Our last puppet for the series joins us today, the Shepherd Hand Puppet. He is representing the shepherds, watching their flocks by night, receiving the good news of Jesus’ birth from an angel. You can make more than one of these if you’d like, like with the kings, or just stick to one.
I have received a lot of questions about whether or not I will be adding animals to the nativity. Currently I am not. I know that they are traditional pieces of every nativity set, and these are likely animals I will be making at some point anyway. However, so much of the imagery of the Nativity Story which has been placed in our brains from childhood versions and adaptations, were not Biblically accurate. There’s actually no mention of Mary riding a donkey. Nor is there mention of the wisemen arriving by camel. The only animals mentioned, were not actually at the scene of the nativity, but were in the fields with the shepherd. And eventually, probably Easter time, I will make a sheep. 😉
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. ~Luke 2:8-20
If you’re interested in a printer-friendly PDF of the Shepherd Hand Puppet Pattern, you can find the design in my Ravelry or Etsy shops! If you prefer to use the free blog copy below, I still appreciate you being here! And another great way to support my blog is simply by sharing! Thank you for supporting my business!
Materials:
Worsted weight yarn – Red Heart Super Saver Yarns
- Cafe (tan), headdress (A) – approximately 50 yds
- Buff, skin color (B) – approximately 44 yds
- Oatmeal, robe (C) – approximately 80 yds
- Coffee, hook/cane – (D) – approximately 20 yds
- Small amount of worsted weight black yarn for the eyes.
Terms and abbreviations to know:
magic ring
rnd, rnds – round, rounds
ch, chs – chain, chains
st, sts – stitch, stitches
sl st – slip stitch
sc – single crochet
inc – increase, 2 sc sts in same st
dec – decrease
invsc2tog – invisible single crochet 2 together; this is essentially a decrease, but done in such a way as to make the continuous stitching smoother, and the decrease not as noticeable.
- Insert hook into front loop only of next stitch, DO NOT yarn over.
- Insert hook into front loop of second stitch.
- Yarn over. Pull through 2 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through last 2 loops.
dc bobble – double crochet bobble
- Yarn over, and insert hook into designated st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 2 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 3 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 4 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over and pull through 2 loops, leaving 5 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over and pull through all 5 loops.
Notes:
The Shepherd Hand Puppet Pattern is worked from the top down, in the rnd, with no joining. The arms, headdress, and shepherd’s hook are made separately and sewn on. The eyes are embroidered on with black worsted weight yarn; the nose with matching skin color.
Size: This is one size, fitting child through adult, but if you wish to make it smaller for a smaller child to play with, simply tighten gauge or go down a hook size.
Gauge: 7 sts across and 7 rnds down = approximately 2 inches
Shepherd Hand Puppet
Body – beginning at the head, with the top of the headdress, cafe or tan (A)
Begin with a magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: inc in each st around; 12 sts
Rnd 3: (inc, sc in next st)6x; 18 sts
Rnd 4: (inc, sc in next 2 sts)6x; 24 sts
Rnd 5: (3 inc, sc in next 9 sts)2x; 30 sts
Rnds 6-7: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Pull oatmeal (C) through to complete the last st, but do NOT fasten off A just yet. The next rnd is referred to as rnd 7a because it is just adding a surface sl st around rnd 7, and rnd 8 will be worked into the tops of rnd 7, behind the sl st. Rnd 7a: in C, loosely sl st in each st around; 30 sts
On the last sl st, pull A back through to complete it, and fasten off color C.
Rnd 8: in A, sc into each st around from rnd 7, behind the sl sts; 30 sts
Pull Buff (B) through to complete the last st of rnd 8, and fasten off color A. Continue in B.
Rnd 9: BLO this rnd only, sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnds 10-14: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnd 15: (3 invsc2tog, sc in next 9 sts)2x; 24 sts
Rnd 16: sc in each st around; 24 sts
Pull color C through to complete the last st of rnd 16, and fasten off your skin color. Continue with oatmeal.
Rnd 17: (ch 7, sk next 4 sts, sc in next 8 sts)2x; 30 sts, counting the chs
Rnd 18: (sc into each of the 7 chs, sc in next 8 sts)2x; 30 sts
Rnds 19-34: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Sl st into the first st of the last rnd and fasten off. Knot and weave in all ends inside the body.
Arms, make 2
Begin in Buff, B
Begin with a magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: (inc, sc in next st)3x; 9 sts
Rnds 3-4: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Rnd 5: dc bobble, sc in next 8 sts; 9 sts
Rnd 6: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Pull Oatmeal through to complete the last st of rnd 6, and fasten off skin color.
Continue in Oatmeal.
Rnds 7-8: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Rnd 9: (inc, sc in next 2 sts)3x; 12 sts
Rnds 10-13: sc in each st around; 12 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Weave in all the ends inside the arm, and then use the long tail to sew onto the arm holes of the body. Weave in ends.
Nose in skin color (B)
Using Buff, cut about an 8 inch strand. Sew it over about 3 sts centered at about rnd 13. Sew the yarn over the same spot about 3 to 5 times, or until nose is as puffy as you’d like. Knot and fasten off inside the head, and weave in ends.
Eyes, in black
Using black yarn, st the eyes onto the face over 4 sts on rnd 12, about 3 sts between them, with the nose centered below and between. Insert your needle through about 2 sts from the outer edge of the face. Pull it back through 4 sts over. Insert the needle back into the original st, and pull it back out under rnd 12, pulling the black yarn under the arch you just made. Wrap the yarn around itself twice to help hold that curve in place, and working back to the original entry point. Push yarn back through the original st, to the inside of the head. Pull original strand back inside the head as well. Place the other eye to the other side, over the same ends, about 3 sts from the first eye. Knot and weave in the ends on the inside of the head.
Headdress, in Cafe (A)
Ch 11
Row 1: turn and sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in each ch across; 10 sts
Rows 2-20: ch 1 and turn, sc in each st across; 10 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Sew to the unworked front loops from rnd 8, in the back so that it can be seen behind the arms from the front of the puppet. There should be about 12 open sts around the front of the headdress, at the forehead. Weave in ends.
Shepherd’s Hook in Coffee (D)
Ch 25
Row 1: turn and sc in 2nd ch from hook, inc in the next 4 chs, sc in next 19 chs; 28 sts
Row 2: ch 1 and turn, sc in next 22 sts, inc in next 3 sts, sc in next 3 sts; 31 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. First, sew row 2 back to the beginning ch down the entire length of the hook. When sewing around the hook, sew the increases into the same chs, so it doesn’t get bunched up, and remains even down to the end of the hook. Sew the hook of the cane onto the hand, and then, to keep it somewhat straight, sew the bottom of the cane down onto the last 2 rnds of the body. Weave in ends.
I hope you have enjoyed making the Shepherd Hand Puppet! If you love this design, be sure to check out some of my other free patterns on the blog! Follow me along on Instagram for more sneak peeks and new pattern releases! If you loved making any of my patterns, and show them off on Instagram, please be sure to tag @ekaygdesigns to let me know, and I will share in my stories!