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Free Pattern: Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi

Title: Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern

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The third pattern in my Tropical Beach Mini Amigurumi Patterns series is this little sea turtle! I think he’s my favourite of the lot, he’s so cute and he’s great for outdoor photo shoots. This sea turtle is perfect for a child’s playset, or to hang from a mobile in an ocean-themed nursery. Or use thick blanket yarn and embroidered eyes to make a bigger and more cuddly version for a small child!

My Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern is available for free in this post, or you can purchase an ad-free PDF copy for a few dollars in my shop, on Etsy, or on Ravelry. If you have the means, please consider grabbing a copy of the PDF version! You will get an awesome premium version of the pattern, plus you will be supporting me so I can keep designing patterns for you. Click here for more details!

Download an Ad-Free PDF Copy of the Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern

Do you like my Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern? If so, please consider purchasing a copy of the premium PDF version for a small cost. The premium crochet pattern PDF is available for purchase on my website pattern shop, Ravelry, and Etsy, and includes 15 pages of pictures and detailed instructions to make your very own Mini Sea Turtle.

Premium Pattern Benefits: No ads, professionally formatted PDF, extra making-of photos, available offline and easy to print

Benefits Include:

– Ad-free & professionally formatted PDF of the pattern instructions, perfect for printing or downloading to your mobile devices

– Extra making-of photos not included in the free version below

– Two patterns in one! The PDF includes both the normal Sea Turtle & the Christmas Sea Turtle patterns. A Bobble Stitch photo tutorial (for the Santa hat) is also included.
 

In addition to the benefits above, your support will be greatly appreciated and will help me to continue designing and offering these free patterns to you!

sample of pdf pages

Visit the links below to purchase your ad-free premium copy of my Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern!

a crochet flamingo floatie and a crochet turtle sitting on a rock overlooking a lake at sunset

Tropical Beach Mini Amigurumi Series

Wondering who is the little cutie hanging out with my turtle by the lake above? That’s my Mini Flamingo Floatie Amigurumi, and he and my Sea Turtle are both part of my Tropical Beach Mini Amigurumi pattern series. Click below to learn more about the other patterns in this series, and to find some special bundle deals!

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Mini Sea Turtle Amigurumi Pattern

This friendly little turtle loves to play in the sea and he makes friends wherever he goes! Sea turtles can live up to 100 years, so he is sure to be a cheerful and loyal addition to your family for many years to come.

Skill Level

Beginner

Finished Dimensions

Approx. 4” long from nose to tail

Supplies Needed

Optional Keychain:

Optional Santa Hat:

  • DK weight/#3 yarn (Paintbox Yarns Simply DK or similar): Red, white
  • A length of red ribbon or yarn for the hanger

Terms & Abbreviations

All details below are based on US crochet terms.
 
  • Mc: Magic Circle
  • Ch: Chain
  • Sl: Slip Stitch
  • Sc: Single Crochet
  • Inc: Increase
  • Dec: Decrease – I recommend using the Invisible Decrease
  • BLO: Crochet in back loop only
  • FLO: Crochet in front loop only
Optional Santa Hat:
 
  • Dc: Double Crochet
  • Bobble Stitch

Pattern Notes

You will be working in a continuous spiral throughout. Use a stitch marker and do not join rounds or turn (unless otherwise stated).
 

When reading the pattern, (_,_)*x means that you repeat the instructions in the bracket “x” number of times. For example, (Sc 1, Inc)*6 means to repeat (Sc 1, Inc) 6 times. The number in brackets at the end of each row is the total number of stitches you will have when you finish that row.

Pattern Instructions

Shell & Body

Using brown:
 

Round 1: Sc 6 in a a Magic Circle

Round 2: Inc*6 (12)

Round 3: (Sc 1, Inc)*6 (18)

Round 4: (Sc 2, Inc)*6 (24)

Round 5: (Sc 3, Inc)*6 (30)

Round 6: (Sc 4, Inc)*6 (36)

Rounds 7-8: Sc around (36)

Round 9: FLO – Sc around (36)

Round 10: Inc*36 (72)

Finish off and weave in ends.

Using light brown:

Attach the light brown yarn to the first leftover back loop from Round 9. Working clockwise:

Round 11: BLO – Sc around (36)

Round 12: Sc around (36)

Round 11: (Sc 4, Dec)*6 (30)

Round 12: (Sc 1, Dec)*10 (20)

Begin stuffing the body, and then continuing stuffing as you go.

Round 13: Dec*10 (10)

Round 14: Dec*5 (5)

Finish off, close up the hole, and weave in all ends.

Head

Using light green:

Round 1: Sc 6 in a a Magic Circle

Round 2: Inc*6 (12)

Round 3: (Sc 1, Inc)*6 (18)

Rounds 4-7: Sc around (18)

Insert the safety eyes between Rounds 4 & 5, approx. 5 stitches apart

Round 8: (Sc 1, Dec)*6 (12)

Round 9: (Sc 2, Dec)*3 (9)

Rounds 10-11: Sc around (9)

Finish off stuff the head. Lightly stuff the neck, then flatten the opening and sew it shut. Do not weave in this end yet, you will use it later to sew the head to the body.

Front Flippers (Make 2)

Round 1 is the base of the flippers, and Round 13 is the tip.

Using light green and leaving a long end:

Round 1: Ch 8

Rounds 2-3: Join to the first Ch with a Sc to form a circle. Sc into the remaining 7 chain stitches. (8)

Round 4: Inc*2, Sc 6 (10)

Round 5: Inc*2, Sc 8 (12)

Round 6: Sc around (12)

Round 7: Dec*2, Sc 8 (10)

Round 8: Sc around (10)

Round 9: Dec*2, Sc 6 (8)

Round 10: Sc around (8)

Start stuffing the flipper.

Round 11: Dec*2, Sc 4 (6)

Round 12: Sc around (6)

Round 13: Dec*2, Sc 2 (4)

Finish off and finish stuffing. Flatten the opening of the flipper and sew it shut. Do not weave the end in, you will use it to sew the flipper to the body.

Back Flippers (Make 2)

Round 1 is the base of the flippers, and Round 9 is the tip.

Using light green and leaving a long end:

Round 1: Ch 8

Round 2: Join to the first Ch with a Sc to form a circle. Sc into the remaining 7 chain stitches. (8)

Round 3: Inc*2, Sc 6 (10)

Round 4: Inc*2, Sc 8 (12)

Round 5: Sc around (12)

Round 6: Dec*2, Sc 8 (10)

Round 7: Dec*2, Sc 6 (8)

Start stuffing the flipper.

Round 8: Dec*2, Sc 4 (6)

Round 9: Dec*2, Sc 2 (4)

Finish off and finish stuffing. Flatten the opening of the flipper and sew it shut. Do not weave the end in, you will use it to sew the flipper to the body.

Tail

Using light green:
 

Round 1: Sc 6 in a Magic Circle

Rounds 2-3: Sc around (6)

Round 4: (Sc 2, Inc)*2 (8)

Round 5: Sc around (8)

Finish off, leaving a long end, and stuff. Flatten the opening of the tail and sew it shut. Do not weave the end in, you will use it to sew the tail to the body.

Assembling the Turtle

I recommend sewing the head and the tail on first to ensure they line up with each other, and then adding the flippers after. See Figure 1 below for placement of the limbs.
 

Turn the turtle over and pin the head and tail to the edge of the body, just under the shell. The head and tail should be in a straight line as much as possible. Sew the head and tail to the body.

Pin all four flippers to the edge of the turtle’s body, just under the shell, making sure they are evenly spaced. It can be tough to get them perfect – as you can see, even mine are not 100% evenly spaced! Get it as close as you can, though. 🙂 Finish weaving in all ends.

Read on if you’d like to make your turtle into a keychain or a Christmas ornament, otherwise you’re done!

underside of the turtle showing the flipper placement. The curve of the front flippers face towards the head, and the curve of the back flippers face towards the tail

Optional: Adding a Keychain

To create a yarn loop for attaching the keychain:

Using green or brown: Ch 11, then Sc into 2nd Ch from hook and Sc into the remaining 9 stitches (10)

Cut the yarn, leaving a long end.

The keychains I purchased consist of a split ring attached to a chain, and a separate open jump ring.  If you have something similar, follow my instructions for attaching an open jump ring to your turtle.

If you have a keychain where the jump ring is already closed and can’t be easily opened, then skip to my instructions for attaching a closed jump ring to your turtle.

If you have an OPEN jump ring on your keychain:  

Join the yarn into a loop and stitch it securely to the turtle.

To attach the keychain, insert the open jump ring through the chain of the keychain and then through the yarn loop you just made. Use pliers to close the jump ring tightly.

If you have a CLOSED jump ring on your keychain:

Do not sew the chains into a loop or stitch it to the turtle yet. First, run the yarn through the jump ring. Then you can go ahead and sew the yarn into a loop and stitch it securely to your turtle.

front view of a small crochet sea turtle toy with a white background

Optional: Turn your sea turtle into a Christmas ornament!

Want to turn your seat turtle into a festive Christmas ornament so he can hang out on your tree during the holidays? Read on to find the Santa Hat pattern.

Bobble Stitch Instructions

The Bobble Stitch is used to create the first row of the Santa hat. The stitch consists of your desired number of Double Crochets (4 Dc in this case) worked into a single stitch and secured by one loop, to create a texture that pops out from your work

Step 1: Yarn over, insert hook into the stitch where you are going to make the bobble. Yarn over, draw up a loop – this is like the beginning of a normal Double Crochet. You will now have three loops on your hook.

Step 2: Yarn over, pull yarn through the first two loops only. You will now have two loops on your hook.

Step 3: Next, instead of finishing the Double Crochet like you normally would, yarn over and insert the hook back into the stitch. Yarn over, draw up a loop, then yarn over and pull through only the first two loops again. You will now have three loops on your hook.

Step 4: Repeat step 3 two more times until you have five loops on your hook.

Step 5: Yarn over and pull through all 5 loops on your hook. This will complete the bobble!

Santa Hat

Round 1: Ch 16, making sure to leave a long end of yarn at the start (you will use it later to sew the hat to the head). Slip stitch to the first ch to form a circle.

Round 2: Ch 3 (counts as first Dc of your first bobble), Bobble Stitch (3 Dc), Sl 1. For the remaining Bobble Stitches, you will make 4 Dc per bobble: (Bobble Stitch 1, Sl 1)*7 (16)

Using red:
 

Rounds 3-4: Sc around (16) You will Sc into the top of the first bobble from Round 2 – skip the initial Ch 3.

Round 5: (Sc 6, Dec)*3 (14)

Round 6: Sc around (14)

Round 7: (Sc 2, Dec)*4 (12)

Round 8: Sc around (12)

Round 9: (Sc 2, Dec)*3 (9)

Round 10: Sc around (9)

Round 11: (Sc 1, Dec)*3 (6)

Round 12: Sc around (6)

Round 13: Dec*3 (3)

Switch to white to make the top ball, leaving a long red end.

Round 14: Inc*3 (6)

Round 15: (Sc 1, Inc)*3 (9)

Rounds 16-17: Sc around (9)

Stuff ball and continue stuffing as you finish the last round.

Round 18: (Sc 1, Dec)*3 (6)

Finish stuffing the ball and close up the hole.

Sew the hat to the top of the turtle’s head using the long white end from the start of Round 1.

Fold the hat back and use the red end from Round 13 to stitch it into place. Weave in all ends.

a small crochet sea turtle with a Santa hat, hanging from a Christmas tree
three small crochet toys sitting on a log at the beach - a flamingo floatie, a crab, and a sea turtle

Chilling with his friends, the flamingo floatie and crab!

I hope you enjoy this pattern, and if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to comment below or email me.

And if you made your own Mini Sea Turtle I would love to see a picture on Instagram! Make sure to tag me so I don’t miss it, @waywardpineapplecreations.

© Wayward Pineapple Creations | Julia Simpson  This pattern and all related images are copyright protected. You may sell items made from my patterns, but please do not copy/paste, distribute, or alter the pattern and claim it as your own.

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