Valentine's Day is almost here, about two weeks away! To be honest though, these bears and koala can be made anytime of the year with or without their little stuffed heart.
These were made with inspiration from the little stuffed animals I remember from when I was little.
The ones that would sit on the shelf holding a heart, some would sing a tune and some were just stuffed cuteness.
When I made the brown bear I also noticed that with slight changes we could have a super cute panda and koala all in one pattern!
The head and body are made as one piece, be sure to stuff the neck firmly and you won't have any problems with a wobbly neck. I've also kept it at a nice width to help support the head.
Feel free to make yours in a boy or girl version. If you'd like to add a bow this one from our Mini Pig should be the perfect size! Could also serve as a bow tie for a boy!
If you're new to amigurumi check out our tips page to get started! The Grace and Yarn Crochet Group on Facebook is also a great place to ask questions, plus share your works of crochet art!
I've used plastic safety eyes in this pattern but if you'd prefer an alternative, these are my favorites!
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Pattern
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You may make and sell items made from this pattern but please do not sell, share or reproduce the actual pattern. If you sell finished items online (Etsy, etc) please provide a link to the pattern and credit to me as the designer, thank you. I hope you enjoy this pattern!
Materials
- Size 4 worsted weight yarn
- 25g color of choice for body
- Small amount of accent color for ears/mouth piece
- Small amount color of choice for heart
- 3.5 mm crochet hook (these are my favorites!)
- 10.5mm safety eyes
- Crochet thread for eyelashes and nose piece (yarn can also be used)
- Scissors
- Tapestry needle (I love the bent tips for amigurumi!)
- Stuffing
- Stitch markers (a piece of scrap yarn works great!)
Abbreviations - US terminology
SC- Single crochet
SC INC- Single crochet increase
INV DEC- Invisible decrease
HDC – Half double crochet
DC – Double crochet
Sl st – Slip stitch
Rep - Repeat
Notes: This pattern and tutorial will include directions to make a brown bear (or polar bear), panda bear and koala. Each Valentine Bear measures about 5 inches tall in a sitting position.
*You will want to slowly stuff as you go, you want it to be firm but not stretched. You will be working in the round, I like using a stitch marker at the beginning of each round.
For this pattern the body and head will be made as one piece.
Let's get started!
Nose Piece –
Brown bear and Panda:
With white or beige
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: SC in the first stitch, SC INC in the next, rep around (18)
Rounds 4-5: SC around (18)
Fasten off leaving a long tail for sewing. With your crochet thread (or yarn) make a triangle and smile as pictured above. To make the nose I made a ‘V’ and closed it at the top to create the triangle. Next, fill it in to be solid.
Koala
With dark grey
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: 2 sl st, 2 SC, 4 DC, 2 SC, 2 sl st (12)
Fasten off leaving a long tail for sewing.
Eye Patches for Panda – Make 2 with black
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: 2 sl st, 2 SC, 4 HDC, 2 SC, 2 sl st (12)
Fasten off leaving a long tail for sewing. You will place your safety eyes towards the last round as pictured.
Body-
The body and head for the brown bear and koala will be the same color throughout. I will have a note in parenthesis below for the color changes if you are making the panda, which we will start with white.
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: SC in the first stitch, SC INC in the next, rep around (18)
Round 4: SC in the first 2 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (24)
Round 5: SC in the first 3 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (30)
Round 6: SC in the first 4 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (36)
Round 7: SC in the first 5 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (42)
(For Panda, change to black after round 13)
Rounds 8-15: SC around (42)
Round 16: SC in the first 5 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (36)
Round 17: SC in the first 4 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (30)
(For Panda, change to white after round 17)
Round 18: SC in the first 3 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (24)
Round 19: SC in the first 2 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (18)
Round 20: SC around (18)
*We will now start the head*
Round 21: SC in the first 2 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (24)
Round 22: SC in the first 3 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (30)
Round 23: SC in the first 4 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (36)
Round 24: SC in the first 5 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (42)
Rounds 25-32: SC around (42)
Note: Here is where we will add the facial features before we start closing the head. Insert the eyes between rows 29 and 30, 6 stitches apart.
Optional Note for Brown Bear and Koala: Place your eyes where you would like them and then remove to embroider your eyelashes before attaching the washer to the back. (This creates a little hole to help see where you want your eyelashes to go).
Note for Panda: Place your eyes through the eyepatches and then into the designated stitches on the head. I then sewed my eyepatches into place before securing the back of my eyes.
Next sew your nose centered between the eyes adding a little bit of stuffing as you go.
Round 33: SC in the first 5 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (36)
Round 34: SC in the first 4 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (30)
Round 35: SC in the first 3 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (24)
*Continue to stuff the head firmly
Round 36: SC in the first 2 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (18)
Round 37: SC in the first stitch, INV DEC in the next, rep around (12)
Round 38: INV DEC around (6)
Fasten off and sew remaining part closed, weave in your end
Ears- Make 2 front and 2 back pieces
You will need a front and back piece for the brown bear and koala. For the panda you can make each ear with the instructions for the back piece as a color change will not be needed.
Front – With beige or white
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC in the first stitch, SC INC in the next, rep around (9)
Change to brown or grey
Round 3: SC INC in each stitch around (18)
Fasten off and leave a long tail for sewing
Back – With brown, grey or black
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC in the first stitch, SC INC in the next, rep around (9)
Round 3: SC INC in each stitch around (18)
Fasten off and leave a long tail for sewing
Sewing the ears together-
Place a front and back ear with wrong sides facing each other and sew together. Complete this step with the second ear.
Arms- Make 2
*Lightly stuff the bottom of the arms only*
Use brown for the brown bear, grey for the koala and black for the panda.
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: SC in the first 3 stitches, SC INC in the next, repeat around (15)
Rounds 4-5: SC around (15)
Round 6: SC in the first stitch, INV DEC, repeat around (10)
Rounds 7-15: SC around (10)
At the end of round 15 pinch the arm flat and make 5 SC across the top to close, fasten off and leave a long tail to sew onto the body.
Legs -
Make 2 with the same colors used for the arms. I stuffed the foot firmly and left the legs unstuffed to allow the bears to sit more easily.
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch (12)
Round 3: SC in the first stitch, SC INC in the next, rep around (18)
Round 4: SC in the first 2 stitches, SC INC in the next, rep around (24)
Round 5: SC around in the back loops only (24)
Rounds 6-7: SC around (24)
Round 8: SC in the first 6 stitches, INV DEC 6 times, SC in the last 6 stitches (18)
Round 9: SC in the first 3 stitches, INV DEC 6 times, SC in the last 3 stitches (12)
Rounds 10-18: SC around (12)
At the end of round 18 pinch the leg flat and make 6 SC across the top to close, fasten off and leave a long tail to sew onto the body.
Heart –
The heart is made with two pieces joined together. Make two pieces using rounds 1-4. At the end of the 2nd piece do not fasten off, proceed to round 5 to join them together and make the body of the heart. Slowly stuff as you go.
Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC
Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12)
Rounds 3-4: SC around (12)
Round 5: Attach to the first piece with a SC. SC around the first piece and then the second (24 SC) This completes your join and is where your next round will start, from here we will work the rest of the heart.
Round 6: SC in the first 6 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (21)
Round 7: SC in the first 5 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (18)
Round 8: SC in the first 4 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (15)
Round 9: SC in the first 3 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (12)
Round 10: SC in the first 2 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (9)
Round 11: SC in the first stitch, INV DEC in the next, rep around (6)
Fasten off and sew remaining part closed.
Assembly
1. Sew the ears onto either side of the head, starting at the 5th round and ending at the 7th round.
2. Next, sew on the arms. I angled my arms slightly forward and they covered rounds 13-17.
3. Sew the legs onto the bottom of the body, making sure to keep them centered with the facial features.
4. Lastly, sew your heart to each hand.
Your sweet Valentine is complete! I hope you enjoyed this pattern, thanks so much for stopping by!
