Crochet Penguin Pattern

This is for Katy Board and anyone else who wants to make a Penguin for a friend or themselves!

What I used to make the Penguin pattern

1. Size E/4 (3.50mm) crochet hook  You can use a bigger hook it will make a bigger Penguin, depending on how big your hook is it make leave gaps if you find that happening you should crochet with two strands of yarn at the same time or go down a hook size.
2. Blue yarn (I used 'I love this Yarn' in Royal) You don’t need a lot what I used was just left over scrap from making a few Tardis dice bags ((http://embertouchtehfire.deviantart.com/art/remaining-Tardises-but-more-to-come-288992847?q=boost%3Apopular%20%28%28tardis%29%20AND%20%28by%3Aembertouchtehfire%29%29&qo=1 )) or any color you want your penguin to be
3. A sheet of white felt (or any color you want the belly and eye patch to be) you willl only be using a 2 inch by 3 inch piece
4. Felting needle (if you don’t have one you can always sew or glue the patch into place but I love the way it looks felted)
5. Scissors
6. Stitch marker - You can go fancy and use a store bought one or make a fancy one, I just use contrasting scrap of yarn something I am sure will not rub off and leave fiber behind.
7. Safty eyes-  Safty eyes will lock in and are impossible to remove with out bolt cutters or actually cutting into the doll so it will make the toy safe for any age.
8. Small amount of orange crochet thread or yarn (I used #10 crochet thread because I had a few scraps left over from making toe straps for my baby niece last summer.)
9. A needle (to embroider the beak, and attach the wings and weave in loose yarn ends) I have a few darning needles and a 'Big eye' that I used ((Big eye is a beading needle that the whole center of the needle is the eye you pinch to open it and it makes it easier to thread, plus the needle is flexible and thin))
10. PVC pellets (if you want some weight to help it stand straight) 

I am from the US so I am using the US crochet terms the only things you need to know to make this penguin are, MR (magic Ring), SC (single crochet), INC (increase), and DEC (decrease). Some other terms I may use rnd=round, st-stitch, yo-yarn over.

Even if you have never crochet before this should be simple.  If you have never worked in the round before don’t be scared its easy!

For those of you who don’t know how to do a magic ring (MR) its pretty easy and its my preferred method of starting most amigurumi.  

Start by taking  hold of the end of your yarn in your non dominate hand ( that would be my left) and drape it over your hand with the tail end on your palm and wrap the working end (connected to your ball) loosly around your first two fingers.

Then your going to take your hook and slip it under both loops, (in the pictures I am using a larger hook the needed for the pattern so you can see what I am doing clearly) then take the working yarn and wrap it from under the hook over and pull that loop under both loops of the ring.  Then you will yarn over and pull threw the loop on the hook. (basicaly chaining one stitch) Slip under the loops of the MR yarn over, pull threw, you should have two loops on the hook now (in the video I might call the loops hooks because I am loopy like that) yarn over and pull threw both loops and that is your first SC in the round.  Now just keep slipping under YO pull threw YO pull threw both loops, repeat till you have the number of st's needed for your  mr, so if I say MR-8 you would need to end up with 8 sc.  I like to loosen up the working loop and slip a finger or three threw it before closing up my MR to make sure I don’t loose a stich.  Now take the tail end of the yarn and gently pull to close the ring!!

Now onto the pattern.

MR-8

Rnd 1 INC ALL -16   ((Round 1, increase in each stitch, ending up with 16 st's

Rnd 2 sc, inc - 24  ((Round 2, *sc in stitch, increase in the next repeat from * so its sc, inc, sc, inc, sc inc…)

Rnd 3 thru 8 sc all -24  ((Rounds 3 to 8 sc in each st, no increasing or decreasing you will have 24 sc st in each round)

Rnd 9 sc, dec -16  ((Round 9 *single crochet one st, then decrease*  repeat from * ending with 16 st's)

Rnd 10 sc all-16

Rnd 11 sc, inc -24

Rnd 12 thru 13 sc all -24

I took the time here to attach my felt and eye's (I didn’t felt it on I just put the eyes threw the felt and let them hold it on).  After securing the eyes nice and tight I stuffed the head portion to my liking.

I cut the felt a little larger then I wanted the finished part to be because when you felt you will loose about a CM of space all around. If your gluing or sewing make it the size you want it to be.

I folded my 2x3 piece of felt in half, starting with the head I cut as if I was going to cut out a heart but stop half way threw turn and cut down like a tear drop.   I used my crochet  hook to loosen up the fibers of the felt to put my eyes threw, you can make small slits with scissors if you prefer.  Slide the eyes threw the felt and into the crochet, making sure you put their backs on tightly.

Rnd14 sc, sc, inc -32

Rnd 15 thru 18 sc all -32

Rnd 19 sc, sc, dec -24

Rnd 20 sc, dec  -16

Rnd 21 dec all -8

Cut off and leave 4-6 inch tail.  Stuff the rest of the body adding in about 2 Tablespoons of pellets, and weave the  tail threw the st and pull them shut, using the needle weave and tie off the end.  I like to weave tie and weave again and tie off a second time then weave  the needle threw a large part of the body and snip off the extra  so you hide the tail inside.

After you stuff, either glue, sew, or felt the mask/belly patch.   I started at the top with the eyes and worked my way down trying to keep both sides even and flat, when you get to the bottom you will have to pinch the felt in to spots  to get the rounded look if you didn’t cut it just right (which I didn’t)

Now make two of the fallowing wing's

MR-6

Rnd 1 sc, inc -9

Rnd 2-6 sc all -9

Lay the wing flat and using the needle weave or stitch the wing closed  then stitch it onto the body, I choose to stich it into round 11 of the body, only stitching onlge the closed edge so the wings can be flapped.

Then I finished it off with my big eye needle and orange crochet threat I slipped threw from the front to the back of the felt and make to the front and loosely make a knot  then went back in and out in the same spot 3 more times, then lower and smaller three times till I got a small triangle beak.  I  slid the needle threw the front and weaved it back and forth before pull it threw and hiding the tail inside by pushing the needle threw to the back of the head.

If something isnt clear or you need help with a step leave a comment and I will do my best to help you out with video or picture walkthroughs.