Cute Cat is a round plush cat in chunky chenille, about 21 to 23 cm tall when you use a 4 mm hook and Himalaya Dolphin Baby. It is worked in one piece from the base up, and the last round of the body is folded flat and closed across the top to make both ears at once.
That folded ear round is the only unusual part: rounds 1 to 33 build a tall oval, then round 34 works three double crochet at each end of the fold with a run of slip stitches between them, which pinches the top into two points. Everything else is a plain tube — the arms and legs are all the same 12-stitch piece, so you make four and only decide later which is which.
The face is glued and embroidered before anything is attached, while you can still reach inside the body.
What you need
- Yarn: Himalaya Dolphin Baby, 1 to 1.5 skeins for the cat, plus a little of two other colours for the donut
- Hook: 4 mm
- Eyes: black safety eyes 10 mm
- Notions: glue for the eyes, black YarnArt Jeans for the body lines, embroidery thread for the nose and mouth, fibre fill
- Finished size: 21–23 cm with the recommended materials
You can use any yarn, but the position of the eyes, nose, arms and legs will shift: the thinner the yarn, the bigger the gaps between stitches, and the further apart the features need to sit.
Abbreviations
- ch chain, sc single crochet, dc double crochet, sl st slip stitch
- inc increase, dec decrease, BLO back loops only
- (…) the number of stitches in the round, (…)*6 repeat the bracketed sequence six times
Body
Worked in one piece from the base to the ears.
- R1: ch 2, 6 sc in the second chain from the hook (6)
- R2: 6 inc (12)
- R3: (1 sc, inc)*6 (18)
- R4: (2 sc, inc)*6 (24)
- R5: (3 sc, inc)*6 (30)
- R6: (4 sc, inc)*6 (36)
- R7: (5 sc, inc)*6 (42)
- R8: (6 sc, inc)*6 (48)
- R9: (3 sc, inc)*12 (60)
- R10: (4 sc, inc)*12 (72)
- R11–16: 72 sc — 6 rounds
- R17: (4 sc, dec)*12 (60)
- R18–21: 60 sc — 4 rounds
- R22: (8 sc, dec)*6 (54)
- R23–24: 54 sc — 2 rounds
- R25: (7 sc, dec)*6 (48)
- R26–27: 48 sc — 2 rounds
- R28: (6 sc, dec)*6 (42)
- R29–33: 42 sc — 5 rounds
Ears
Fold the body in half, match the two edges, and work straight across them to close the top and form both ears in one round.
- R34: 3 dc, 14 sl st, 3 dc
Cut the yarn and hide the end. The three double crochet at each end become the ear tips and the slip stitches between them close the head.
Arms and legs (make 4)
Arms and legs are crocheted in exactly the same way, so work four identical pieces and set them aside.
- R1: ch 2, 6 sc in the second chain from the hook (6)
- R2: 6 inc (12)
- R3–4: 12 sc — 2 rounds
Leave a long end for sewing. Stuff them lightly.
Tail
- R1: ch 2, 6 sc in the second chain from the hook (6)
- R2: 6 inc (12)
- R3–4: 12 sc — 2 rounds
- R5: (1 sc, dec)*4 (8)
- R6–13: 8 sc — 8 rounds
Leave a long end for sewing. The tail is sewn at the level of rounds 10 and 11.
Donut
- R1: ch 12, close into a ring, 12 sc into the ring
- R2: (1 sc, inc)*6 (18)
- R3: 18 sc
- R4: BLO, 18 sc
- R5: (1 sc, dec)*6 (12)
- R6: 12 sc
Leave an end for sewing, sew the first and last rounds together and stuff as you go. Embroider coloured spots on the icing with the second and third colours, using YarnArt Jeans or similar to stitch the lines.
The donut is sewn to the arms, joining it to the side stitches of both arms so the cat appears to hold it.
Face
Count 5 rounds down from the top of the head. Glue the eyes between rounds 5 and 6, with 5 stitches between them. Embroider the mouth as shown in the photos, then make several stitches for the cheeks — embroidery thread, cotton or a little of the plush yarn all work.
Finally embroider the lines: 2 cm lines on the head, and on the body, counting 2 rounds down from the eyes, lines 5 to 6 stitches wide.
Assembly
- Arms: count 8 rounds from the ears and sew them on, 8 stitches apart, lightly stuffed.
- Legs: sew at the level of rounds 11–12 of the body, 8 stitches apart, lightly stuffed.
- Tail: sew at rounds 10–11.
- Donut: sew to the arms at the side stitches.
Your cat is ready. Stuff it lightly rather than firmly — the plush stitch definition and the embroidered lines are most of the character, and an over-stuffed body flattens them.
Pattern: “Cute Cat” by Olya Usolya. Photography and instructions reproduced on freecrochetpatterns.org with the designer’s permission. Please credit the designer and link back to this page if you share your finished cat.
