Basics & Little Stuff ✸ Gifts ✸ Textile handicrafts

Crochet mini octopus

Autor*in

Kerstin

Published

05/26/2019

What you need:

folia embroidery thread
Crochet hook #1,25
Darning needle
folia craft scissors
folia filling cotton

Who can resist these little crochet cuddly friends? The pastel mini octopods wave their tentacles happily and are just waiting for you to take them on new adventures. As key rings, they dangle cheerfully through life, as mobiles they float like little sea clouds above the bed and as decorations they conjure up a bit of crafting sea magic on any desk.

And the best thing is: you can crochet your own octopus team in no time at all. Each tentacle star has its own personality, sometimes cheeky, sometimes dreamy, sometimes colorful, but always to fall in love with. So grab your wool, get your crochet hook ready and dive into your own personal underwater crochet world, where every stitch is a little adventure.

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The body

We start crocheting the body of the octopus, from the top down to the tentacles.

Round 1:Choose a color of your choice and cast on 6 single crochet stitches in a stitch ring. (6) Tighten the yarn ring and close the ring with a slip stitch. Now continue crocheting in rounds.

Round 2: Double every stitch of the previous round (12)

Round 3:Double every 2nd stitch of the previous round, i.e. first crochet a normal stitch and then 2 single crochets in the next stitch, etc. (18)

Rnd. 4-6: Crochet 3 rounds without increases with 18 stitches each. (18)

Round 7: Decrease every 2nd stitch, i.e. first crochet a normal stitch and then 2 stitches from the previous round together. (12)

Round 8: Always crochet 2 stitches together. (6)

Rnd. 4-6: Crochet 3 rounds without increases with 18 stitches each. (18)Round 7: Decrease every 2nd stitch, i.e. first crochet a normal stitch and then 2 stitches from the previous round together. (12) Round 8: Always crochet 2 stitches together. (6)

The tentacles

From now on, work in rows and work a chain of 10 chain stitches directly on the last stitch of the previous round. Make sure that you do not twist the chain of chain stitches before the next step and that all stitches point straight upwards as shown in the photo before you continue.

First tentacle:
Now crochet 3 and 2 single crochet stitches alternately into a stitch link in each of the 10 chain stitches, starting from the first stitch after the hook. This means 3 single crochets in the first stitch link of the chain of chain stitches and then 2 single crochets in the 2nd stitch link of the chain of chain stitches, then 3 single crochets in the 3rd stitch link of the chain of chain stitches and 2 single crochets in the 4th stitch link... and so on until all stitches of the chain of chain stitches have been crocheted. This will form a tentacle spiral.

More tentacles:
To crochet the next tentacle, make a slip stitch in the next stitch of the body and repeat step 2 from now on until your octopus has enough tentacles. So once around the lower edge of the body, making a total of 5 tentacles. When you have finished, you can secure the thread with a slip stitch and pull it through the stitch, but do not cut it yet!

Fill the octopus:
Now fill the octopus with stuffing material. Make sure you use the right amount and do not overfill or underfill. The filling material should not peek out through the stitches!

First tentacle:Now crochet 3 and 2 single crochet stitches alternately into a stitch link in each of the 10 chain stitches, starting from the first stitch after the hook. This means 3 single crochets in the first stitch link of the chain of chain stitches and then 2 single crochets in the 2nd stitch link of the chain of chain stitches, then 3 single crochets in the 3rd stitch link of the chain of chain stitches and 2 single crochets in the 4th stitch link... and so on until all stitches of the chain of chain stitches have been crocheted. This will form a tentacle spiral. More tentacles:To crochet the next tentacle, make a slip stitch in the next stitch of the body and repeat step 2 from now on until your octopus has enough tentacles. So once around the lower edge of the body, making a total of 5 tentacles. When you have finished, you can secure the thread with a slip stitch and pull it through the stitch, but do not cut it yet!Fill the octopus:Now fill the octopus with stuffing material. Make sure you use the right amount and do not overfill or underfill. The filling material should not peek out through the stitches!

Sewing together

Now sew the octopus together on the underside with the remaining thread using a few stitches so that the filling material can no longer fall out.

The eyes

The octopus also needs eyes, of course. We embroider them on with a very simple tension stitch. To do this, as shown in the photo, stitch over 2 overlapping stitches with white embroidery thread and pull the thread through a total of 5 times in the same place. Do the same again for the second eye, staggering the stitches about 2-3 stitches apart, and then sew the white embroidery thread in the head.

The pupils

Now embroider black or gray pupils directly onto the white eyes. To do this, tie a knot in the thread and stitch through the body once from the back to secure the thread from the inside. Do not pull too tightly so that the knot does not come out again on the front. Then poke out at the lower end of the white eye section and lift a few threads with the needle. This creates a loop around which the gray/black thread is wrapped 3 times. Then carefully pull tight and insert the needle again at the lower end of the white eye section and sew the thread. Your mini octopus is now finished!

Show us your Peggy People on Instagram and tag us with #foliadiy and @folia_diy!