An edit of the Sleepy Fox by Eserehtanin to make it no sew, add more color detail, tweak the shape of some things, and more.
Please check out the original pattern!
Click here for an explanation of stitch abbreviations, and other tips for how to read my patterns.
Color A: Main color
Color B: Dark details
Color C: Light details
Ears
Color B (ear tip)
1. Magic circle (4)
2. (1inc, 1sc)x2 (6)
3. inc x6 (12)
4. 12sc (12)
Prepare Color A (main body color)
5. Color B 1sc; color A 2sc, inc, 1sc; color B 2sc, inc, 3sc, inc (15)
6. Color B 1sc; color A 3sc, inc, 2sc; color B 2sc, inc, 4sc, inc (18)
7. Color A 5sc, inc, 3sc; color B 2sc, inc, 5sc, inc (21)
Prepare color C (light body color), cut and tie off color B
8. color A 4sc, color C 2sc, color A inc, (6sc, 1inc)x2 (24)
9. color A 4sc, color C 3sc, color A inc, (7sc, 1inc)x2 (27)
10. color A 4sc, color C 4sc, color A inc, (8sc, 1inc)x2 (30)
11-12. color A 4sc, color C 5sc, color A 21sc (30)
13-14. color A 4sc, color C 6sc, color A 20sc (30)
15-17. color A 4sc, color C 7sc, color A 19sc (30)
finish and tie off. Leave a short tail, to help you remember where the row ends.
Make 2 ears
Arms
Start with Color B (paw color)
1. Magic circle (6)
2. inc x6 (12)
3. (5sc, inc)x2 (14)
4. (6sc, inc)x2 (16)
5. (7sc, inc)x2 (18)
6-7. sc18
8. (7sc, dec)x2 (16)
9. (6sc, dec)x2 (14)
10-12. 14sc
Change to Color A (body color), stuff the paw
13-24. 14sc
Stuff firmly
24. Fold in half, sc together (7)
Finish, tie off. Do not hide the tail yet, this will help you orient things later.
Make 2 arms
Legs
Start with Color B (paw color)
1. Magic circle (6)
2. inc x6 (12)
3. (1sc, inc)x6 (18)
4. (2sc, inc)x6 (24)
5-6. 24sc
7. 6sc, 2dec, 14sc (22)
8. 22sc
9. 6sc, 2dec, 12sc (20)
10. 20sc
11. 6sc, 2dec, 10sc (18)
12. 18sc
Change to Color A (body color), stuff the paw
13-20. 18sc
Stuff firmly
21. Fold in half, sc together (9)
Finish, tie off. Do not hide the tail yet, this will help you orient things later.
Make 2 legs
Tail
Start with Color C (light color)
1. Magic circle (6)
2. (1sc, inc)x3 (9)
3. (2sc, inc)x3 (12)
4. 12sc
5. (3sc, inc)x3 (15)
6. (4sc, inc)x3 (18)
7. 18sc
8. (5sc, inc)x3 (21)
9. (6sc, inc)x3 (24)
10. 24sc
Color A (body color)
11. (7sc, inc)x3 (27)
12. (8sc, inc)x3 (30)
13-20. 30sc
21. (8sc, dec)x3 (27)
22. (7sc, dec)x3 (24)
23. 24sc
24. (6sc, dec)x3 (21)
25. (5sc, dec)x3 (18)
26. 18sc
Stuff most of the tail
27. (4sc, dec)x3 (15)
28. (3sc, dec)x3 (12)
29. 12sc
Finish stuffing, tie off
Body
Get ready to crochet everything together
bps sc/dc = Back Post Stitch
Insert the hook into the post of the dc from behind, instead of into the top loops of the stitch. Then proceed to either sc or dc as instructed.
This preserves the top loops of the stitch, which will be used later during the head section
Color C (light color)
1. Magic circle (6)
2. inc x6 (12)
3. (sc, inc)x6 (18)
4. (2sc, inc)x6 (24)
5. 1sc, inc, (3sc, inc)x5, 2sc (30)
6. (4sc, inc)x6 (36)
7. 2sc, inc, (5sc, inc)x5, 3sc (42)
Color A (body color)
8. (6sc, inc)x6 (48)
9. 22sc, 4dc, 22sc (48)
10. 21sc, dc, 4bps dc, dc, 21sc (48)
Now we are crocheting the arms and legs on. It is important that you insert your hook into the limb first, and into the body second.
11. 2sc, 9sc into leg and body (start on the opposite end from the leg’s yarn tail)
… 2sc, 7sc into arm and body (start on the same end as the arm’s tail)
… sc, 6bps dc, sc
… 7sc into arm and body (same end as the arm’s tail)
… 2sc, 9sc into leg and body (same end from the leg’s yarn tail)
… 2s.
12. 21sc, bps sc, 4bps dc, bps sc, 18sc, 3dc into the tail and body (6 stitches away from tail’s last stitch ensure the color change is on the bottom) (48)
13. 3dc into the tail and body (6 remain on tail), 19sc, 4bps sc, 19sc, 3sc into the remaining tail stitches and body (48)
14. 3sc into the rest of the tail and body, 3sc, dec (6sc, dec)x5 (42)
15. 2sc, dec, (5sc, dec)x5, 3sc (36)
16. (4sc, dec)x6 (30)
17. 1sc, dec, (3sc, dec)x5, 2sc (24)
18. (2sc, dec)x6 (18)
19. (sc, dec)x6 (12)
Stuff!
20. dec6 (6)
Finish off
Head
Start with Color A (main body color)
1. Magic circle (6)
2. inc x6 (12)
3. (sc, inc)x6 (18)
4. (2sc, inc)x6 (24)
5. 1sc, inc, (3sc, inc)x5, 2sc (30)
6. (4sc, inc)x6 (36)
7. 2sc, inc, (5sc, inc)x5, 3sc (42)
8. (6sc, inc)x6 (48)
9. 3sc, inc, (7sc, inc)x5, 4sc (54)
10. (8sc, inc)x6 (60)
11. 4sc, inc, (9sc, inc)x5, 5sc (66)
12. (10sc, inc)x6 (72)
13. 5sc, inc, (11sc, inc)x5, 6sc (78)
14. 78sc
fold ears in half, get ready to crochet them to the head. Here’s how, when you get to that part: hold them so the light colored triangle faces away from you, and find the stitch where the last row ended (it will be 4 stitches away from the light triangle). Line this up with your latest stitch, then flip the ears downward so they are upside down and the lighter triangle faces towards you. Insert hook into the ear’s stitch (it will be the half of the ear furthest from you), then into the head, and pull yarn up through both, as the first step of your single crochet.
15. 15sc, (begin crocheting ear onto head) 4tb, 7dc, 4hdc (15 remain on ear, includes the inner ear triangle and 4sc on each side), 8sc (add more if you want droopy ears, reduce if you want perky ears), (crochet other ear onto head) 4hdc, 7dc, 4tb (15 remain behind), 25sc (78)
16. 15sc, 15sc into one ear and head’s hdc (use remaining ear stitches), 8sc (must match what you did last row), 15sc into other ear and head (15 remaining), 25sc (78)
17-19. 78sc
It’s time to crochet the head onto the body. Depending on the tightness of your stitches, and if you modified the placement of the ears at all, the bottom of the head may be in a slightly different place. Fold the head in half so the ears line up with each other to determine where the bottom is. Then count counterclockwise 2 stitches and mark this stitch. Pick up the body and find the exposed dc loops in row 10 (the furthest row away from you if the body is facing towards you) and mark the furthest one on the right.
20. Sc around. When you reach the marked stitch, insert your hook into the exposed loops on the body first, then sc into the head. You will continue to crochet into the head and into the body at the same time, using the loops exposed by the bps dc. 4sc total. This bleeds into the next row, so consider this the new last stitch of the row. Take a second to double check that the head isn’t tilted, frog and adjust the placement if needed. (78)
21. 72sc. Crochet into the next closest row of exposed loops on the body, x6 (78)
22. Same as row 21 (78)
23. Same as row 20 (78)
24. 14sc, dec, (11sc, dec)x4, 10sc (73)
25. (10sc, dec)x5, 13sc (68)
26. 12sc, dec, (9sc, dec)x4, 9sc (63)
27. (8sc, dec)x5, 13sc (58)
28. 12sc, dec, (7sc, dec)x4, 8sc (53)
29. (6sc, dec)x5, 13sc (48)
30. 11sc, dec, (5sc, dec)x4, 7c (43)
31. (4sc, dec)x5, 13sc (38)
32. 8sc, dec, (3sc, dec)x4, 6sc … (33)
Row ends 4sc early to reset the row to the bottom of the head. Lightly stuff the head. Switch colors.
Color C (light body color)
33. (9, dec)x3 (30)
34. 30sc
35. (3sc, dec)x6 (24)
36-39. 24sc
40. (2sc, dec)x6 (18)
Stuff firmly
41. 18sc
42. (1sc, dec)x6 (12)
43. (1sc, dec)x4 (8)
44. decx2
Finish, tie off, hide tail. Embroider on the eyes and nose (visit the original pattern for details)