This character from my children’s book series, The Frog of Bugburry Pond, is approximately 8.5 inches tall and is suitable for all crocheters. I hope you enjoy this pattern, and if you post pictures, please hashtag #laurajaworski & tag me @bugburrypond so I can see & share your creations.
The Frog of Bugburry Pond is illustrated by the lovely Yui Kajita.
You can find all of my free crochet patterns here.
Happy crocheting & happy reading!
Skill Level: Easy
Size:
This frog is approximately 8.5 inches tall in a sitting position and approximately 12 inches tall in a standing position.
Supplies:
Worsted weight yarn (green, white, black, blue)
4.0 mm hook
Needle for sewing
Polyester or other stuffing
Stitch marker, safety pin, or small piece of yarn to count rounds
Scissors
Glue (optional)
Abbreviations:
MC = Magic circle (see pattern notes)
St = Stitch
Sc = Single crochet stitch
Ss = Slip stitch
Rep = Repeat
Inc = Increase
2tog = Crochet two together, also known as decrease (invisible decrease preferred)
FLO = Front loop only
BLO = Back loop only
Ch1 = Chain one
F/o = Finish off
A note about the magic circle:
Also known as a magic loop or magic ring. If you prefer not to use a magic circle, simply create a slip knot, chain two, and begin by placing your first round of stitches into the first chain. Pull tightly on your tail to close the gap and continue with the pattern as written. Once you have worked a few more rounds, weave your yarn tail back and forth on the underside to secure your piece and close any remaining gap.
A note about working in a spiral:
This frog is worked in a spiral which means that each round continues into the next without a slip stitch and chain.
A note about counting stitches:
Using a stitch marker, safety pin, or small piece of yarn to mark the first stitch of each round will help you track your progress. Move the marker as you complete each round.
Click here for The Most Wonderful Thing Bunny Free Crochet Pattern.
A note about FLO & BLO:
For the front loop only round, you will work all of your stitches into the front loop of each stitch. For the back loop only round, you will work all of your stitches into the back loop of each stitch. For all other rounds, work into both loops of each stitch.
A note about increasing and decreasing:
For an increase, crochet two stitches in the same stitch. For a decrease, crochet two stitches together, preferably using the invisible decrease method.
A note about reading the pattern:
Before beginning a pattern, it helps to read through the abbreviations list. If you need help with a technique, refer to a written or video tutorial, or keep a crochet book handy. Below is a round from the pattern, followed by a detailed description of the instructions.
Rnd 4: 2sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (24)
Beginning round four, add one single crochet into each of the next two stitches. Add two single crochet stitches in the following stitch. Repeat the pattern of one single crochet in each of the next two stitches followed by an increase until you reach the end of round four. There should be 24 stitches in your completed round.
A note about the invisible finish technique:
For the invisible finish technique, complete the last stitch of your pattern. Snip your yarn, leaving a tail long enough for sewing. Pull the loop on your hook, drawing the snipped yarn tail free. Next, thread the yarn tail onto your needle and bring it through both loops of the stitch following the next stitch. Bring your yarn tail through the back loop of the last stitch of your final round, pulling until you’ve created a v that is comparable in size to the rest of your stitches. Weave your yarn tail on the backside of your piece to secure.
Now let’s get started!
Frog’s Head & Body (beginning at the top, with green yarn):
Rnd 1: MC with 6sc (6)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (12)
Rnd 3: 1sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (18)
Rnd 4: 2sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (24)
Rnd 5: 3sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (30)
Rnd 6: 4sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (36)
Rnd 7: 5sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (42)
Rnd 8: 6sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (48)
Rnd 9: 7sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (54)
Rnd 10-15: 1sc in each st (54)
Rnd 16: 7sc then 2tog, rep (48)
Rnd 17: 6sc then 2tog, rep (42)
Rnd 18: 5sc then 2tog, rep (36)
Rnd 19: 4sc then 2tog, rep (30)
Begin stuffing the head; you can continue stuffing as you go.
Rnd 20: 3sc then 2tog, rep (24)
Switch to blue yarn (or any color you choose for the sweater). You can change yarn colors as many times as you like from rnd 21 to rnd 34 to create stripes/customize Frog’s sweater.
Rnd 21: 3sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (30)
Rnd 22: 1sc in each st (30)
Rnd 23: 4sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (36)
Rnd 24: 1sc in each st (36)
Rnd 25: 5sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (42)
Rnd 26: 1sc in each st (42)
Rnd 27: 6sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (48)
Rnd 28: 1sc in each st (48)
Rnd 29: 7sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (54)
Rnd 30-33: 1sc in each st (54)
Rnd 34: FLO sc in each st (54)
Snip your yarn & f/o using the invisible finish technique.
Switch to green yarn.
Rnd 35: BLO working into rnd 33, 1sc in each st (54)
Rnd 36-38: 1sc in each st (54)
Rnd 39: 7sc then 2tog, rep (48)
Rnd 40: 1sc in each st (48)
Rnd 41: 6sc then 2tog, rep (42)
Rnd 42: 5sc then 2tog, rep (36)
Begin stuffing the body; you can continue stuffing as you close.
Rnd 43: 4sc then 2tog, rep (30)
Rnd 44: 3sc then 2tog, rep (24)
Rnd 45: 2sc then 2tog, rep (18)
Rnd 46: 1sc then 2tog, rep (12)
Rnd 47: 2tog x 6 (6)
Snip your yarn. Pull your yarn tail free, then weave your yarn tail through the front loops of the six remaining stitches and pull to close. Weave your yarn back and forth or knot to secure and hide the yarn tail inside the body.
Frog’s Eyeball (with white yarn, make two):
Rnd 1: MC with 6sc (6)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (12)
Rnd 3-4: 1sc in each st (12)
Stuff lightly.
Rnd 5: BLO 2tog x 6 (6)
Snip your yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing. Pull your yarn tail free, then weave your yarn tail through the front loops of the six remaining stitches and pull to close. Weave your yarn back and forth or knot to secure; do not snip the yarn tail.
Click here for The Frog of Bugburry Pond: Winter in Bugburry ❄️
Frog’s Pupil (with black yarn, make two):
Rnd 1: MC with 6sc (6)
Snip your yarn & f/o using the invisible finish technique, making sure to leave a long tail for sewing. Note: work into the next stitch over instead of two stitches over to complete the invisible finish technique for the pupil.
Frog’s Eyelid (with green yarn, make two):
Rnd 1: MC with 6sc (6)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (12)
Rnd 3: 1sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (18)
Rnd 4: 2sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (24)
Rnd 5-6: 1sc in each st (24)
Snip your yarn & f/o using the invisible finish technique; leave a long tail for sewing.
When you’re ready to attach the eyelids, follow the instructions further down in the pattern to see how they fit. There should be a gap between the back of the eyelid and the head (1 round of stitches or slightly over) that will come together naturally as you sew (see photos). However, if you have to overstretch the yarn, you can lengthen the eyelid with an additional round of stitches. To do this, attach your green yarn to any stitch on rnd 6 with a ch1, sc in the same st, then sc around for a total of 7 rounds. Snip your yarn & f/o using the invisible finish technique; leave a long tail for sewing.
Frog’s Hand & Arm (beginning with green yarn, make two):
Below you will find two options for the hand & arm. Option #1 has a slightly smaller hand and option #2 has a slightly bigger hand. You can also stuff more or less to make the hands bigger of smaller, just keep in mind that you don’t want the stuffing to show through the stitches. Choose which hand option you would like and make two.
Hand & Arm Option #1:
Rnd 1: MC with 7sc (7)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (14)
Rnd 3-5: 1sc in each st (14)
Rnd 6: 5sc then 2tog, rep (12)
Begin stuffing the hand; you can continue stuffing over the next few rounds.
Rnd 7: 4sc then 2tog, rep (10)
Switch to blue yarn; stuff the arms very lightly as you go.
Rnd 8-17: 1sc in each st (10)
Snip your yarn & f/o; leave a long tail for sewing.
Hand & Arm Option #2:
Rnd 1: MC with 8sc (8)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (16)
Rnd 3-5: 1sc in each st (16)
Rnd 6: 6sc then 2tog, rep (14)
Rnd 7: 5sc then 2tog, rep (12)
Begin stuffing the hand; you can continue stuffing over the next few rounds.
Rnd 8: 4sc then 2tog (10)
Switch to blue yarn; stuff the arms very lightly as you go.
Rnd 9-18: 1sc in each st (10)
Snip your yarn & f/o; leave a long tail for sewing.
Frog’s Sleeve Cuff (optional, with blue yarn, make two):
Ch10 & f/o leaving a tail long enough for sewing. You can add or subtract chains as necessary.
Frog’s Foot & Leg (with green yarn, make two):
Rnd 1: MC with 6sc (6)
Rnd 2: 2sc in each st (12)
Rnd 3: 1sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (18)
Rnd 4: 2sc then 2sc in the next st, rep (24)
Rnd 5-6: 1sc in each st (24)
Rnd 7: 2tog x 4, sc to end of round (20)
Rnd 8: 2tog x 2, sc to end of round (18)
Rnd 9: 1sc then 2tog, rep (12)
Stuff the foot, shaping the heel and top so they’re nicely rounded. Lightly stuff the leg as you crochet rounds 10-16. If you plan to attach the legs in a sitting position, you may want to leave the last round or two unstuffed.
Rnd 10-16: 1sc in each st (12)
Snip your yarn & f/o; leave a long tail for sewing.
Putting it all together
Attaching the eyes (see photos):
Attaching the eyeballs:
Begin by pinning both eyeballs to the top of the head between rounds 5-8 and slightly forward from the center. You can move the eyeballs to your preference.
Using your white yarn tails, sew each eyeball to the top of the head. Once this is done, bring both yarn tails out of the same stitch on the back of the head, knot the tails & hide them in the head.
Attaching the pupils:
Pin your pupil to the front center of the eyeball (after the eyeball is attached) so the bottom is flush with the head. You can move the pupils to your preference.
Using your black yarn tail, sew the pupil to the eyeball. Once you have attached both pupils, bring the yarn tails out of the same stitch on the back of the head, knot the tails & hide them in the head. Alternatively, bring your yarn tail to the back of the eye and knot the yarn or weave back and forth to secure, being careful not to warp the shape of the eye.
Click here for The Little Star Free Crochet Pattern.
Attaching the eyelids:
Begin by pressing the eyelid into a flat semicircle. Form the eyelid around the eyeball, stretching & shaping gently as necessary. Next, pin the eyelid to the head so that the front is tacked down on either side of the eyeball (see photos); don’t worry if there’s a gap between the last round of the eyelid and the frog’s head in the back as the yarn will stretch & come together as you sew. If you have to overstretch the eyelid to make it fit, you can add an extra round of sc for a total of 7 rounds.
Using your green yarn tail, sew the eyelid to Frog’s head. Once the eyelid is secure, add a few stitches to secure the eyelid to the eyeball, making sure not to warp the shape of the eye. You can also do this with hot glue (my preferred method), but be careful not to let the hot glue seep out to the front of the eye.
When both eyelids are secure, bring both yarn tails out of the same stitch on the back of the head, knot the tails & hide them in the head.
Attaching the sleeve cuffs:
Wrap your chained piece around the hand/arm between rounds 7 & 8 for arm option #1, and between rounds 8 & 9 for arm option # 2 so the color change is covered. Tie the yarn tails at the back, then stitch the cuff down around the arm using one of the tails. Hide the tails in the back of the arm to secure.
Attaching the arms:
The arms can be attached in several directions. To begin, position the top of the arms with the top of round 23, one arm on each side of the body. From here you can decide if you’d like the arms facing downward, angled, or reaching up & out. Position slightly backward for a shorter arm or slightly forward for a longer arm. Note: positioning up & out will allow you to attach items between the arms, which I will have available in future patterns for this character, including the mushroom pictured. You can also go through my free patterns to find items such as the pumpkin pie and cupcake to attach between Frog’s hands.
Once you’ve decided on the position, pin both arms into place. Using your blue yarn tails, whip stitch the arms to the body, making sure the stitches are secured all the way around. Once they’re nicely attached, bring both yarn tails out of the same stitch on the back of the body, knot the tails & hide them in the body.
Attaching the legs:
The legs can be attached in several directions. You can position the legs so Frog is in a sitting position (with the legs facing forward or outward, to your preference), or you can attach them on the bottom or the side of the body in a standing position. You can also choose whether to flatten the top of the leg by pressing the last round together before attaching to the body, or you can stitch the legs to the body with the rounded leg shape.
To attach the legs in a sitting position, line the legs up so they’re flush with Frog’s bottom on a flat surface; this should be around round 43 (see photos). When you’re happy with how the legs look, pin them into place and sew the legs to the body. Finally, bring both yarn tails out of the same stitch, tie the tails together, & hide them in the body.
To attach the legs in a standing position, pin both legs to the bottom of the body starting at round 43, or to your preference. Sew the legs to the body then bring both yarn tails out of the same stitch, tie the tails together, & hide them in the body.
Adding a mouth:
To add a mouth, cut a length of black (or any other color) yarn or crochet thread. Beginning at the back of the head, bring the yarn through to the point that you’d like the mouth to begin, bring it down the length of the mouth, then bring your yarn back through the head and out of the same stitch as your first yarn tail. Knot the two tails together and hide them in the head.
Note: the mouth pictured begins between rounds 12 & 13, just at the edge of the eye, and ends between rounds 16 & 17, toward the center of the face.
And now you’re done! I hope you enjoy this children’s book character from The Frog of Bugburry Pond & if you post pictures, please hashtag #laurajaworski & tag me @bugburrypond so I can share your work! You can find me @bugburrypond on Instagram, Facebook, & Pinterest.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Happy crocheting and have a beautiful day. 💕
Laura
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Copyright © 2023 Laura Jaworski,
The Frog of Bugburry Pond, Frog Free Crochet Pattern.
All Rights Reserved.
“Inhale possibility, exhale creativity.” ~ Laura Jaworski
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