You guys have met Ronald, but I think it’s time to introduce the newest little plush in our family, Ginny the gingerbread lady! I made a gingerbread lady at a craft fair a few years ago, just playing around while I sat in my booth, but I always meant to come back to that and write a pattern for it. It’s taken a bit longer than I thought, but I finally made my gingerbread lady and I have the free crochet plushie pattern for you below!
If you’ve already made Ronald the Gingerbread Man, the pattern for this gingerbread lady is really similar! I wanted to keep the shape and design simple so the body is the same. It’s worked all in one piece and only the head and arms need to be seamed on. The legs and the body of these gingerbread people are all worked as one piece so there’s less to attach.
Ginny met Ronald one year at the grocery store when Ronald’s holiday baking was going awry. He was frantically trying to buy all the ingredients for all the things he wanted to make, but he knew there just wasn’t enough time to do it all. Ginny saw him trying to decide what to cut and offered to help him make some of the things. They spent that weekend baking all the tasty treats, and they’ve made it a yearly tradition! Ginny couldn’t be happier to have Ronald in her life now and to be accepted by all his friends and family!
Christmas Plushies: An Adorable Collection of Amigurumi!
The full free pattern is written out below. For those who’d prefer to print the pattern and take it with you for on-the-go and to markup as you go, you can buy the inexpensive printable PDF from my Etsy and Ravelry shops. The PDF is formatted without ads or comments, so it’s easy to read.
Materials:
- 3.25mm crochet hook / D hook*
- 4.50mm crochet hook
- #4 medium weight yarn – I used Yarn Bee Soft Secret in Biscuit, Red, White, and Forest
- stitch markers*
- tapestry needle*
- 8mm safety eyes*
- Polyfill stuffing*
*denotes affiliate link
Abbreviations:
- ch – chain
- SC – single crochet
- DC – double crochet
- HDC – half double crochet
- sl – slip stitch
Pattern Notes:
- Skill level: Beginner/Intermediate – some amigurumi experience is helpful but not necessary
- Sizing: 8″ tall x 3″ across body
- Gauge: 6S X 5R per inch
Ginny the Gingerbread Lady Free Crochet Plushie Pattern
Arms (make 2):
Round 1: With yarn in Cognac (body color), create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2: Inc in each space by working 2 SC into each (12).
Round 3: *SC, inc* around (18).
Rounds 4-16: SC around for 13 rounds. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Legs (make 2):
Round 1: With yarn in Cognac (body color), create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2: Inc in each space by working 2 SC into each (12).
Round 3: *SC, inc* around (18).
Rounds 4-18: SC around for 15 rounds. Then BO the first leg.
Leg 2: Make the leg the same way as the first one, but don’t BO. With the yarn still attached to Leg 2, SC 9, SC around the 18 stitches of Leg 1, and then SC 9 on Leg 2 to join the legs to the body.
Body:
Rounds 1-10: SC around for 10 rounds (36).
Round 11: *SC 4, dec* around (30).
Round 12: SC 1 round.
Round 13: *SC 3, dec* around (24).
Round 14: SC 1 round.
Round 15: *SC 2, dec* around (18).
Round 16: SC 1 round. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Head:
Round 1: With yarn in Cognac (body color), create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2: Inc in each space by working 2 SC into each (12).
Round 3: *SC, inc* around (18).
Round 4: *SC 2, inc* around (24).
Round 5: *SC 3, inc* around (30).
Round 6: *SC 4, inc* around (36).
Round 7: *SC 5, inc* around (42).
Round 8: SC around for 9 rounds. Add the safety eyes to the 5th round from the last increase, about 5 stitches apart. Then secure the backings and add stuffing to the head.
Round 9: *SC 5, dec* around (36).
Round 10: *SC 4, dec* around (30).
Round 11: *SC 3, dec* around (24).
Round 12: *SC 2, dec* around (18).
Round 13: *SC 1, dec* around (12).
Round 14: Dec around and cut yarn (6). Then thread the tail through a tapestry needle and run it under the front loops of the last 6 stitches. Secure yarn, and weave in the tail.
Icing Hair
Round 1: With white yarn, create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2: Inc in each space by working 2 SC into each (12).
Round 3:*SC, inc* around (18).
Round 4: *SC 2, inc* around (24).
Rounds 5-7: SC around for 3 rounds.
Round 8: *SC 2, dec* around (18).
Round 9: *SC 2, inc* around (24).
Round 10: *SC 3, inc* around (30).
Round 11: *SC 4, inc* around (36).
Round 12: *SC 5, inc* around (42).
Round 13: *SC 6, inc* around (48).
Rounds 14-15: SC around for 2 rounds.
Round 13: *SC 6, dec* around (42).
Round 14: SC 1, HDC 1, DC 1, 2DC into the next space, 5 DC into the next space. Skip 2 spaces and slip stitch into the next. Work 5 DC into the next space, 2 DC, DC 1, HDC 1, SC around to end of round and BO, leaving a long tails. Add a small amount of stuffing to the inside of the bun.
Apron:
Row 1: With 3.25mm crochet hook and white yarn chain 20. Turn, SC along the row.
Row 2: Switch to 4.50mm hook. Chain 2, and work 3 DC into each space (60).
Rows 3-5: Chain 2, DC into each space for 3 rows. BO yarn, leaving a long tail.
Row 6: With 3.25mm hooks, reattach white yarn to the 6th stitch of row 1, and SC 10 stitches.
Row 7: Ch 1, turn and SC 10 along (10).
Row 8: Ch 1, turn, decrease, SC to last 2 spaces and decrease again. (8)
Row 9: SC along the row.
Row 10: Ch 1, turn, decrease, SC to last 2 spaces and decrease again. (6)
Row 11: SC along the row.
Straps (make 2):
Row 1: From the top corner of the apron, chain 20.
Row 2: Turn, sl st 10, work 3 HDC into the next 10 spaces (40).
Row 3: Ch 1, turn, SC along the row and BO, leaving a long tail.
For the second strap, attach a new length of yarn to the other top corner of the apron and repeat these 3 rows.
Border:
With RS facing, attach red yarn to the bottom left corner of the apron, and crab stitch along into each space in the bottom edge. Then turn so the wrong side is facing and SC along the sides, top, and down the other side of the apron until you reach the starting point. BO and weave in the loose ends.
Assembly
The next step in our crochet gingerbread lady pattern is to assemble all the pieces and decorate! Start by threading the tail end of the yarn you left on the arm onto a tapestry needle. LIne the arm up to the sloped sides of the body and begin seaming around. Go through each space on the arm and the corresponding space on the body to get a secure hold. Fasten off the yarn and hide the excess inside the body. Then repeat with the other arm.
Next, use the tail end from the body to sew on the head. Make sure your head is placed in the right position and facing forward, then go through each space around the body and the corresponding stitch on the head. Secure the yarn and weave in the end.
Place the hair where you want it on the head, and use the long tail to sew it into place. It helps to pin the hair down so it doesn’t shift as you work your way around.
For the apron, use the long tails to sew the straps to the opposite corners of the apron’s skirt, crisscrossing the straps.
Optional: Weave a length of red yarn through the starting row of the apron and use that to tie the apron on the back.
Decorating
Now to finish off this crochet gingerbread lady, I added the icing decorations to Ginny! First, I used the same white yarn as the hat and a tapestry needle to embroider on some icing around the arms and legs. Just use big, straight stitches to create a zig-zag all the way around each limb and use the stitch as guides to keep them as even as possible.
Then, use a chain stitch to embroider on a smile. With black embroidery floss, sew on three lines for Ginny’s eyelashes. It helps to draw them on with a pen or pencil first. And like gingerbread cookies, feel free to add any other decorations and embellishments! Once you’re done, trim all the excess yarn and weave in any loose ends.
And here is the finished plushie! I love how she turned out!. I would love to see your version and how you choose to decorate yours. If you make one, share a picture on Instagram and tag me! When I first made this apron for the gingerbread lady, I did a simple version just using a 3.25mm hook and skipping the border and straps. I just used the tail yarn from the apron to tie around her neck and was done. I think of it as her summer dress!
Check out the entire Christmas Buddies PDF Collection!
Looking for another Christmas-themed amigurumi crochet pattern? Check out the rest of the set! Santa Claus, Comet the reindeer, and Ollie the elf are also available in my shop (along with Ronald and more) as large print, ad-free PDFs. Thanks so much for reading and be sure to subscribe down below to get on the email list and get new patterns and tips delivered right to your inbox every week.
See you soon 🙂
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