Christmas Crochet Frog in a Hat: Free Amigurumi Pattern
This crochet frog in a hat is full of small, cheerful details. It has a red hat with a white band and brim, a green face with bobble eyes peeking out below the brim, green bobble paws at the sides and a little red body underneath. The whole pattern is just 16 rounds, and no round is ever wider than 24 stitches.
You work the frog in one piece, starting at the tip of the hat and ending at the bottom of the body. One loop trick does most of the shaping: the brim round goes into the front loops only, and that leaves the back loops free for the head to grow from behind it. Bobbles add the texture for the eyes and paws. After that, you only need some stuffing, two embroidered details and two glued-on eyes.
Materials Stitches Hat Head and Body Finishing FAQ
Before your first stitch: Get all your colors out before you begin, because they change in this order: red for the hat tip (Rnds 1–4), white for the hat band and brim (Rnds 5–6), green for the head and upper paws (Rnds 7–10), then red again for the body (Rnds 11–16). If you’d like brown lower paws, keep brown handy for Rnd 13.
How the shape comes together: Rnd 6 makes the brim using only the front loops of Rnd 5. Rnd 7 then goes back to the free back loops of that same round, behind the brim, so the head continues straight from the hat.
Materials
- Red yarn: hat tip, body and lower paws.
- White yarn: hat band and brim.
- Green yarn: head, eye bobbles and upper paws.
- Brown yarn (optional): for the lower paws.
- A crochet hook that suits your yarn.
- Stuffing.
- Two eyes to glue on, plus glue.
- Yarn or thread to embroider the mouth and cheeks.
- A yarn needle for embroidering and weaving in the end.
Stitches and abbreviations (US terms)
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| MR | Magic ring |
| sc | Single crochet |
| dc | Double crochet (used inside the bobbles) |
| sl st | Slip stitch |
| inc | Increase: work 2 sc in the same stitch |
| dec | Decrease: work the next 2 stitches together as 1 sc |
| [ ] X times | Repeat the instructions in brackets the stated number of times |
| (12) | The number in parentheses at the end of a round is that round’s stitch count |
This pattern uses US crochet terms throughout. If you usually work from UK patterns, check the Craft Yarn Council’s crochet abbreviations chart to compare the stitch names.
Special stitch: the bobble
The bobble makes the eyes, the upper paws and the lower paws. It’s 3 or 4 dc worked into the same stitch and joined at the top. Each round tells you whether to use 3 or 4 dc: the eyes in Rnd 7 are 4-dc bobbles, and both pairs of paws are 3-dc bobbles.
How to work it: *Yo, insert the hook in the stitch, yo and pull up a loop, yo and draw through 2 loops. Repeat from * 2 more times for a 3-dc bobble (4 loops on the hook), or 3 more times for a 4-dc bobble (5 loops on the hook). Yo and draw through all loops on the hook.
Hat
With red: The hat starts at its tip, and red continues through Rnd 4. If you’re new to starting in the round, this step-by-step magic ring tutorial walks you through Rnd 1.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in MR (6)
Rnd 2: [1 sc, inc] 3 times (9)
Rnd 3: Sc in each st around (9)
Rnd 4: [2 sc, inc] 3 times (12)
Color change: Switch to white for Rnd 5. White carries on through the brim in Rnd 6. Our guide to changing colors in amigurumi covers the switch.
Rnd 5: With white, sc in each st around (12)
About the brim: Rnd 6 uses only the front loops of Rnd 5. That leaves the back loops of Rnd 5 unworked behind the brim, ready for the head in Rnd 7.
Rnd 6 (hat brim): Working in front loops only: [1 sc, inc] 6 times (18)
Head and Body
With green: The head begins in the unused back loops of Rnd 5, behind the brim.
Reading Rnd 7: The long instruction is the same six-stitch sequence worked twice: 1 sc, inc, 4-dc bobble, inc, 1 sc, inc. Because both halves match, the two eye bobbles end up evenly spaced around the round. The round works into the 12 back loops and finishes with 18 stitches.
Rnd 7: Working in the unused back loops of Rnd 5 (behind the brim): 1 sc, inc, 4-dc bobble in the next st, inc, 1 sc, inc, 1 sc, inc, 4-dc bobble in the next st, inc, 1 sc, inc (18)
Rnd 8: [2 sc, inc] 6 times (24)
Rnd 9: Sc in each st around (24)
Upper paws: The next round makes the upper paws as bobbles, and they should sit on the sides. If they won’t be symmetrical, shift your stitches. One simple way is to work a few more or fewer sc before the first bobble, and make up the difference after the second. Keep the 6 sc between the bobbles, and the round still ends at 24.
Rnd 10: 7 sc, 3-dc bobble in the next st, 6 sc, 3-dc bobble in the next st, 9 sc (24)
With red: The body starts here.
Rnds 11–12 (2 rnds): Sc in each st around (24)
Lower paws: The next round makes the lower paws as bobbles, and they should also sit on the sides. If they won’t be symmetrical, shift your stitches the same way, keeping the 3 sc between the bobbles and 24 stitches in total. You can make the lower paws in brown.
Rnd 13: 9 sc, 3-dc bobble in the next st, 3 sc, 3-dc bobble in the next st, 10 sc (24)
Rnd 14: [2 sc, dec] 6 times (18)
Rnd 15: [1 sc, dec] 6 times (12)
Stuff. Do it now, while 12 stitches are still open. For tips on filling a small piece evenly, see how to stuff amigurumi without lumps.
Rnd 16: Dec 6 times (6)
Sl st, close the opening and weave in the end.
Finishing
- Embroider the mouth and cheeks.
- Glue the eyes under the eye bobbles from Rnd 7.
A note on the eyes: The eyes are glued on, so they’re small parts that could come loose. If you plan to give this frog to a young child, read the U.S. CPSC’s guidance on small parts before you decide how to finish the eyes.
Questions about this frog
When do I switch from red to white on the hat?
Work Rnds 1–4 in red, then change to white for Rnd 5. White makes the plain band in Rnd 5 and the front-loop brim in Rnd 6, and the head switches to green in Rnd 7.
Why does Rnd 7 go into the back loops of Rnd 5?
Rnd 6 uses only the front loops of Rnd 5 to make the brim, so the back loops of Rnd 5 stay free behind it. Rnd 7 starts the green head in those back loops. That way the hat and head are worked as one piece, and the brim stays in front.
What should I do if the paw bobbles don’t land on the sides?
The pattern says to shift your stitches if the paws won’t be symmetrical. One simple way is to work a few more or fewer sc before the first bobble and make up the difference after the second. Keep 6 sc between the upper paws in Rnd 10, 3 sc between the lower paws in Rnd 13, and 24 stitches in each round.
Which bobbles use 3 dc and which use 4 dc?
The eye bobbles in Rnd 7 are 4-dc bobbles. The upper paws in Rnd 10 and the lower paws in Rnd 13 are 3-dc bobbles.
Can I make the lower paws a different color?
Yes. The pattern suggests brown for the lower paws in Rnd 13 as an option. If you don’t use brown, they’re worked in the same red as the body.
When should I stuff the frog?
Stuff after Rnd 15, while 12 stitches are still open. Then work Rnd 16 to decrease to 6 stitches, sl st and close the opening.
