Is it even a day at the beach without seagulls flying around and squawking for snacks? Although some people may find them annoying, I like to think about all the shores seagulls must have flown to and all the cool things they must have seen. It was no question that my Beach Buddies collection needed a wise, travel-savvy seagull in the mix to guide the others on their journeys. So, let's get into the free crochet plushie pattern!
This is Gulliver and he's been on more adventures than he can count. Ever since he learned to fly, he's been looking for new places to visit and new foods to try. But home is always home, and Gulliver enjoys spending time tucked under his favorite pier and telling all the new young adventurers about his travels. Gulliver likes to keep watch as they set sail on their pirate ships and dive for wonders under the sea, and he's always the first to welcome them home.
Materials:
- 3.25mm/ D crochet hook - I like these Clover Amour ones
- #4 medium weight yarn
- I used Yarn Bee Soft Secret in White, Pumpkin Spice, Light Gray, Dark gray, blue, and yellow
- stitch markers - I like these locking ones and these split ring ones
- large eye needle - I like these blunt ones for seaming
- 9mm safety eyes - get a bunch of this size here or get a set of different sizes here
- polyfil stuffing - I like using this one or the big box!
The pink links are affiliate links to things I love! I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you when you use my links. Thank you!
Stitches & Abbreviations:
- Magic loop
- ch - chain
- SC - single crochet
- sl - slip stitch
- BO- bind off/fasten off
- FPDC/BPDC - front post double crochet/back post double crochet
Pattern Notes:
- Skill level: Intermediate - some amigurumi experience is helpful but not necessary
- Sizing: 11.5" tall
- Gauge: 6S X 5R per inch
Useful Amigurumi Tips
- All patterns are in English and written in standard USA terms
- inc - increase by working 2 stitches into the same space
- dec - decrease across 2 stitches using an invisible decrease
- Keep stitches tight to prevent holes for stuffing to show through. If there are holes, go down a hook size.
- All pieces are worked in continuous rounds unless otherwise stated. Use stitch markers to mark the first stitch of each round.
- Safety eyes are used in these patterns, but feel free to stitch on eyes instead for children under 3 years old.
- If you have any questions, email me at hello@theblueelephants.com
Gulliver the Sea Gull Plushie: Free Crochet Pattern
Head:
Round 1: With yarn in White, create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker.
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).
Rounds 7-13: SC around for 7 rounds. Insert safety eyes to round 5 after the last increase round, about 7 stitches apart. Start to add the stuffing.
Round 14: *SC 4, dec* around (30).
Round 15: SC around for 1 round.
Round 16: *SC 3, dec* around (24).
Rounds 17-18: SC around for 2 rounds.
Round 19: *SC 2, dec* around (18). Finish adding stuffing.
Rounds 20-21: SC around for 2 rounds. BO and leave a long tail for sewing.
Body:
Round 1: With yarn in White, 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).
Rounds 8-14: SC around for 7 rounds.
Round 15: *SC 5, dec* around (36).
Round 16-17: SC around for 2 rounds.
Round 18: *SC 4, dec* around (30).
Rounds 19-20: SC around for 2 rounds.
Round 21: *SC 3, dec* around (24).
Rounds 22-23: SC around for 2 rounds
Round 24: *SC 2, dec* around (18).
Rounds 25-26: SC around for 2 rounds. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Tail:
Round 1: With yarn in Black, 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).
Rounds 3-4: SC around for 2 rounds
Round 5: *SC, inc* around (18).
Round 6: Switch to gray and SC around for 1 round.
Round 7: *SC 2, inc* around (24).
Round 8: SC around for 1 round.
Round 9: Switch to white yarn and *SC 3, inc* around (30).
Rounds 10-11: SC around for 2 rounds. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Wings (make 2):
Round 1: With yarn in White, 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 4-6: SC around for 3 rounds.
Rounds 7-8: Switch to gray and SC around for 2 rounds.
Round 9: *SC 2, inc* around (24).
Round 10: SC around for 1 round. Flatten the piece so the first half of the stitches and the second half line up. Place a stitch marker to clip the piece together at the 4th stitch and the 8th. you should half three sections now and we'll work in rounds using just those sections of 8 stitches.
Round 11: SC 4 from the front half, then SC 4 from the back half.
Rounds 12-13: SC around these 8 stitches for 2 more rounds.
Round 14: Decrease around (4). Then BO and weave in the end.
Rounds 15-19: Repeat rounds 11-14 on the second section of stitches but work an extra round before you decrease.
Rounds 20-23: Repeat rounds 11-14 on the last section and bind off.
Check out the video below for help on separating and crocheting the wingtips!
Legs (make 2):
Round 1: With orange yarn, create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2-27: SC for 26 rounds. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Toes (make 4):
Round 1: With orange yarn, create a magic loop and work 6 SC into it. Place a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round.
Round 2-4: SC for 3 rounds. Then BO, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Hat:
Round 1: With yarn in dark gray, 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).
Rounds 7-9: SC around for 3 rounds.
Round 10: Chain. DC around.
Round 11-12: Chain 2. *FPDC around the first stitch, BPDC around the next* all the way around the cuff. Then, Slip stitch to the top of the ch 2 to finish the round. BO and weave in the ends.
Scarf:
Row 1: With any yarn, chain 43. Turn and SC along each space in the row. BO and weave in the ends.
Beak:
Round 1: With yellow yarn and a long starting tail, chain 9. slip stitch to the first chain to create a loop.
Round 2-9: SC around in each space for 4 rounds (8).
Round 10: Decrease around (4). BO and weave in the end.
Assembly
Now that we have all the parts of our crochet plushie pattern ready, we can start assembling Gulliver! Add stuffing to the head, body, tail, and a tiny bit into the beak if you haven't already. Then position the tail on the body and use pins to hold it in place as you whipstitch around to sew it on. Position the beak between the eyes and use the tail yarn to sew it in place as well.
For the legs, position 2 toes on each leg so it looks like the image and sew them in place. Hide the tail yarn in the legs and trim off the excess yarn. Then align the legs to the bottom of the body, placing them close together and more towards the front of the body than the back, and use the tail yarn to sew them in place.
Thread the tail yarn from the body through a tapestry needle and bring it down and out through the side of the body where the wing will go. Position both wings on the sides of the body and use pins to hold them in place. Bring the needle through one layer only of the wing, then back through the body and through one layer only of the other wing. Repeat a few times to secure the wings. This way, the wings can move and the stitching doesn't show. Weave in the yarn and trim the excess.
Align the head on the body and sew it in place with the tail yarn from the head. Weave in any other ends and trim the excess yarn to finish. Finally, dress him up with his hat and scarf and you're done!
That's it for Gulliver the Sea Gull! I had fun making this pattern and playing around with the bird features. It took a few tries to get the toes and feathers at the end of the wings looking how I wanted them but it was definitely worth the end result. As soon as I can, I'll try to add a video of the wings so you see that better too. Let me know in the comments if there's anything else that a video would help with!
Gulliver is part of a collection of beach and seaside-themed patterns, so check out the 6 other patterns below. Like this pattern, you can get the others as free patterns on the blog, or visit the shop to grab the bundle of all 7 PDF Beach Buddies patterns.
Beach Buddies Collections
- Jenni the Jellyfish
- Melly the Mermaid
- Axel the Axolotl
- Percival the Pirate
- Shelby the Turtle
- Gulliver the Seagull
- and Danny the Diver
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