squishy crochet pumpkin pattern! This is a super fast and easy amigurumi project to do in the run up to Halloween. At just 23 rounds tall, these cuddly jack o’lanterns can be whipped up in next to no time! Their base is a flat oval, meaning they can stand up unaided, and the front has lots of flat space for adding cute features. For that just-carved look you can follow my pattern for making crochet triangle eyes, and if you’re in a rush you can swap those out for round safety eyes from the craft store. The mouth is nothing more than 6 zigzagging stitches, and it’s all topped off with a cute little stalk.

Let’s get crafting!

Materials

To make your own squishy pumpkin you’ll need:

• Orange yarn. I’ve used Cygnet’s super bulky Jellybaby yarn in the shade ‘tangerine’ for my big pumpkin, and Rico Ricorumi’s DK Nilli Nilli yarn in neon orange for my little pumpkin. You can use any weight or fiber of yarn you like, and you’re not really limited to orange either. My daughter loves the white and gray pumpkins our local pumpkin patch sells every year!
• Yarn for the stalk. Any shade of green or brown will work, as long as it’s the same weight as your orange yarn.
• Black yarn for the mouth. In the same weight as your orange yarn.
• Black yarn for the eyes – optional. If you’re going to make crochet eyes, you’ll also need black yarn in a lighter weight to your orange yarn (see notes below).
• Safety eyes – the alternative option. See notes down below on size.
• Crochet hook(s). Amigurumi looks best when the tension is tight, and this pattern is no exception, so use a hook one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends. If you’re crocheting triangular eyes, you’ll need a second hook for them too.
• Stitch markers. For keeping track of your rounds. A scrap of yarn in a contrasting color will do just fine.
• Toy stuffing. Such as PolyFil.

How big will your pumpkin be?

This pattern works with any weight of yarn, and the weight you choose will determine how tall your pumpkin turns out. This is a rough guide to how tall your pumpkin will turn out – the exact size will depend on your yarn, hook size, and tension. For example my smaller pumpkin in DK yarn is actually 2¾ inches tall.

If you’re wondering why the eyes ought to be in a lighter weight yarn, the reasons are twofold. Firstly it’s easier to achieve sharp pointy corners. And secondly, since they’re supposed to mimic something carved and hollow, it looks weird if they’re very raised.

Pattern notes

My squishy crochet pumpkin pattern is written in standard American crochet terms. The only abbreviations and stitches you’ll need to know to complete this project are:

Ch chain
Sc single crochet
Sl st slip stitch
Inc increase (make 2 sc in the same place)
Dec decrease

I recommend using the invisible decrease technique for smooth, gap free results:

• Insert your hook through the front loop only of the next two stitches, so you have three loops on the hook (below left).
• Yarn over and draw through two loops (two loops remaining on hook).
• Yarn over and draw through both remaining loops (below right).

For more help with basic crochet term and techniques, check out Lucy’s beginner’s guide.

Squishy crochet pumpkin pattern

Using your orange yarn, start your pumpkin with either a magic circle or by making 4 chain stitches and joining them with a slip stitch in the furthest chain from the hook, to form a loop.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 20: Sc all the way round
• 21st round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 22nd round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)

Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail. Set this part of the pumpkin aside for now.

Two ways to add eyes

There are two ways to add eyes to your squishy pumpkin. You can either use plastic safety eyes, or crochet triangular eyes which resemble those carved in a jack o’lantern. If you don’t like fiddly crochet tasks, then safety eyes are easier and quicker, especially for smaller pumpkins. But I love the impact of the triangular eyes on my larger pumpkin. They work best with fuzzy chenille yarns, because the texture conceals the corner spaces that result from making a triangle shape.

Start with either a magic circle or a 4-ch loop.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 3, *ch 2, sc 3* twice, ch 2, sl st into the first sc to join.

You should have 9 single crochets worked into the magic circle or 4-ch loop, split into three clusters of three, with 2 chain stitches between each trio. These pairs of chain stitches are your corner spaces.

• 2nd round: Ch 1, sc 3 starting in the same sc you joined your slip stitch to at the end of the previous round, (sc 2, ch 2, sc 2) into the corner space. *Sc 3, (sc 2, ch 2, sc 2) into the corner space* twice more. Sl st in to the first sc, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the yarn tail right through the slip stitch.

Now do it all again to make a second eye!

The stalk

Your pumpkin wouldn’t be complete without a cute little stem on top. Start with either a magic circle or a 4-ch loop.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: Sc all the way round (8 sts)
• 3rd round: Sc all the way round (8 sts)
• 4th round: Sc all the way round, sl st, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the final stitch.

Assembling your pumpkin

The order you’ll finish your pumpkin in depends on which type of eyes you’re using:

• Safety eyes need to be added before you stuff and close the pumpkin, so the backs can be pushed in place from the inside.
• But crochet eyes are best added after stuffing the pumpkin. That’s because stuffing transforms your pumpkin from a flat shape to a 3D one, and sometimes stitches which were well-hidden on a flat surface can suddenly end up highly visible and ruin the finish of a curved one!

Closing the pumpkin

Fill your pumpkin firmly with toy stuffing. It always squashes down a bit more after your project is finished, so aim to pack in as much as you can without stretching the stitches. Then crochet one more round:

• 23rd round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Slip stitch once, and pull the yarn tail all the way through that stitch. Thread it onto a darning needle, and close the remaining hole using mattress stitch through the front loops only. Mattress stitch is ideal for amigurumi joins because it is practically invisible. First make the stitches in the order and direction shown in picture 1. Make them loosely at first as in picture 2, so you can easily see where the next stitch goes. Then either pull them tight one at a time, or pinch the start point firmly and pull the yarn tail in the opposite direction to zip the stitches up (picture 3). For fluffy chenille yarns like mine, pulling them tight one at a time works best.

Sewing on the finishing touches

Now it’s time to sew on the finishing touches:

• the stalk
• the eyes, if you’ve made them in crochet,
• and the mouth.

The stalk goes slightly forwards of center on top of your pumpkin. You can place it absolutely centrally if you like, but I think it looks just a bit more pleasing if you move it one row forwards. Whichever kind of eyes you’re using, their bottom edge should sit roughly level with the bottom of row 11 / top of row 12 on the pumpkin. You can eyeball the best possible position for them – this is just a guide.

To secure the stalk and eyes in place, whip stitch the edges down, and feed all three yarn tails out through the same spot on the back of the pumpkin. Then knot them together, trim the ends, and hide the knot by poking it inside the pumpkin. The stuffing will anchor it in place so the features don’t come loose. This is much easier and more discreet than trying to knot each yarn tail individually next to the last stitch!

Finally the mouth is a simple zigzag which follows the grid pattern in the stitches. Use black yarn in the same weight as your orange yarn and doubled up, to achieve a bold result. Leave a one or two row gap between the bottom of the eyes and the top of the mouth. You can deal with the two ends of the yarn in the same way as earlier – feed them out through the same hole somewhere else on the pumpkin, and knot them together.

Project complete!

Your cuddly, kooky pumpkin is ready to go. Before displaying it near any traditional jack o’lanterns, please be aware that many polyester chenille yarns are highly flammable. Safety first!

You might want to experiment with different ways of decorating the front of your pumpkin, and if you do we’d love to see the results! Please tag Lucy on  Facebook or Instagram. Happy crocheting!

The post Squishy Crochet Pumpkin Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Greetings! Welcome to my squishy crochet soup can pattern. Ever since I came up with the basic body template for all my squishy patterns, I’ve had an idea in the back of my head to try making one in the likeness of a can of Campbell’s soup. Inspired, you might have already guessed, by Andy Warhol’s famous pop art paintings. This week, I finally tried turning that idea into reality, and now you can decide whether or not my attempt was successful. But I’ll happily admit – I love it! A squishy crochet can is kitsch and unexpected, and the iconic Campbell’s branding is instantly recognizable. A smaller version would be a cute desk buddy for a modern art lover, and an even bigger version could be an eye-catching scatter pillow.

Best of all, this pattern is dead simple to make, and a really fun introduction to the quirky and offbeat world of amigurumi.

Materials

To make your own crochet Campbell’s soup, you will need:

• Yarn in red, white, gray, yellow and black. I’ve used Cygnet’s Jellybaby yarn in postbox, white, and pearl gray, and Hobbii’s Toucan yarn in mustard and black. You can use any weight or fiber of yarn, as long as all your yarns are the same weight.
• Crochet hook. Your can will look more effective if your tension is tight. Unless you already crochet with a grip like you’re chiseling granite, I recommend using a hook one size smaller than you usually would with the yarn you’ve chosen.
• Stitch markers. Or scraps of yarn, for keeping track of rounds.
• Safety eyes. I’ve included notes on what size to choose down below.
• Toy stuffing. Ideally something very bouncy, like PolyFil.
• Darning needle.

What weight of yarn should you choose?

This pattern will work with any weight of yarn. The size you choose will also determine how big your soup can turn out, and what size safety eyes will look right.

Pattern notes

This pattern only uses a small number of very basic techniques. The abbreviations I use in the instructions are:

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make two single crochets in the same space)
Dec decrease

The best decrease to use for amigurumi projects is the invisible decrease, because it doesn’t leave any gaps for stuffing to show through. To make an invisible decrease, insert your hook into the front loop only of the next two stitches, so you have three loops on the hook (left, below). Put the yarn over the hook, and draw it through the first two loops on the hook – leaving you with two loops still on the hook. Yarn over again, and draw it through both of those loops (right, below).

Squishy crochet soup can pattern

Now let’s get making! The can is worked from the top down, in one continuous spiral. The eyes need to be added before the can is stuffed and closed, and the gold label, mouth and lettering are added last.

The can

With your gray yarn, either make a magic circle, or 4 chain stitches and slip stitch into the furthest chain from the hook to form a loop. I prefer a magic circle with smooth cottons and wools, and a 4-ch loop with fuzzy chenilles or brittle acrylic yarns. The 4-ch loop is easier to tighten later without the yarn snapping.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)

• 6th rounds: Sc all the way round, changing color to red as you go (40 sts)

Changing color

I think the success of this design lies partly in the crisp color changes between gray, red, white and gray again. To achieve them, we’re going to change yarn color continuously in every stitch of round 6.

For each stitch:

• Insert the hook into the stitch and draw through a loop of gray yarn (picture 1).
• Put the red yarn over the hook next (picture 2), and draw it through.
• At the end of each stitch you’ll have one red loop left on the hook (picture 3). Each stitch has gray legs, and red top loops.

When you’ve repeated this for every stitch in round 6, cut the gray yarn and tie the end to the start of the red yarn (picture 4).

Continuing the body

Insert the safety eyes halfway down the red section of the body, between rows 10 and 11. They should be about 8 stitches apart, but it could be a couple more or less, depending on the weight of your yarn and the size of the eyes. It’s a good idea to make the gold label and check it fits well between them before pushing on the backs!

The gold label

Start with a magic circle or 4-ch loop.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)

Slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the yarn tail all the way through the slip stitch.

Check the label fits well between the eyes (it should sit halfway over the line between the red and white halves of the can). Then set it to one side to sew on after your squishy is stuffed.

Stuffing and closing your squishy

When you’re confident the eyes are set the right distance apart, push the backs on firmly to secure them. Then pack the can with toy stuffing. Remember that you can always fit in a little more when it seems full, and it will all squash down a bit after your squishy is closed and finished. This pattern definitely looks better firmly stuffed, so you’re aiming to fit in as much as you can without stretching or distorting the stitches.

Grab your hook again, and crochet one more round:

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Slip stitch once, pull the yarn tail all the way through, and thread it onto a darning needle. Close the remaining hole with mattress stitch through the front loops only. If that’s not a method you’ve used before, it look like this:

The first picture shows where all the stitches go (the needle is already in position for the first stitch). Make the stitches loosely at first as in picture 2. Then either pull them tight one at a time (best for fuzzy wools) or pinch the start of the join firmly and pull the yarn tail in the opposite direction (picture 3). Oh and you see those gaps between the other stitches? That’s what happens when you don’t use a small enough crochet hook! Just as well this was just a demonstration squishy!

With you can closed, hide the yarn tail inside the body, and sew the gold label in place.

Adding the lettering and smile

Finally, it’s time to embroider on the lettering and give your soup a heart warming smile. This is pretty simple – each letter just follows the grid pattern in the crochet stitches. Each of the letters is based on a square, two rows high, and two stitches wide. Since crochet stitches tilt slightly, the letters also tilt – a really cute nod to the script-style fonts on real Campbell’s soup tins. I could pretend I planned it that way, but in all honesty it was a happy accident!

Surprisingly, when I made the lettering central to the gold label (with the space between the O and the U lining up with the center of the label) the word itself actually looked lopsided, and too far left. I think probably because the P takes up less space than the other letters. So I unpicked my first attempt, and redid it all one stitch to the right. Which is mathematically off center now, but looks much more balanced!

The smile is simply three stitches which follow the grid pattern in the single crochets again. There should be just enough space for it to fit between the eyes and the gold circle.

Dealing with yarn tails

The easiest way to deal with the yarn tails from the gold label and the black lettering is to feed all of them out through the same point on the back of the body. Then knot them together tightly, trim the ends, and poke the know back inside the body. The stuffing will keep the knot anchored, so the stitches on the front of the body stay taut.

And with that, your squishy soup can is finished! I hope you’ve loved making it, and I’d love to know what you’re going to do with it next. Please let us know in the comments box down below!

The post Squishy Crochet Soup Can Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Hello and welcome to my squishy crochet parrot pattern! She is more specifically, and I hope obviously, a cute and colorful scarlet macaw. And she’s a really easy amigurumi project to make, for anyone at any skill level. She’d be a fun gift for a child who loves to play pirates, or a bird-loving grown up. Depending on the yarn you use, she can be big enough to cuddle, or small enough to fit in your palm.

Materials

To make a squishy crochet scarlet macaw of your own, you’ll need:

• Yarns in red, yellow, blue, gray and white. I used Cygnet’s Jellybaby yarn in the shades postbox, ultramarine, pearl gray and white, and Hobbii’s Toucan yarn in mustard. You can obviously adapt the pattern to resemble a different parrot species by using different colors too!
• A crochet hook. Amigurumi looks best when the stitches are tight, so I always use a hook one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends.
• Stitch markers. Or scraps of yarn, to help keep track of your rounds.
• Safety eyes. I’m using 16mm safety eyes, but see the next section for notes on choosing the right size.
• Toy stuffing. Such as Polyfil, or whatever your usual go-to filling is.
• A darning needle.

When I took this photo I thought I’d use black yarn to add nostrils at the top of the beak as well. In the end I decided to leave that detail off, but let me know in the comments if you think I shouldn’t have!

Which weight of yarn should you use?

This pattern will work with any weight of yarn, as long as all the yarns you use are the same weight. The yarns I used are all super bulky chenille yarns (approximately 120 yards per 100g). They’re very squashy and tactile, and they make a parrot large enough for my daughter to have as a cuddly toy.

Here’s roughly what you can expect if you choose a different yarn:

• DK yarns make a parrot about 4 inches tall. Swap the eyes for 12mm eyes.
• Worsted (a.k.a. aran) yarns make a parrot about 5 inches tall. Swap the eyes for 12mm eyes.
• Bulky yarns make a parrot about 6 inches tall. Use 16mm eyes.
• And jumbo yarns make a parrot 8 inches tall or more. Swap the eyes for 20 mm eyes.

Pattern notes

My parrot pattern is made entirely in single crochet. The only terms you’ll need to be familiar with in the instructions are:

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make 2 sc in the same place)
Dec decrease

To decrease in amigurumi, I recommend using the invisible decrease technique:

• Insert your hook through the front loop only of the next stitch, then through the front loop only of the following stitch too (fig.1). 3 loops on hook.
• Yarn over and draw through two loops. Two loops remaining on hook.
• Yarn over and draw through both remaining loops (fig. 2).

If you get stuck with any of the basics, take a look at Lucy’s guide to getting started with simple crochet techniques here.

Squishy Crochet Parrot Pattern

Right, preliminaries dealt with, let’s dive into the pattern! You parrot will be made up of:

• a body
• wings
• eyes
• and beak.

And last of all, the toes are embroidered on.

The body

Using your red yarn, start with either a magic circle or by making four chains stitches, and slip stitching into the furthest chain from the hook to form a loop. I find a 4-chain loop is easier to tighten later without snapping the yarn, so it’s a better fit for chenille yarns like the ones I’m using.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 23: Sc all the way round
• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)

Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail. Set the body aside for now, and get the rest of your parrot parts ready.

The wings

The wings are worked from the tip, up to the shoulder. So start with your blue yarn and a magic circle or 4-ch loop to start.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: *Sc 1, inc* 4 times (12 sts)
• 3rd round: *Sc 2, inc* 4 times (16 sts)
• 4th round: *Sc 3, inc* 4 times (20 sts)
• 5th round: Sc all the way round

• 6th round: Change color to yellow

Changing color smoothly

The simplest way to make a color change in crochet is simply to drop the yarn you’ve been using so far, and pick up with a new one. If that’s what you’re most comfortable with doing here, then go ahead – this is your project! But I do invite you to try this technique for a smoother, less zigzag-y line where two colors meet. It takes a little practice to keep the tension in the stitches even, but I think it’s well with the effort.

For every stitch in round 6, make the first half of the stitch (the ‘legs’) with blue yarn, and the second half of the stitch (the top loops) in yellow. To do that:

1. Insert the hook into the first stitch of the round and draw through a loop of blue yarn (first picture below).
2. Put your yellow yarn over the hook and pull it through both blue loops (second picture below). That’s your first stitch done!
3. Insert the hook into the next stitch, and pull through a loop of blue yarn again (third picture below).
4. Then put your yellow yarn back over the hook, and draw it through both loops on the hook (fourth picture below).

Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you reach the end of the round, then cut the blue yarn and knot the end to the beginning of the yellow yarn.

Finishing the wing

• 7th round: Sc all the way round in yellow.
• 8th round: Change color to red.
• 9th & 10th rounds: Sc all the way round in red.
• 11th round: *Sc 3, dec* 4 times (16 sts)
• 12th round: *Sc 2, dec* 4 times (12 sts)

Slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing later, and pull the yarn end right through the slip stitch. Repeat again from the beginning to make a second wing, and set them both aside for now.

The eyes

Scarlet macaws have black pupils and very pale yellow or gray pupils. They also have featherless areas of white skin around their eyes. I’ve captured the impression of that by making white circles to sit behind the safety eyes on my squishy parrot. They’re made in one simple round:

Beak time!

All macaw species have strong, curved beaks for tearing up leaves, breaking into nutshells, and crushing up fruit and seeds. Scarlet macaws have a white maxillary (top) beak, and a black mandibular (bottom) beak. This was a tricky result to achieve, so I’ve adopted a little creative license, and made the whole beak in gray. I think it ties in well with the gray toes later as well, and keeps the finished look of the parrot clean and cohesive.

Now, thread the yarn tail onto your darning needle and wiggle it up through the stitches to the tip of the beak (left below). Turn the beak round, make sure the yarn tail is looped through one of the stitches at the tip, and thread it back the same way you came (center below). Finally, pull the yarn tail so the underside side of the beak is squished into a shorter space, and the top of the beak is longer and curved.

Fluffy yarns like mine will hold this shape until I come to sew the beak onto the face. But smoother yarns might need knotting to prevent them springing open again.

Assembling your parrot

Now all your pieces are ready to put together, it’s time to bring your parrot to life!

Start by positioning the eyes on the body. Spread the body out flat in front of you, with the opening at the bottom running from left to right. The stems of the safety eyes go through the body about 8 stitches apart, between rows 10 and 11. The gap between the whites of the eyes should be about 5 stitches, or just larger than the width of the beak. When you’re happy with the position of the eyes, reach inside the body and press backs on until they click.

Now I think it’s always best to stuff amigurumi toys before sewing down any flat parts, so that the stitches don’t tug when the body is stretched out. So fill and close the body before sewing down the whites of the eyes.

Filling and closing the body

Stuff the body firmly with toy stuffing, then pick up your crochet hook again and use the yarn tail to make one more round:

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Make a slip stitch and pull the yarn tail all the way through. Thread it onto a darning needle, and close the remaining 8 stitches with mattress stitch through the front loops only. Now use the yarn tails on the eyes to sew the edges down against the body.

Here’s how my parrot looked with the eyes attached to the empty body (left), after I’d filled and closed the body (center), and once the edges of the eyes were sewn down (right).

Sew on the beak next, so the top is about level with the center of the eyes.

Then use the yarn tails on the wings to join them to the sides of the body. The top of the wings should be about level with the top of the whites of the eyes, which for me is at round 9 on the body. To tie off the yarn tails, thread them both out through the back of the body, in the same place. Then knot them together, trim them short, and poke the knot back inside the body. You can see here, I’ve included the yarn tail from the beak as well:

And when we turn it over, the parrot is pretty close to being done:

Embroidering the feet

Birds’ feet are a tricky business in amigurumi. Some crocheters do make 3-dimensional ones from lightweight yarn. But it’s a formidable task! Other people use wire or pipe cleaners instead, which is effective if your bird is definitely just going to be an ornament. And still other people just add something to give the idea of feet. That’s the approach I’m taking here (and it’s the same approach I took in my squishy owl pattern).

I’ve embroidered the toes using the same gray yarn I used for the beak, doubled up. The tip of each toe is two stitches apart from its neighbor, and the tops of the toes on each foot all meet in the same place, roughly below the inside edge of the eye.

I dealt with the yarn tails in the same way as for the wings and beak, by feeding them out through the back of the body and knotting them together. The stuffing anchors the knot in place so the stitched stay put.

Squishy amigurumi parrot complete!

And that’s all there is to it! We don’t have a cocktail bar in our house (which is probably pretty normal) but I’m tempted to set up a cocktail making station for the summer, just so my parrot can sit among the paper umbrellas and bottles of rum, looking kitsch and amazing. And eventually she’ll fly off to my daughter’s room, to be another much-loved cuddly toy. And maybe I’ll try making this pattern in some other colorways. Did someone say lovebirds?

Happy crocheting!

The post Squishy Crochet Parrot Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Howdy, and welcome to my squishy crochet potato pattern!

I’ve been feeling inspired to create more cuddly produce since I made an eggplant a few weeks back. Vegetables with faces are too cute! And this pattern is also a tribute to my original squishy prototype. All the squishy amigurumi patterns I’ve written here are based on the same simple-to-make template, and the first time I perfected that shape (which still sits on my desk) my ten year old daughter took one look at it and said “nice one mom, you’ve crocheted a potato”.

So it was about time that I realised the full potential for a cuddly crochet potato toy! And the result is so much more than just a humble spud. He sits up unaided, and there’s lots of space for adding cute, wide-set features to his face. And best of all, if he turns out a bit lumpy or misshapen it’s all good, because he’s a potato! I think he’d be a fun and unique gift for a child, or a quirky mascot for an avid vegetable gardener.

Materials

To make your own squishy potato companion you’ll need:

• Yarn for the body. Any thickness or fiber of yarn will do. I’m using a worsted (aran) weight yarn I raided from Lucy’s stash – it didn’t have a wrapper any more, but it feels like a wool and acrylic blend. It’s a pleasingly potato-like brown marl, but any shade of light brown would work – as would earthy reds, muted pinks or even deep purple!
• Yarn for the features. This yarn needs to be one weight lighter than the yarn for the body, so I’m using DK yarns. I’ve got Rico Ricorumi’s nilli nilli yarn (a DK chenille) in black for the arms, legs and smile, and Stylecraft special DK in mocha for the eyes. NOTE: The photo above shows what I had left after I finished developing the pattern – it wouldn’t be enough to make another potato!
• Crochet hooks. One for the body, and one for arms/legs/eyes. Amigurumi holds its shape best when the tension is tight, so I recommend using a hook one size smaller than the wrappers on your yarns recommend.
• Safety eyes. I’ve use 12mm eyes, but refer to the notes on sizing down below if you’re using a different size yarn.
• Stitch markers.
• Toy stuffing.
• Darning needle(s). I’m using one for each weight of yarn, but as long as you have one big enough to use with your thickest yarn, that will be enough.

Notes on sizing

This pattern works for all weights of yarn. The yarn you choose for the body will determine how big your potato turns out, what weight to use for the features, and what size eyes will look right.

Pattern notes

This pattern is written in standard U.S. crochet terms. If you’re not familiar with the basic crochet stitches, check out Lucy’s primer here. The only ones you’ll need to use in this project are:

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make two single crochets in the same space)
Dec decrease

For your decreases, use the invisible decrease. This technique is perfect for amigurumi because it’s practically invisible (just as promised!) and doesn’t leave noticeable gaps between the stitches.

1. Insert the hook through the front loop only of the next two stitches (below left).
2. Put the yarn over the hook and draw it through both front loops.
3. Yarn over and draw through both loops remaining on the hook to finish the stitch (below right).

Squishy crochet potato pattern

Your squishy potato is going to need:

• A body
• Limbs
• Eyes (the potato kind, and the seeing kind!)

The body

You can start all of your potato’s parts with a magic circle, or by making 4 chains and joining them in a loop with a slip stitch. If you’re using a yarn which tends to snap easily, then I find a 4-chain loop is easier to tighten.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 23: Sc all the way round
• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)

Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail. Then spread the body out flat in front of you. It should have a clear front and back, with the opening at the bottom running from left to right.

Position the safety eyes roughly 8 stitches apart, between rows 11 and 12. This is just a guide – you can place them a little higher or closer together if it looks better. Press the backs on securely, and fill the body firmly with toy stuffing. Then crochet one more round:

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Closing the body

Slip stitch once, then pull the yarn tail right through the stitch. Poke in a little more stuffing if it will fit. And finally, thread the yarn tail onto a darning needle, and use it to close what’s left of the opening. The neatest way is to use mattress stitch through the front loops only. If that’s not a technique you’ve used before, the first picture below shows where each stitch goes. Make the stitches loosely at first, as in picture 2. Then either pull them tight one at a time, or pinch the start of the seam firmly and pull the yarn tail in the opposite direction to zip the stitches shut (picture 3).

You should now have a potato which looks something like this:

Making the limbs

The arms and legs are all identical. Rounds 5 and 6 can be a bit fiddly – especially if you have the bright idea to use black chenille! If you generally dislike crocheting narrow tubes, then you could make your potato without limbs – it will still look fantastic.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into a magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: *Sc 1, inc* 4 times (12 sts)
• 3rd & 4th round: Sc all the way round (12 sts)
• 5th round: 6 dec (6 sts)
• 6th – 10th rounds: Sc all the way round (6 sts)
• Poke a little stuffing down into the hand/foot before the limb gets too long. The limbs aren’t stuffed above round 5.
• 11 – 14th rounds: Sc all the way round (6 sts)

Sl st once, cut the yarn leaving 12” for sewing, and pull the yarn tail right through the slip stitch.

Join the arms to the sides of the body level with eyes, and the legs to the front of the body, roughly level with round 24. They should be slightly tucked under the front of the body, but the body shouldn’t end up sitting on top of them.

For the limbs, I like to stitch them in place, then feed what’s left of the yarn tail out through the back of the body. First feed the yarn tails from both arms out through the same spot, tie them together, and trim them short, so they’re left looking like this:

Then poke the knot inside the body and repeat for the legs. The stuffing inside the body will keep the knots anchored in place.

Making the (potato) eyes

These are made in a single round – you’ll need 7 or so.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into a magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)

Sl st once, cut the yarn leaving 12” for sewing, and pull the yarn tail right through the slip stitch.

Arrange the eyes randomly over the body. You can either add them actually at random, for a biologically accurate result, or you can very carefully arrange them to give the appearance of aesthetically perfect randomness. I definitely fall into the latter camp!

Use the yarn tails to sew the eyes down. My top tip for achieving a neat finish is to stitch through the back loops only of the eyes, and through a couple of stitches at a time, where the loops overlap.

Like joining the limbs, I attached the eyes two at a time and fed the tails out through the same spot on the opposite side of the body, so I could tie them together. Don’t forget to put a couple of eyes on the back of your potato!

Adding a smile

The final touch to bring your tater to life is a charismatic smile. My potato’s smile is embroidered with just three stitches. I’ve used the same black DK yarn I used for the arms and legs, but doubled up, to give it some extra thickness.

Similarly to joining the limbs and eyes, I pushed the yarn through from the back of the body to the front first, stitched the smile following the grid pattern in the crochet stitches, then fed the yarn back out through the back of the body and tied the two tails together. The inside of this potato must be a real criss-cross of yarns!

Project complete!

And now your crochet potato is fully assembled! I hope you love him as much as I love mine. So give it a name, take lots of pictures, and show it off! If you’re on social media, we’d love to be tagged in a photo Facebook or Instagram.

More squishy foods to make

• Strawberry
• Watermelon
• Ice pop
• Bubble tea
• Egg plant

The post Squishy Crochet Potato Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Hi there! This is my squishy crochet duck pattern. Do you use the saying ‘good weather for ducks’ in your region? It’s an old idiom for rain, although it’s not as benevolent as it sounds – the original meaning was actually ‘good weather for hunting ducks’, because the rain masked the hunters’ presence. Good for the hunter I suppose, but less so for the duck!

Where I live we’ve not been short of good weather for ducks recently, even though it’s July in the northern hemisphere and we should finally be basking in some summer sun. However the old idiom, and the arrival of ducklings on our local pond did inspire me to develop an easy amigurumi mallard duck pattern. And the results have definitely put a smile back on my face!

He’ll also look really cute alongside my new parrot pattern too – a pair of birds!

Materials

To make your own squishy mallard duck, you’ll need:

• Yarns in brown, green, white and yellow. These all need to be the same weight, but they can be any weight or fiber you like. I love the texture of these super bulky chenille yarns, which make a duck about 7” tall. I’ll include some notes down below about what size duck other yarns will make.
• A scrap of black yarn. For embroidering the nostrils – almost any weight can be made to work, and dark brown or gray would work too.
• Crochet hook. Amigurumi toys work best when they are crocheted tightly, because it stops the stuffing showing through the stitches. Unless your tension is naturally tight, try using a slightly smaller hook than the yarn wrapper suggests – I’m using a size J/6mm hook with super bulky yarn.
• Safety eyes. Mine are 16mm across – I’ve included notes on choosing the right size for your squishy duck down below.
• Toy stuffing.
• Stitch markers.
• Darning needle.

I just love how these yarns look together, even before I’ve started crocheting with them! It’s such a gorgeous color palette.

How big will your crochet duck be?

The height of your duck will be determined by the weight of yarn you make it from. And the scale of the body determines what size eyes will look right. These dimensions will give you an idea of what to expect, but they are approximate. The end result might vary a little depending on the exact yarn you choose, the crochet hook you use, and your natural tension.

• DK yarns make a duck about 4” tall. Try 12mm eyes.
• Worsted yarns make a duck about 5” tall. Try 12mm eyes.
• Bulky or chunky yarns make a duck about 6” tall. Try 16mm eyes.
• Super bulky or super chunky yarns make a duck about 7” tall. Try 16mm eyes.
• Jumbo yarns make a duck 8+ inches tall. Try 20mm eyes. The jumbo category is a bit of a catch-all for all kinds of massive yarns, so you could end up with quite a giant fowl!

Pattern notes

This pattern is in standard U.S. crochet terms and only uses a small number of basic stitches. The ones you need to know are

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make two single crochets in the same space)
Dec decrease

For your decreases, use the invisible amigurumi decrease:

• Insert the hook through the front loop only of the next two stitches (left, below).
• Put the yarn over the hook and draw it through the two front loops. Two loops remaining on hook.
• Yarn over and draw through both loops to finish the stitch (right, below).

Squishy crochet duck pattern

Your duck is going together in three parts (four, if you count the wings separately):

• Body
• Beak
• Wings

They’re all made in spiraling rounds, so use your stitch markers to keep track of where one round ends and the next one begins. You can start each part with a magic circle or by making four chains and joining them in a loop with a slip stitch into the chain furthest from the hook. I prefer the former with smooth yarns, and the latter with fluffy or chenille yarns.

The body

The body is worked from the top down, starting with your green yarn.

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• 6th – 12th rounds: Sc all the way round (40 sts)

Do not cut your yarn yet. I have in this photo, and it was a Silly Mistake.

Changing color

At the start of the 13th round, we’re going to start changing color to white yarn. But rather than just dropping the green yarn and picking up with white yarn, we’re going to use both the green and white in every stitch for the next round. This creates a much smoother line where the color changes – as befits a handsome and well-preened waterfowl!

1. Insert the hook into the next stitch and draw through a loop of green as before. There are two green loops on the hook.
2. Put the white yarn over the hook and draw it through both green loops. You’ve made a complete single crochet, and there’s one loop of white yarn on the hook.
3. Insert the hook into the next stitch and draw through a loop of the green yarn. There is one green loop and one white loop on the hook.
4. Put the white yarn over the hook and draw it through both loops. One white loop left on the hook.

Keep repeating steps 3 and 4. Your new round is made of single crochet stitches with green ‘legs’ and white top loops.

At the end of the round, cut your green yarn and tie it securely to the white yarn tail inside the body.

• 14th round: Sc all the way round in white (40 sts)
• 15th round: Use the same method to change from white yarn to brown yarn (40 sts)
• 16th – 23rd rounds: Sc all the way round in brown (40 sts)

Decreasing at the base of the body

The bottom of your duck is going to be a flat oval shape. This gives it a distinct front and back, with lots of space at the front for cute, wide-set features. It also means your duck can be freestanding. Right now, the front of the body should look like the picture below left, and the back should look like the picture in the center:

To make sure those color changes are on the back of the finished duck, sc 10 (above right). This position is the new starting point for the final three rounds:

• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)

Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Turn the body right side facing, and insert the eyes roughly 8 stitches apart between rows 10 and 11. You can move them slightly from this position if it doesn’t look right – just make sure there’s space between and below them for the beak to fit. Press the backs of the eyes on securely.

Closing the body

Fill the body firmly with toy stuffing, then pick up the stitch where you left off earlier, and crochet one more round.

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts)

Slip stitch once, and pull the remaining yarn tail all the way through the stitch. Thread it onto a darning needle and use it to close the remaining hole. The neatest way is using mattress stitch through the front loops only. The first picture below shows where each stitch goes (the needle is already in position to make the first stitch). Make the stitches loosely at first so you can clearly see where the next one goes (second picture). Then either pull them tight one by one, or pinch the start of the seam and pull the yarn tail in the other direction (picture 3) to close the opening (picture 4).

Tie off the yarn tail, and poke it inside the body.

The beak

Do you prefer ‘beak’ or ‘bill’? Either way, here’s how to make your duck’s quacker. Using your yellow yarn:

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: *Sc 1, inc* 4 times (12 sts)
• 3rd round: *Sc 2, inc* 4 times (16 sts)
• 4th round: Sc all the way round.

Slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the yarn tail all the way through – this is the center of the underside of the beak. Then use your black yarn to embroider the nostrils on top of the beak – one row in and two stitches apart (below left). I’ve used super bulky yarn doubled up and made each nostril separately, with the yarn tails knotted together inside the beak (below right).

Sew the beak onto the body just below the eyes, taking care to get the nostrils central.

The wings

From quacker to flappers, here’s how to make your ducks wings. Make two, using your brown yarn:

• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: *Sc 1, inc* 4 times (12 sts)
• 3rd round: *Sc 2, inc* 4 times (16 sts)
• 4th round: *Sc 3, inc* 4 times (20 sts)
• Rounds 5 – 8: Sc all the way round
• 9th round: *Sc 3, dec* 4 times (16 sts)
• 10th round: *Sc 2, dec* 4 times (12 sts)

Slip stitch once, cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the yarn tail all the way through. Sew them onto the sides of the body through 5 or 6 stitches on the top side of the opening. And just like that, your duck is ready to take flight!

Squishy crochet duck pattern complete!

Your new avian pal is ready to cuddle, admire, or give away – well done! Since his bright green head clearly makes my duck a male mallard, my daughter wants me to make a second all-brown female duck next, so they can be parents to the squishy crochet chicks I’ve made previously. I hope you’ve had fun following this pattern, and if you’d like some more simple squishy amigurumi animals to try, take a look at my other projects here.

The post Squishy Crochet Duck Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Hello and welcome to my squishy crochet cow pattern! If you’re new to crochet, or if like me you find the legs are enough to put you off other amigurumi cow patterns, then this is the project for you. The result is cute and cuddly, but unmistakeably bovine. The pattern uses only simple crochet terms, and the size and pattern can be easily adapted to make a cow plush that’s a complete one-off.

Materials

To make your own squishy cow you’ll need:

• White yarn. I’ve used King Cole yummy yarn, which is a super bulky chenille.
• Black or brown yarn for the markings. This needs to be the same weight as the yarn for the body – I’ve used King Cole Yummy yarn again.
• Pink and light brown yarns for the muzzle and horns. These also needs to be the same weight as your other yarns – I’ve used Hobbii toucan yarn in light pink, and Cygnet jellybaby yarn in teddy bear.
• A crochet hook. To achieve a tight fabric that doesn’t allow the stuffing to peek through, use a hook one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends.
• Safety eyes. See notes on size, below.
• Toy stuffing.
• Darning needle.

You can choose any weight or fiber of yarn you like. Plush chenille yarns like I’ve used are especially cuddly, but tweed and boucle yarns are really attractive alternatives. The pattern works with any weight of yarn, but obviously the size of your cow will change according to what you choose.

• DK yarns make a cow roughly 4 inches tall.
• Worsted yarns make a cow roughly 5 inches tall.
• Bulky yarns make a cow about 6 inches tall.
• Super bulky yarns make a cow about 7 inches tall (like Marigold).
• And jumbo yarns produce a cow 8 inches tall or higher (jumbo is a bit of a catch all category for all sorts of mammoth options!)

NB. These are all rough estimates, and don’t include the horns!

Pattern notes

This pattern is written in standard U.S. crochet terms. The only stitches you need to be familiar with are:

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Hdc half double crochet
Dc double crochet
Inc increase (make two single crochet in the same space)
Dec decrease

For your decreases, use the invisible decrease method: insert the hook into the front loop only of the next two stitches (fig. 1 below). Yarn over and draw through both (two loops remaining on hook), yarn over again and draw through remaining two loops (fig. 2 below).

Squishy crochet cow pattern

Your bouncy bovine is going to come together in several parts:

• Body
• Ears
• Horns
• Muzzle
• Patches

It’s quite the list, but each part taken by itself is very simple, so they add up quickly! You can start each one with either a magic circle or by making 4 chains and joining them in a loop with a slip stitch. Each piece is then made in spiraling rounds, so count the stitches in each round carefully or use a stitch marker to keep track of where the round ends.

Body

For a cow with patches (like mine, pictured throughout) make the body entirely in white yarn. For a striped cow, click here for pattern notes about color changes.

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 23: Sc all the way round
• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)
• Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Ears

Make two – I’ve gone for one black and one white, but you can make them to match if you prefer!

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st into the furthest chain from the hook to form a loop.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: Sc all the way round (8 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 4 times (12 sts)
• 4th & 5th rounds: Sc all the way round (12 sts)
• 6th round: *2 sc, inc* 4 times (16 sts)
• 7th round: Sc all the way round (16 sts)
• Slip stitch, skip 6 stitches, and slip stitch again, so the base of the ear folds round. Cut the yarn leaving a tail for sewing later, and pull the end right through the last slip stitch.

Horns

Make two in your light brown yarn.

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st into the furthest chain from the hook to form a loop.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 6 into the 4-ch loop (6 sts)
• 2nd round: Sc all the way round (6 sts)
• 3rd round: *Sc 2, inc* twice (8 sts)
• Sl st, cut the yarn leaving a tail for sewing later, and pull the end right through the last slip stitch. Stuff each horn with a little toy stuffing.

Muzzle

Make one, using your light pink yarn.

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *Sc 2, inc* twice, sc 4, *inc, sc 2* twice (24 sts)
• 4th round: Sc 19, sl st.

Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the final slip stitch.

Patches

For me, the most fun part of developing this pattern was casting aside the rules of pattern and symmetry that are normally important in amigurumi, and experimenting with some freeform shapes for Marigold’s patches. Each patch starts with a regular circle, and finishes with an outer round that combines long and short stitches to give a wobbly edge. You don’t have to position those wobbles in exactly the same ways I did – the only thing you must remember is to increase the size of the last round by 8 stitches, so your patches remain flat!

To read these patterns, when a pair of stitches is in brackets, it means you make them in the same space – in other words, they replace a regular increase.

1st patch

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: Sc, (hdc, dc), dc, (hdc, sc), sc, inc, sc, (sc, hdc), *dc, (dc 2)* twice, hdc, inc, sc, inc (24 sts).
• Sl st, cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the final stitch.

2nd patch

Another way to make a patch which isn’t an unnaturally perfect circle is to leave your final round incomplete:

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round (incomplete): Hdc, dc, (dc 2), dc, hdc, inc, sc 2, (sc, hdc), dc 2, (dc, hdc), sc 2, inc
• Sl st, cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the final stitch.

3rd patch

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round (incomplete): Sc 3, (hdc, dc), dc2, hdc, inc, sc, hdc, dc, (dc 2), dc 2, hdc, inc, sc 2, hdc, (dc 2), dc 2, hdc, inc

Don’t fancy patches?

If patches don’t appeal to you, then you can leave them off – but my 10 year old daughter thinks this makes the pattern look more like a goat! Another alternative is to make your cow’s body with stripes. Three alternating stripes of black and white would resemble these beautiful Belted Galloway cattle I was lucky to encounter on a recent hike:

To achieve this look, start the body in black or brown yarn, switch to white at the start of round 10, and back to black or brown at the start of round 19.

Assembling your cow

Now you have a substantial pile of cow parts in front of you, it’s time to bring them to life! Start by laying the body out flat in front of you, with the opening at the bottom running from left to right. Position the eyes about 8 stitches apart, between rows 11 and 12.

Attaching the ears and horns

Next sew the ears onto the sides of the head, so that the bottom edge of the join is about level with the top of the eye. Join the horns to the top of the head slightly forwards of the ears, and directly above the eyes. For the ears and horns, I find the easiest thing to do is sew round the join, then feed the yarn tail out through the back of the body. When you’ve joined the second ear/horn, feed the yarn tail out through the same spot. Knot them together, trim the ends, and poke the knot back inside the body. The stuffing will anchor it in place.

Position the muzzle in front of you with the yarn tail towards your body. Use some black yarn to add nostrils – I’ve used the same black yarn I used for the ear and patches, but doubled up. Each nostril is a single stitch, and the yarn ends are tied together inside the muzzle. Then hold the muzzle in position against the body so that the yarn tail faces downwards, and the top of the muzzle sits about level with the tops of the eyes. Sew ¾ of the way round the edge, then poke some stuffing inside before you close the remaining gap.

Eyelashes

Cows are famous for their fluttering long lashes, and I think our squishy deserves some too! Adding them is easy – cut a length of yarn about three times the width of your cow’s body. Tie a loose overhand knot in the center, and tighten it around the stem of the eye.

Use a darning needle to thread each end of the yarn right through the body, so they come out through the same spot – as with the ears and horns. Tie them together, trim the ends, and tuck the knot inside the body.

Sewing on the patches

Finally, arrange the patches and sew them in place. There are no rules here – this is the moment to make your cow completely one-of-a-kind.

Squishy crochet cow summary

I’ve really enjoyed coming up with an amigurumi interpretation of a cow without the fiddly legs. I think the results are pretty cute! For a more lifelike take on a crochet cow, take a look at Lucy’s shaggy highland cow, and Texas longhorn cow patterns. I love the how much possibility there is in crochet for such different interpretations of the same idea! If you’re on social media, we’d love to see how your own cow turns out – you can tag Lucy in a photo on Facebook or Instagram. Happy crocheting!

There’s more!

Don’t miss these other gorgeous squishy animal patterns!

• Squishy crochet duck
• Squishy crochet chick

The post Squishy Crochet Cow Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Hello! This is Otto, my squishy crochet eggplant pattern (pictured with my previous strawberry and watermelon designs – I’ll have a whole produce aisle soon!). He’s so simple to make, I feel almost sheepish writing it up. It’s as if I can’t expect you to take me seriously, if my patterns don’t possess some minimum degree of sophistication. But he’s so dang cute, I’m going to force myself to overcome such qualms. After all, this pattern is perfect for anyone looking for a really accessible introduction to amigurumi, using just the most basic crochet techniques. It could be a quirky and unusual cuddly toy for a child, or you could make a small one as a kitchen mascot for a foodie friend along with a quirky can of soup! There’s one thing that’s for sure – you won’t need to worry about someone else giving the same gift!

Materials

You can use any weight of yarn to make your own squishy eggplant, and the thickness you choose will determine how big it turns out.

• DK yarn – 4 inches tall
• Worsted yarn – 5 inches tall
• Bulky yarn – 6 inches tall
• Super bulky yarn – 7 inches tall
• Jumbo yarn – 8+ inches tall

These measurements are just a rough guide – the exact size will depend on the yarn you use, its fiber, etc. Otto is made from super bulky yarn (approx 130 yards per 100g) and he’s 6¾ inches tall, not including his stalk.

To make your own squishy eggplant you’ll need:

• Yarn for the body. Obviously the classic color to choose is purple! Although I did recently discover white eggplant seedlings for sale at a plant fair, and the seller told me they can also be green, red, or black! I’m using Cygnet jelly baby chunky yarn in deep violet – it’s a bit brighter than your regular eggplant, but I think that helps to prevent the eyes and mouth getting lost against their background.
• Green yarn. This needs to be the same weight as the yarn for the body, but you can get creative with a different fiber if you like. I’m using Cygnet jelly baby chunky yarn in forest green.
• A scrap of black yarn for the smile.
• A crochet hook. Unless you already crochet tightly, use one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends. This will make your stitches slightly on the tight side, and prevent the stuffing showing between them.
• Safety eyes. I’ve used 16mm eyes, which would also be about the right size if you’re using bulky yarn. With DK or worsted yarn use 12mm eyes, and with jumbo yarns try 20mm eyes.
• Toy stuffing.
• Stitch markers or yarn scraps for marking the start of each round.
• A darning needle.

Pattern notes

This pattern is written in standard U.S. crochet terms. The stitches you’ll need to know are:

Ch chain
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make 2 sc in the same space)
Dec decrease (see below)
Hdc half double crochet
Dc double crochet
Tr treble crochet

Take a look at Lucy’s guide to basic crochet stitches if any are unfamiliar to you. For your decreases, I recommend using the invisible decrease method, which is perfect for amigurumi:

1. Insert the hook through the front loop only of the next two stitches (fig. 1). Yarn over and pull through both front loops.
2. Yarn over and pull through the two remaining loops (fig. 2).

Squishy crochet eggplant pattern

Let’s start with the biggest component of your squishy eggplant, which is of course, the body. It’s made in spiraling rounds, so count the stitches in each round carefully, or put a stitch marker in the last stitch of the previous round, so you can easily tell when you’ve come full circle again.

• To begin, either make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 23: Sc all the way round
• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)
• Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Adding the eyes and closing the body

Before finishing the body, it’s time to add the eyes. Spread the body out flat in front of you – since the decreases are grouped in clusters at the sides of the body, it will only lie relatively flat with the opening running from side to side. Position the eyes between rows 12 and 13, and about 6 stitches apart (the exact distance isn’t important – you can judge what looks right!) Press the backs on securely.

Close the remaining opening with mattress stitch through the front loops only. If that’s not something you’ve used before, picture 1 below shows where each stitch goes – the needle is already in position to make the first stitch. Make the stitches loosely first, so you can see clearly to position the next one (picture 2). With smooth yarns you can tighten them by pinching the seam at the beginning and pulling the yarn tail in the other direction (picture 3). But for fluffy yarns, tighten the stitches one at a time.

Here’s how your eggplant should look so far:

Adding the stalk and calyx

Here’s a bit of botany for you: each of the green leaves around the top of an eggplant is called a sepal, and altogether they are called the calyx. For this squishy, the calyx and the stalk are made separately, then joined to each other, and finally to the body.

Cut the yarn leaving a long tail for sewing, and pull the tail right through the final slip stitch.

Poke a little stuffing into the stalk, and sew it to the center of the calyx.

Then position the stalk and calyx slightly forwards of center at the top of your eggplant, and use the yarn tail from the calyx to sew it down.

Embroidering the mouth

Your squishy just needs one more finishing touch to bring it to life – a smile! Thread your scrap of black yarn onto a darning needle, and follow the grid pattern in the stitches to give your eggplant a cheery grin.

Here’s my finished crochet eggplant (left), posing with my vegetable muse. Really if it wasn’t for the face, I don’t see how you could tell them apart at all!

Squishy eggplant complete!

I hope you’ve had fun making your own crochet eggplant. If you’re on social media, we’d love to see a photo – please tag Lucy on  Facebook or Instagram. And let me know what other squishy fruit and vegetables you’d like patterns for in the comments box down below. Happy crocheting!

The post Squishy Crochet Eggplant Pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Howdy! Welcome to my free squishy crochet cactus pattern. I’m really pleased that this pattern finally exists and is ready to share! I’ve been making lots of squishies to the same basic body template recently, from a rabbit and a bear, to an ice pop, eggplant and even a wedge of watermelon. A cactus pattern has been on my list of ideas from early on, because my daughter is obsessed, and tends to a whole windowsill of them in our bathroom. But for ages, I just could not see how I was going to make the spikes. Of course not all cacti are spikey, but without something prickly going on, I was worried that it wouldn’t be obvious what the squishy is supposed to be.

So the idea was just parked in the back of my mind, and occasionally I’d revisit it, and abandon it again in frustration. Until recently when I finally had my eureka moment! And these cacti are the results. I’ve come up with a few different design elements, and you can mix and match them for a totally one-off result.

Designing your own squishy crochet cactus

Here are the five design choices you’ll need to make for your cactus:

1. Size

Have you ever considered cuddling a cactus? I’m pretty sure my daughter has, despite how inadvisable it is. Well, make this pattern using a bulky yarn or thicker, and you can! Or make it small enough to sit on a shelf as an adorable ornament. The height of your cactus will be determined by the weight of yarn you use.

• DK yarn – 4 inches (pictured right)
• Worsted yarn – 5 inches
• Bulky yarn – 6 inches
• Super bulky yarn – 7 inches (pictured left)
• Jumbo yarn – 8+ inches

These are a rough guide – the size of your squishy will also vary by the fiber of the yarn, how tighly you crochet, and what size hook you settle for (I’ve got a note on that in a moment).

2. Spikes or stripes?

After all my uncertainty about how to incorporate spines, I was finally inspired by domino cacti and bunny ears cacti, neither of which have long spines. They both have very short spines arranged in almost flat bobbles. My squishy spines stick out a bit more than that, but I stopped worrying about making them long and sharp looking. And I couldn’t be happier with the results – although when you notice the similarity with Bowser’s shell in the Mario games, you can’t unsee it!

If you don’t want spines at all, the other option is to chain stitch vertical stripes up the sides of your squishy. This gives the impression of the ridges many cacti have for storing water. I’m not sure this option is as immediately recognisable as cactus-like on it’s own though. I think it can also be read as a cucumber or a pickle! But if you combine it with a flower or a pot, then I’m confident the visual cues do click into place.

3. Flower power

We manage to coax my daughter’s cacti into flowering once in a blue moon. But cactus blooms are extraordinary in their diversity and beauty. I’ve come up with one option for capturing some of the classic features of cactus flowers. You can add one (or more!) to your squishy if you like, but it’s optional.

4. Potting up

Most of the squishies I make are destined to be played with and cuddled by my daughter. And this one was no exception – after all it’s inspired by one of her biggest passions! So obviously I won’t be stuffing my big cactus into a pot. But I couldn’t resist seeing how the little one would look, and it didn’t disappoint. This option is a fun gift to make any plant lover.

5. Adding a face

I love amigurumi, and my daughter is a connoisseur of kawaii, the Japanese culture of cuteness. So I couldn’t resist giving my cacti faces. But if you just want to make a kitsch, hassle free houseplant, then you can leave the eyes and mouth off.

Pattern notes

I’ve already covered how to adapt the size of your cactus. And I’ll cover making the flower and adding stripes or spines when we get to the relevant stage of the pattern. If you’d like to pot your cactus, I recommend making the squishy first, then finding a pot to fit.

The pattern is written in standard American crochet terms. The stitches I’ve used are:

Ch chain stitch
Sl st slip stitch
Sc single crochet
Inc increase (make 2 sc in the same space)
Dec decrease

For the flower, you’ll also need to know:

Hdc half double crochet
Tr treble crochet

For the decrease, I can’t recommend enough the invisible decrease technique. It’s a favorite among amigurumi makers because as the name suggests it’s almost imperceptible and gap-free from the right side.

• Insert the hook into the front loop only of the next two stitches (left, below).
• Yarn over and draw through both loops (two loops remaining on hook).
• Yarn over and draw through both loop (right, below).

Materials

To follow my squishy crochet cactus pattern you’ll need:

• Green yarn for the cactus’ body. It can be any shade of green and any weight or type of fiber you like. I’ve used Hobbii’s toucan yarn in sage for my big cactus, and Rico Ricorumi’s nilli nilli yarn in green for my little cactus.
• Contrasting yarns in the same weight for the details. Stripes and spines can be any shade of green, yellow or brown. I’ve used Paintbox chenille yarn in latte to make spines on the bigger cactus, and Rico Ricorumi’s nilli nilli yarn in neon green for stripes on the smaller one. Cactus flowers are usually warm colors such as yellow, orange, red or pink, but I’m not here to tell you you can’t use blue if you fancy it. Your project, your rules! My flowers are Hobbii toucan yarn in lavender, and Rico Ricorumi nilli nilli yarn in neon pink.
• Crochet hook. Use a hook one size smaller than the yarn wrapper recommends, to achieve a dense fabric that doesn’t let the stuffing show through. I use a 6mm hook with super chunky yarn, and a 3mm hook with DK yarn.
• Safety eyes. I’ve used 16mm eyes for my super chunky cactus, and they would also work on a chunky cactus. I used 12mm eyes on my DK cactus, and they would also work on a worsted cactus. Try 20mm eyes for a jumbo cactus.
• Stitch markers.
• Toy stuffing.
• Darning needle.

Squishy crochet cactus pattern

Whatever details you choose to add later, your cactus always starts with the same body shape. To start, either make a magic circle, or chain 4, and slip stitch into the furthest chain from the hook to make a loop.

• Make a magic circle, or ch 4 and sl st to join.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into the magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *1 sc, inc* 8 times (24 sts)
• 4th round: *2 sc, inc* 8 times (32 sts)
• 5th round: *3 sc, inc* 8 times (40 sts)
• Rounds 6 – 23: Sc all the way round

If you’re adding spines, do it now. If you’re doing stripes, skip to round 24, and add the stripes after round 25.

To add spines

The spines are all made individually, then tied onto the body. It’s a pretty repetitive task, but the kind I find really satisfying to do in front of an episode of a good TV show. To make each spine:

• Leave a tail of about 3 inches before your slip knot, then chain 2.
• Slip stitch into the front loop of the furthest chain from the hook (indicated by the arrow below).

• Cut the yarn leaving a 3 inch tail.
• Pull the tail all the way through the slip stitch.

At this stage, I actually unpicked the stitches again, measured how long the piece of yarn was, and cut 40 pieces of yarn the same length. Then I fashioned each piece into a spine. I really like this assembly line approach, but you could also continue to cut them from the ball of yarn as you go. Make 30 – 40.

Attaching the spines

To attach the spines to the body, use a crochet hook to pull the yarn tails inside the body, either side of a stitch. I arranged my spines every 4 rows, and 5 stitches apart (so that 8 spines fit evenly into a round). At the top, they’re a little bit closer together – you just need to eyeball what looks right. If you’re adding a flower as well, remember to leave space for it (it’s a good idea to make it and loosely tie it in place).

It looks like a cactus-turned-jellyfish right now! Later on, I actually remove the bottom row of spines in this picture, but not in time to retake the photo, alas. Next turn the body inside out and tie the yarn tails for each spine in a secure double or triple knot.

It’s also as good a time as any to tie the flower in place. Then flip the body the right way out again and make these rounds:

• 24th round: 3 dec, sc 8, 6 dec, 8 sc, 3 dec (28 sts)
• 25th round: 3 dec, sc 2, 6 dec, 2 sc, 3 dec (16 sts)

Put a stitch marker into the loop on your hook, and cut your yarn leaving a 24 inch tail.

Adding stripes

If you’re making stripes instead of spikes, your body will look like this at the end of round 25:

Thread your contrasting yarn onto a darning needle, and use chain stitch embroidery to make stripes running from the top of your cactus to the bottom.

1. Start by threading the yarn from the inside of the body through to the outside, between rows 1 and 2. The easiest way to space the stripes evenly is to make 8 – one below each stitch in the first row. Push the needle back inside the body at the same spot, and pull the yarn through until there’s a small loop left.
2. Bring the needle back through to the outside of the body, two rows down, and thread it through the loop. Gently pull to tighten the first stitch.
3. Insert the needle into the first chain stitch and back into the body in the same place it last came out, to start the next chain.
4. Keep going until you reach the bottom of the body. Tie off.

Repeat to make 8 stripes.

Making a flower

Cactus flowers often have several layers of long, narrow petals. My cactus flower is made in two layers, top and bottom.

Top layer

For this layer, the back of your work will become the right side. So don’t weave in the yarn tails until you see what I mean!

• Magic circle or ch 4 and sl st into furthest ch from hook to start.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: (sl st, hdc, sl st) 8 times.

Cut the yarn, leaving enough tail to weave in neatly. The hdc will have popped out backwards, so when you flip your work over, they stick out towards you. This is the side you want facing you when you assemble your flower. Weave in the ends on the other side.

Bottom layer

• Magic circle or ch 4 and sl st into furthest ch from hook to start.
• 1st round: Ch 1, sc 8 into magic circle or 4-ch loop (8 sts)
• 2nd round: 8 inc (16 sts)
• 3rd round: *sl st, ch 2, tr, ch 2* 8 times.
• Sl st, cut yarn leaving enough tail for weaving in, pull the tail right through the sl st, and weave it in.

Joining them together

Thread 6 inches of strong yarn onto a darning needle. It won’t be seen, so strong is more important than matching. Feed it up through the center of the bottom layer, under a few stitches of round 1 on the underside of the top layer, and back down through the center of the bottom layer. The two ends can then be used to tie it to the body. For a more secure join (eg. on a large cuddly toy) use more yarn to stitch the base of the flower onto top of the body.

Finishing steps

You’re nearly there! It’s just time for some finishing touches to bring your cactus to life, and then to stuff and close the body. Of course, you could skip some of these, if you’d prefer your squishy to be a quirky ornament, but not a character.

First, add eyes, if using. On my bigger cactus I’ve added the eyes 6 stitches apart, between rows 9 and 10. On my smaller cactus, they’re 9 stitches apart, between rows 8 and 9 – they’re high so that I can put the squishy in a pot later.

Stuff the body firmly with toy stuffing, then crochet the last round of the body:

• 26th round: 8 dec (8 sts remaining)

Sl st and pull the yarn all the way through the stitch. Thread it onto a darning needle and close the remaining hole with mattress stitch through the front stitch only.

Here’s how my bigger cactus looked at this point – you can see why I decided to remove the bottom row of prickles. My husband saw it and cheerfully asked if I was making a cuddly virus!

Finally, embroider a smile in contrasting yarn. Start by threading the yarn through from the center of the back of the body to the front. Embroider the smile using back stitch, then thread the yarn back out through the same place on the back of the body. Knot the yarn tails together, and poke them inside the body – the stuffing will anchor them in place.

Squishy crochet cactus pattern – summary

Hopefully you can see now why I’m so happy this design finally exists. The little cactus in its pot is one of my favorite things I’ve made in recent months. Just look at it! And I’m happy to report that my daughter is delighted to finally have a cactus she can cuddle. Obviously when you make yours, your little plant could be spikey, and the big one could have ridges. Maybe you’ll even be bold and combine both! The elements of this pattern are designed to be mixed and matched, and I hope you’ll have fun with it. I’d love to see how your project turns out, so if you’re on social media please tag Lucy in a photo on Facebook or Instagram. Happy crocheting!

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