The No-Squid Hand Puppet pattern is my first ever no-sew puppet, and I am so excited to finally share it with you guys! The idea of no-sew patterns has been insanely popular in the crochet world lately, and if you remember my Christmas Gnome or No-Sew Baby Doll patterns, you know I am no stranger to no-sew. I love a pattern in which I only need a needle for weaving in ends!
For those of you who like to know how long something might take to make, one squid hand puppet takes me roughly 1.25 hours to complete from start to finish.
If you’re interested in a printer-friendly PDF of the No-Sew Squid 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:
Red Heart Super Saver Stripes -A (I used Peacock and Retro Stripes) – approximately 116 yds
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
hdc – half double crochet
dc – double crochet
tr – triple crochet
inc – increase, 2 sts in same st
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.
Notes:
The Squid Hand Puppet pattern is worked from the top down, in the round, with no joining up until the tentacles. The eyes used for this pattern are flat backs and glued on with hot glue. Pictures below can give more details into the process. Pages 2-3 are just the written pattern for easy printing. Page 4 contains the process pictures.
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 8 rnds down = approximately 2 inches
No-Sew Squid Hand Puppet
Body, in A
Begin with a magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: (inc, sc in next 2 sts)2x; 8 sts
Rnd 3: (inc, sc in next 3 sts)2x; 10 sts
Rnd 4: (inc, sc in next 4 sts)2x; 12 sts
Rnd 5: (inc, sc in next 5 sts)2x; 14 sts
Rnd 6: (inc, sc in next 6 sts)2x; 16 sts
Rnd 7: (inc, sc in next 7 sts)2x; 18 sts
Rnd 8: (inc, sc in next 8 sts)2x; 20 sts
Rnd 9: (inc, sc in next 9 sts)2x; 22 sts
Rnd 10: (inc, sc in next 10 sts)2x; 24 sts
Rnd 11: (inc, sc in next 11 sts)2x; 26 sts
Rnd 12: (inc, sc in next 12 sts)2x; 28 sts
Rnd 13: (inc, sc in next 13 sts)2x; 30 sts
Rnd 14: (inc, sc in next 14 sts)2x; 32 sts
Rnd 15: (inc, sc in next 15 sts)2x; 34 sts
Rnd 16: (inc, sc in next 16 sts)2x; 36 sts
Rnd 17: (inc, sc in next 17 sts)2x; 38 sts
Rnd 18: (inc, sc in next 18 sts)2x; 40 sts
Rnd 19: (inc, sc in next 19 sts)2x; 42 sts
Rnd 20: sc in each st around; 42 sts
Line up the next 3 sts to the left of your hook, with the next 3 sts right behind them. Mark the right side by counting off 15 sts left to right, beginning with the last st of rnd 20. Place a st marker in the 15th st from the left, to mark for later.
Insert hook into the 1st and 6th st of the rnd and work sc, sc through the 2nd and 5th sts, and sc through the 3rd and 4th sts.
Now turn triangle so that it points to the left, and begin working hdc sts up the side of the rnds; hdc 18 up the toward the top of the point, and sc 3 sts across the top, hdc 18 sts back down the other side of the triangle.
Just as you did on the other side, sc into sts the first 2 sts, the 2nd 2 sts, and the 3rd 2 sts, stopping at the st marker. The st holding your st marker will now be the first st of the rnd. Take the st marker out. Squid should have 15 sts on each side, and we will go back to working in rnds.
Rnd 21: sc in each of the next 15 sts, sk the 3 sts on the edge and turn work, sc in next 15 sts on the other side of the squid, do not join here and throughout; 30 sts
Rnd 22: sk over the 3 sts on the edge, sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnds 23-32: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnd 33: (invsc2tog, sc in next st)10x; 20 sts
Rnd 34: sc in each st around, sl st into the first st of the rnd; 20 sts
Tentacles and arms
*These are worked in the rnd, perpendicular to rnd 34. There are 2 tentacles and 8 arms (tentacle, 4 arms)2x
Rnd 35: *ch 40, sl st into the 3rd ch from hook, sc in next ch, hdc in next ch, dc in next 2 chs, tr in next ch, ch 3, sl st back into the same ch as last st, sc in next 18 chs, hdc in next 10 chs, dc in last 4 chs, sl st into next 2 sts of rnd 34, [ch 36, sl st into the 3rd ch from hook, sc in next ch, (inc, sc in next ch)9x, (2 hdc in next ch, hdc in next ch)5x, dc in last 4 chs, sl st into the next 2 sts of rnd 34]4x*, repeat from *to* once more.
Fasten off yarn and weave in ends.
Eyes
Place your eyes about 4 rnds up from the tentacles, either close together or farther apart. Up to you! And glue them down gently.
Alternately, eyes can be embroidered on in my standard puppet style of just the curve and lashes, with a small amount of black yarn. Knot off inside the puppet and weave in the ends.
I hope you have enjoyed making the No-Sew Squid 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!