Free crochet cow pattern

Yarn colours

The shades below are the ones the pattern is written in. Match them by eye to the photo, or pick your own. The round text marks which stitches change colour.

• #F2EEE4
• #26221F
• #7B5340
• #EFA9B4

What the pattern says

Counted from the pattern text itself, not typed in by hand.

• Worked in one piece
• 22 rounds
• 542 stitches
• 4 colours

Beyond the basics

• •4 colours
• •colour changes within a round
• •stitches taller than sc (dc, hdc)
• •textured stitches (bobble4, bobble2)
• •BLO and FLO — working into one loop of the stitch

Stitches used

• sc
• inc
• bobble4
• ch
• dc
• sl
• hdc
• dec
• bobble2

Roughly how much yarn

Rules of thumb, not measurements: consumption depends on your hook, your tension and how firmly you stuff. Treat them as a starting point and weigh your own first piece.

Work it out from your own yarn

The pattern

Each line is one round, and the number on its right is the stitch count you should end that round with. Stitches shown on a colour are worked in that yarn.

Abbreviations used in this pattern

Written in US terminology. Two of these mean a different stitch in UK patterns, so the UK name is given as well. Read the UK column if that is what you are used to.

Questions about this pattern

How much yarn does the Cow pattern use?

The pattern works 542 stitches, which is roughly 24 g in a worsted-weight yarn or about 17 g in DK. These are rules of thumb — real consumption depends on your hook, your tension and how firmly you stuff — so weigh your first piece and go from there.

What hook size should I use for the Cow?

This pattern does not specify one, and we are not going to invent a number. Amigurumi is usually worked a size or two below what the ball band suggests, so the fabric comes out tight enough that stuffing cannot show through the stitches. The right hook is the one that gives you a dense fabric in your hands, which is a thing you check rather than a number a page hands you.

Is the Cow worked in one piece?

Yes — one continuous piece, so there is nothing to sew together at the end.

Is the Cow pattern suitable for beginners?

It goes beyond the basics in 5 ways: 4 colours; colour changes within a round; stitches taller than sc (dc, hdc); textured stitches (bobble4, bobble2); BLO and FLO — working into one loop of the stitch. If you have met those before, you will be fine; if not, each is worth meeting on its own first. Whether that adds up to "hard" depends on you, which is why this page lists the facts rather than stamping a level on them.

Are the Cow instructions in US or UK terms?

US abbreviations. That matters because the difference is an offset rather than a translation: a UK double crochet is a US single crochet. If you are used to UK patterns, converting is one step.

For the abbreviations see the abbreviation reference, to move between US and UK names the converter, and if it did not come out like the picture, what went wrong.