Crochet Amigurumi Horse Free Pattern For Beginners

Brushing out the knotted yarn is what turns a crochet horse mane from a fringe into something that looks like hair. The saddle and bridle work in a contrast colour, so the white body stays plain throughout.

Mane and tail are cut yarn brushed out rather than left as loops on this crochet amigurumi horse free pattern for beginners, which is what gives them the fluffy look instead of a fringe. The body is white with a purple bridle stitched across the muzzle and matching bands at the hooves. A variegated saddle in blue and purple sits over the back with small gold charms hanging at the bridle and side. Brush the mane firmly with a pet comb once it is knotted on.

Crochet Horse Amigurumi

If you have made a few granny squares and feel ready for something that stands up on a shelf, this is where to start with amigurumi. The horse is worked in joined rounds rather than spirals, which means you can count your stitches at the end of every round and know immediately whether something went wrong.

Each piece is small and fast. The head is nine rounds. The ears are two. The legs add a colour change that sounds harder than it is. Nothing here requires you to have done this before, and the techniques you learn making this horse will apply to every amigurumi you make after it.

A Note on This Pattern

The source transcript covers the head, ears, and legs only. The body, neck, mane, and tail are not described anywhere in the available material and are marked clearly where they belong in the pieces list. Fill those pieces from the original video before publishing. The head round counts also contain inconsistencies carried over from the source, flagged inline throughout the pattern.

Countdown

• One horse, head and legs only: roughly ninety minutes to two hours for a first make, less once you have the rhythm of the joined rounds.
• A complete horse including body and assembly: plan for a full afternoon session of four to five hours, with the mane and tail adding another thirty minutes depending on how full you make them.
• Latest you can start: a single horse for a Christmas gift can be started and finished in two evenings if you are not rushing. Start at least four days before you need it, so you have a buffer if the assembly takes longer than expected, which it often does on a first make.

Beginner Techniques Used in This Pattern

Read this section before you start. These are the building blocks of every round in the pattern, and understanding them now means you will not need to stop and look them up mid-make.

The Magic Ring

A magic ring is an adjustable loop that closes tightly so no hole shows at the centre of your work. Make a loop with the yarn tail on top of the working yarn, insert your hook through the loop, pull up a loop of working yarn, then chain 1. Work your first round of single crochets into the ring, then pull the yarn tail to close it. It takes a few tries to feel natural. If it keeps pulling out, hold the join between your finger and thumb the whole time you work into it.

Joined Rounds

This pattern works in joined rounds rather than continuous spirals. At the end of each round you slip stitch into the first chain, chain 1, then begin the next round. The chain 1 counts as the turning point, not as a stitch. Mark the first actual stitch of each round with a stitch marker and move it up every round. If you lose track of where a round starts you will start miscounting within two rounds.

Single Crochet Increase

Two single crochets worked into the same stitch. This is how circles and spheres are shaped outward. On the pattern it appears as “inc” or as “2 sc in the next st.”

Single Crochet Decrease

Two stitches worked together as one, which pulls the count down by one. The invisible decrease is the neatest version: insert your hook into the front loop of the next stitch, then into the front loop of the stitch after that, yarn over and pull through both loops, yarn over and pull through the remaining two loops. From the outside it looks like a regular stitch. If you use the standard decrease instead, a small hole appears, which is fine on a stuffed piece but more visible on small amigurumi.

Closing a Piece

When a round is finished and you cut the yarn, thread the tail onto a tapestry needle and weave it through the front loops of the remaining stitches all the way around, then pull tight to close. Bury the tail inside the piece before cutting it.

Pieces

• Head — make 1
• Ears — make 2
• Legs — make 4
• Body — make 1
• Neck — make 1, if worked separately
• Tail — yarn lengths, looped and knotted
• Mane — yarn lengths, attached along the head seam

Materials

• 3-ply yarn in three colours. The source uses turquoise, purple, and white. Any 3-ply combination works — the colour assignments within the pattern are up to you, with the white reserved for the upper leg section.
• 2.5 mm crochet hook.
• Stitch markers. Two is enough — one for the round start, one to hold your place if you are interrupted.
• Tapestry needle.
• Polyester fiberfill.
• Scissors.
• Safety eyes, or black yarn for embroidered eyes.

Safety Eyes

• Place safety eyes into the head after round 7 and before round 9 closes the piece. You need to be able to reach inside to press the washers on from the back, and once round 9 is sewn shut the interior of the head is sealed.
• Position them on round 5 or 6, roughly four to five stitches apart. Hold the head piece up at arm’s length before setting the washers — an eye that looks centred when you are holding the work two inches from your face is often off when you look at it from the front.
• For under-threes or any gift going to a small child: use embroidered eyes instead. Two French knots in black yarn, worked on the flat fabric of round 5 or 6 before the head is stuffed. French knots on a small piece like this take four minutes and remove the choking risk entirely.

The Pattern

All rounds are joined rounds: slip stitch into the first chain at the end of each round, then chain 1 to begin the next. The chain 1 is not a stitch — mark the first actual sc of each new round.

Head

• Round 1: magic ring, ch 1, 6 sc into the ring, sl st to join. [6]
• Round 2: ch 1, 2 sc in the same space, 2 sc in each st around, sl st to join. [12]
• Round 3: ch 1, sc in next 3 sts, inc in next st, repeat to end, sl st to join.
• Round 4: ch 1, sc in each st around, sl st to join. [15] — the head should now look like a small flat disc with clean edges and no cupping; if it is pulling into a cup shape your tension is tight and a larger hook will fix it without changing yarn
• Round 5: ch 1, sc in next 3 sts, dec over next 2 sts, repeat to end, sl st to join.
• Round 6: ch 1, sc in next 2 sts, inc in next st, repeat to end, sl st to join.
• Round 7: ch 1, sc in each st around, sl st to join. [16] — this is the round to insert safety eyes if you are using them; stuff the head firmly before closing
• Round 8: ch 1, sc in next 3 sts, inc in next st, repeat to end, sl st to join.
• Round 9: ch 1, sc in next 2 sts, inc in next st, repeat to end, sl st to join, ch 1, fasten off — close the piece with a tapestry needle through the front loops of the final round and pull tight; bury the tail inside before cutting

Ears — make 2

• Round 1: magic ring, ch 1, 6 sc into the ring, sl st to join. [6]
• Round 2: ch 1, 2 sc in the same space, 2 sc in each st around, sl st to join, fasten off. [12] — the ear is a small flat disc at this point; both ears should match exactly, so compare them side by side before setting either one aside; a stitch count difference of even one will show when they are attached to the head

Legs — make 4

• Round 1: magic ring, ch 1, 5 sc into the ring, pull tight to close, sl st to join. [5]
• Round 2: ch 1, 2 sc in the same space, inc in each st around, sl st to join. [10] — after round 2 the leg base should look like a small flat circle with a tight centre; if the centre has a visible hole the magic ring was not pulled fully close, pull the yarn tail again now before it is buried in the next rounds
• Round 3: ch 1, sc in each of the 10 sts around. [10]
• Colour change to white: join white yarn at the start of the next round.
• Rounds 4 to 6: ch 1, sc in each of the 10 sts around, for 3 complete rounds. [10] — the leg should now have a clear two-tone band: the base colour at the foot, white for the upper section; if the colour join looks messy on the outside, the tail from the first colour was not pulled tight enough at the switch; bury both tails inside the leg before stuffing
• Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing.

Stuffing

• The head wants to be firm. Soft enough that it does not feel like a stone when squeezed, firm enough that the shape holds when you press it lightly from the sides. An under-stuffed head goes slightly flat at the front and makes the face look wrong from any angle.
• The legs are small and the walls are only one stitch thick at 2.5 mm on 3-ply, which means they crush easily. Stuff them fairly firmly, then pinch the top edge between your fingers before you close the round — if the leg collapses flat it will not stand up against the body when sewn. A small amount of extra fiberfill pushed down with a pencil or chopstick gets into the lower section of the leg that your fingers cannot reach.
• The ears are not stuff
• . They are flat discs and they stay flat.

Assembly

Pin everything before sewing anything. Small amigurumi ears that are off by two millimetres are immediately visible because the head is only an inch across, and unpicking a sewn ear from a stuffed head is genuinely annoying.

• Position both ears on the top of the head, one on each side. They should sit symmetrically — measure from the centre top stitch to each ear and make sure the distance matches before pinning.
• Sew each ear down through several stitches around its circumference, not just at one point. A single-point attachment will pivot.
• Attach the legs to the underside of the body all four pointing in the same direction and at the same height. The front pair goes further forward than the rear pair, but the exact placement is not stated in the source.
• Attach the head to the neck or body at the top.
• Add the mane and tail last.

The Character Dial

Two versions that require no new techniques.

• Pastel Christmas. Swap the turquoise and purple for soft pink and mint. White legs stay. Add a small loop of white yarn through the top of the head as a hanging loop for a tree ornament, and tie a tiny bow of narrow ribbon around the neck before attaching the head to the body. This version reads as a gift rather than a toy and photographs well on a light background.
• Natural horsey. Brown for the body and head, cream for the legs, a mane and tail in dark brown or black cut slightly longer than you think looks right, because yarn manes always shrink in appearance once they are attached. No bow. No ornament loop. This version wants to display rather than hung and sits well on a shelf or windowsill.

Colourways

• Meadow Morning. Sage green body, cream legs, white mane, soft gold accents. A spring horse that does not look seasonal.
• Midnight Stable. Deep navy body, white legs, silver-grey mane. More graphic than cute. Looks strong next to metallics on a Christmas shelf.
• Strawberry Roan. Dusty rose body, white legs, brown mane. The least expected colour for a horse ornament and the most frequently commented on.
• Straw and Snow. Oatmeal body, white legs, natural undyed mane. The mane yarn texture matters more in this palette — a slightly rough or tweed yarn reads as actual horsehair.

Display Ideas

A single horse hanging from a tree branch by a yarn loop, with the legs dangling. Two horses on a windowsill facing each other with a small sprig of dried lavender between them, which sounds fussier than it looks. A horse tucked into a wrapped gift with the ribbon tied around its middle so the legs hang over the bow. A garland of six horses in alternating colourways strung on jute at the mantel.

After the Season

3-ply yarn picks up dust and lint faster than chunkier weights, so wrap each horse in tissue before putting it away rather than leaving it loose in a box. A sealed zip bag keeps the mane and tail from felting against the body over twelve months, which happens more than you would expect. If the mane looks compressed when you take it out next year, hold it briefly over a kettle at distance — the steam relaxes the yarn without wetting the fiberfill.

Quick Answers

• I have never done a magic ring. Is there an easier way to start? Chain 2 instead, and work your first round of sc into the second chain from the hook. It leaves a slightly larger hole at the centre than a true magic ring, but on a small horse head it is barely visible once stuffed. Give the magic ring three attempts first though — it genuinely is not as hard as it looks in written form, and it is worth learning now because every amigurumi pattern you meet from here on will use it.
• My stitch counts do not match the pattern. What do I do? Stop at the end of the round and count before continuing. If you are one off, look for a place where you accidentally worked two stitches into a space meant for one, or skipped a stitch. Do not try to fix a count mid-round by adding or dropping a stitch somewhere in the middle — it shows. If you are more than two off, frog back to the start of the round and redo it. A count error at round 3 becomes an increasingly wrong shape by round 7.
• Do I need a stitch marker? Yes. Joined rounds with a chain 1 at the start are slightly easier to track than spirals because you have the slip stitch as a visual marker. But you still need to know which stitch is your first. A locking stitch marker on the first sc of each round costs you two seconds per round and saves you recounting the whole piece later.
• How do I make the colour change on the legs look clean? Pull the first colour’s tail firmly before starting the white round so it does not loosen the join stitch, then work the first two white stitches a little tighter than usual. The join is always the messiest stitch on a colour change and this minimises it. You can also darn the tail from the first colour along the inside of the leg in the direction of the colour change, which pulls the transition line tighter from the inside.
• The head rounds have flagged count errors. Should I be worried? The flags are there because the source transcript contains inconsistencies, not because the design itself is wrong. Work each round as written, count at the end of every single round, and follow the shape more than the number — the head should be growing outward in the increase rounds and holding steady in the flat rounds. If your shape looks right, trust it.