Free Halloween Amigurumi Keychain Crochet Pattern For Kids

Hear me out — what if this Halloween your keychain came from a completely different galaxy and was also extremely squishy. This Crochet Alien Amigurumi Keychain is the most unexpectedly perfect Halloween project because nothing says spooky season quite like a tiny extraterrestrial dangling from your bag with those big glossy safety eyes staring into your soul every time you reach for your keys. A little lime green or eerie glow-in-the-dark yarn, some carefully placed details, and you’ve got a finished piece so unique and full of personality that absolutely nobody else at the Halloween party will have anything remotely like it. It works up quickly enough to make a whole set for gifting, and trust me once your friends see it they will be requesting their own alien before you’ve even clipped yours on.

Alien head amigurumi make for one of the more unexpected Halloween keychain designs, and this free crochet pattern leans into that by keeping the shape rounded and approachable rather than unsettling. The oversized black felt eyes are cut and glued rather than stitched, which gives them a clean graphic edge that reads well even at small scale. A simple embroidered smile and an optional purple bow turn the same base pattern into two distinct characters without any additional shaping.

Halloween Amigurumi Keychain Crochet

Quick Answers

• Is glow-in-the-dark yarn safe for kids? The glow effect in consumer craft yarns is achieved through phosphorescent pigments embedded in the fiber, not through any chemical treatment that poses a contact risk during normal use. That said, always check your specific yarn’s label for age recommendations, and keep raw yarn away from very young children who might put it in their mouths.
• Can my kid wear this on their trick-or-treat bag? Yes, and it’s genuinely functional — the glow charges under any light source and makes the keychain visible in the dark. Clip it to a bag strap rather than a backpack zipper pull so it hangs where it can actually be seen. Avoid attaching it anywhere a child could trip on the ring.
• How do you wash it if it gets sticky from candy? Hand wash only in cool water with a small amount of mild soap. Squeeze gently, don’t wring, and lay flat to dry. The felt eyes are the vulnerable part — avoid soaking them. If the felt starts peeling, re-glue with a fresh dot of silicone once fully dry.
• Are the felt eyes safe for small children? Not for under-threes, and not for treat bags at any age where the recipient might be much younger. Embroider the eyes instead using satin stitch in black and white yarn — it’s almost as fast, looks great, and nothing comes loose. If these are going into party favour bags, embroider every single one regardless of the child’s age. You don’t control who trades with whom.

For the Kids — and the Classroom

There is something genuinely funny about handing a child a crochet alien that glows. They charge it under a lamp, then run to show someone in a darker corner of the room, then come back to charge it again. This pattern earns that reaction. The shape is simple enough that you can make a dozen for a class party without losing your mind, and the keychain hardware means kids actually use it past October 31st rather than leaving it in a candy bucket somewhere.

The finished alien is roughly the size of a large walnut — compact enough to clip onto a school bag without catching on everything. The glow effect is strongest for the first few minutes after charging, then fades slowly. Kids who know this tend to find it more satisfying, not less, because they understand how it works.

Safety — Read Before Starting

• This section is before the pattern deliberately. If these keychains are going to children, these decisions need to be made before you pick up your hook, not as an afterthought during finishing.
• Felt eyes vs embroidered eyes The pattern uses felt shapes glued onto the face. Felt is fine for older children and for keychains that will be handled by kids who won’t put them in their mouths. For anyone under three, and for any favour bag where the recipient’s age is unknown, embroider the eyes using satin stitch instead. Use white yarn for the base, then black yarn on top for the pupil. It takes an extra five minutes and removes the only choking hazard in the finished piece.
• Keychain ring Standard keychain rings have a small metal loop. For children who are still mouthing objects, swap the metal ring for a plastic lobster clasp or simply skip the hardware and sew a yarn loop directly instead. A yarn loop won’t detach if pulled.
• Stuffing Polyfil is non-toxic and machine-washable. Don’t leave loose stuffing accessible to very young children during making sessions, but the finished stuffed piece is safe.
• Glue Silicone glue is the right call here — it stays flexible, doesn’t crack, and holds felt securely through normal handling. Hot glue is faster but becomes brittle over time and can release under pressure. For a class batch, silicone glue with a short cure time is worth the wait.

Making These for a Group

A class set of 24 is very manageable if you batch the work properly. Crochet all 24 bodies in one go before you touch any of the finishing steps — muscle memory builds fast on a simple increase/decrease shape, and by number six you’ll be working noticeably faster than you were at number one. Leave all the stuffing and closing for a second session. Cut all the felt eyes at once using a paper template so they’re consistent. Glue all the eyes at once, then embroider all the mouths at once. Attach all the keychain rings last.

For name-tagging, thread a small loop of contrasting yarn through the keychain ring before attaching it — tie a different colour for each child, or write names on a small cardstock tag with a hole punched through it. Name tags tied with twine look intentional. Sticky labels on yarn do not.

Yarn quantity per alien is modest — roughly 15 to 20 grams of DK weight, depending on your tension. For 24 keychains, plan on three 50g skeins with a little buffer. Buy four if you’re not sure about your tension.

Pieces List

• Alien body/head — make 1 (the alien is a single piece; there are no separate limbs or ears in this pattern)
• Felt eyes — cut 2 per alien (teardrop or water-drop shape, white base with black detail; or embroider instead)

Materials

• Glow-in-the-dark yarn, medium or DK weight (approximately 15–20g per keychain; the original uses a fluorescent yarn similar to cotton-blend DK, around 50g per skein)
• Crochet hook, 2.5mm to 4mm (start at 3mm and adjust for tension — you want a tight fabric with no gaps)
• Polyfil stuffing
• Black and white felt for eyes, plus silicone glue (or embroider with black and white yarn)
• Black yarn or thread for the nose and mouth
• Tapestry needle
• Scissors
• Keychain ring or lobster clasp

Stitch Abbreviations

• sc — single crochet
• inc — increase (2 sc in same stitch)
• dec — decrease (invisible decrease recommended)
• ch — chain
• mr — magic ring

The Pattern

Alien Head and Body (make 1)

Color: Glow-in-the-dark yarn

• R1: 6 sc in magic ring (6)
• R2: (inc) x 6 (12)
• R3: (sc, inc) x 6 (18)
• R4: (2sc, inc) x 6 (24)
• R5–R9: 1 sc in each stitch — 5 even rounds (24)
• R10: (2sc, dec) x 6 (18)
• R11: (sc, dec) x 6 (12)

Stuff firmly with polyfil now, before the opening gets too small to reach through comfortably.

• R12: 1 sc in each stitch (12) [CHECK — the source describes this round as shaping the bottom into a pointed alien chin; it appears to be a plain even round at 12, but verify against the video if the chin shape doesn’t emerge naturally]
• R13: (dec) x 6 (6)

Fasten off, leaving a long tail. Use a tapestry needle to weave through the 6 remaining stitches, pull tight to close, pass the needle through the center of the piece and out the other side to lock the closure, then tie off securely.

If you’re still learning how to read crochet patterns, no stress! Follow the video tutorial below and use the written pattern below as you get more comfortable!

Shape checkpoints:

• After R4, the piece is a flat circle with 24 stitches. It should look like a small shallow dish, sitting perfectly flat.
• After R9, the straight-sided section is complete. The piece is a short cylinder — wider than it is tall at this point, with the top still open.
• After R11 and stuffing, the piece should feel firm and round, like a large grape. The decrease rounds are pulling the opening in visibly.
• After R13 and closing, the bottom of the alien should come to a gentle point rather than sitting flat. That slight chin taper is the characteristic alien silhouette.

Keychain Loop

Chain 4 directly from the top of the closed piece and join to form a small loop. Attach your keychain ring through this loop. If you prefer a sturdier attachment, use a slip stitch to reinforce the chain loop before attaching the hardware.

 

Safety Eye Timing

• If you’re using felt eyes: Attach them after closing the piece, since felt is glued rather than inserted. Position them around the area of R4 — roughly one-third of the way down from the top — and press firmly for 30 seconds with silicone glue before setting aside to cure fully.
• If you’re using safety eyes: Insert them before stuffing and before R10, when the opening is still wide. The standard positioning is around R4 to R5. Click the backing on securely from the inside, then proceed with R10 onward. Safety eyes cannot be adjusted or removed once the backing is on, so position carefully.
• Under-threes and treat bags: Embroider only. No exceptions. See the Safety section above.

Assembly

• Step 1 — Close and secure the body Weave in and close the piece as described in R13 above. The needle-through-center step is worth doing — it keeps the tip of the chin from coming unravelled over time with the pulling and tugging a keychain gets.
• Step 2 — Attach the eyes Cut or prepare eye shapes from felt — a teardrop or elongated water-drop works well for the classic alien look. Position both eyes on the face before gluing either one, and check symmetry by holding the piece at arm’s length. Once satisfied, glue and press.
• Step 3 — Embroider the face details Using a single strand of black yarn or embroidery thread, add a small curved or straight line for the mouth and a tiny stitch or two for the nose. Keep it minimal — a small alien face reads better with less detail, not more.
• Step 4 — Attach keychain hardware Pass the keychain ring through the chain loop at the top. Close the ring fully.

Stuffing Notes

Firm, but not packed solid. The alien should feel like a stress ball — it has give but holds its shape. Over-stuffing at R12 and R13 will make it difficult to close the piece and can distort the chin shape. Under-stuffing means the body collapses slightly on one side when the keychain hangs, which reads as a mistake rather than a design choice.

 

The Character Dial — Creepier vs Sweeter

The base design lands in fun-spooky territory, which is actually the most flexible starting point.

• Creepier: Replace the standard glow yarn with a sickly yellow-green or swamp-toned variegated glow yarn if you can find one. Embroider the eyes rather than using felt, but make them asymmetrical — one slightly higher, one slightly larger. Add a tiny stitched scar below one eye using a single strand of dark thread. Skip the mouth entirely and the absence reads as unsettling. Use a matte black keychain ring rather than a silver one. The overall effect shifts from party favour to genuinely eerie desk companion.
• Sweeter: Switch to a soft mint or pale pink glow yarn — yes, some glow yarns come in pink, and they glow a softer color than the sharp green. Cut the felt eyes into large round circles rather than teardrops for a rounder, more kawaii expression. Add two tiny pink felt circles for cheeks. Give it a small smile using a single curved stitch in light pink thread. This version is the one younger kids gravitate toward and is particularly good for a classroom where you need the Halloween aesthetic without anything that might upset a sensitive child.

The biggest single variable is the eye shape. Teardrops read as alien and slightly sinister. Large rounds read as cute. Everything else is secondary to that one cut.

Colourways

• Classic Glow: Bright lime or fluorescent green glow yarn, black felt eyes. The original. It works because it doesn’t try to be anything else.
• Deep Space: Glow-in-the-dark yarn in dark teal or navy (check that the glow pigment still activates — darker base colors can reduce glow visibility; test before committing to a full batch). Silver keychain ring. White felt eyes.
• Candy Alien: Soft pink or pale lavender glow yarn with white round felt eyes and a tiny pink smile. Leans kawaii rather than Halloween, which is valid for younger children.
• Swamp Creature: Yellow-green variegated glow yarn with a darker green overdye if available. Gives a less uniform, more organic look — each one comes out slightly different.

Display Ideas

• A keychain lives on a bag or a hook, not a shelf, and that’s the point. But if you’re making a batch for a party table, stand them up in a small glass jar filled with dried black beans or decorative corn — the alien heads poke out of the top and the keychains drape over the sides. Charge the jar of aliens under a lamp before guests arrive and dim the lights when people come in. It lands.
• Single aliens clip nicely to a Halloween wreath as filler detail, onto a treat bag as a tag, or onto a pencil case as a persistent post-Halloween reminder that the season happened.

After the Season

Clip the keychain ring off if you want the alien to store more compactly, or leave it on. Either way, store it in a small drawstring bag or a zip pouch rather than loose in a box where it can get squashed. The glow effect doesn’t degrade with storage — phosphorescent pigments are stable in the dark — so next October it will charge and glow exactly as well as it did the first time. The felt eyes are the most fragile element over time; if one peels, a fresh dot of silicone re-adheres it in seconds.