Almanzo the Farmer Boy – Farmer Doll Crochet Pattern

The perfect fall-themed doll—Almanzo the Amigurumi Farmer Boy—is here as a free pattern on my blog!

Almanzo is an adorable scarecrow-like amigurumi farmer boy who has on a cute pair of overalls and a shirt underneath. Keep reading to learn about my design process and the perfect yarn I chose, or scroll to the end for the free pattern. To take this pattern offline, grab the ad-free, printable, PDF pattern on Etsy here.

Design Process: Mistakes Were Made

I find that often when I’m designing a new project, my motivation comes in waves. The first wave comes when I first get my inspiration for a project (read more about my design process here). When this happens, it’s really exciting. I feel so much motivation that I usually immediately sketch out my project and figure out which colorways will work best. Then, I begin crocheting.

My second wave of motivation usually hits when I’m near the end, and I get really excited at the prospect of finishing a project and I can see the final result more clearly. However, sometimes halfway through the project, I’ll lose steam. Dolls take a particularly long time because I need to make the doll base first and then basically make an entire second layer of clothes and hair, so this stage can be a little tedious sometimes. Often, I’ll set this project aside and become distracted by yet another work-in-progress, or even have another great new idea (or two, or three).

This happens when sometimes I begin crocheting and then gradually realize that the shape isn’t exactly what I wanted, and then come to the realization that I need to redo the whole project. Frogging back is really disheartening, so I’ll usually set aside pieces that need to be redone, telling myself that “I’ll get back to them soon.” (Honestly, I think that this is just because I want to look at it for at least a few days and not feel like it was a whole waste of time)

In this case, I made the doll body of this amigurumi farmer boy about a month ago, and then set it aside. I had originally intended it to be a medieval-looking hunter guy (think Game of Thrones—I was inspired by this book character), but then quickly realized that I didn’t have enough variations of gray and brown yarn in my stash. In the meantime, I designed the princess doll, a baby deer, and then a bubble tea.

Finally, after I got tired of staring at the half finished doll on my desk (which, by the way, has very limited real estate) I decided to turn him into a little farmer boy, inspired by a different book, The Little House on the Prairie. I thought that a farmer boy or scarecrow would be the perfect fall themed amigurumi moving into September, et voilà! I think finishing the doll took around two days, compared to the month of me muddling around in the middle.

I guess the lesson here is, you never know when a mistake can be a blessing! As someone constantly trying to improve my designing skills, a lot of trial and error is involved which can be discouraging. But most recently, I had a would-be seal morph into a cute penguin, which is now one of my favorite patterns!

So Versatile!

Although I originally had this little farmer boy in mind as fall-themed decor, his cute outfit makes him perfect for all seasons. You could switch up the denim blue look for a more spring-like pastel or bold-colored summery look, or even make it into a Christmas sweater. I just love how the overalls look on him and think that he can be a really cute gift for a child, partner, or loved one.

As always, dolls are so cute because they can be custom made to fit anyone you know in real life or fictionally. I love the versatility of him as a potential gift option or as fan art for your favorite TV show or book.

All About Yarn

For this project I mainly used Schachenmayr Catania yarn. It works well for amigurumi because it’s really inexpensive but good quality, and I like that it’s sport weight so that the amigurumi can be more defined without losing softness.

Schachenmayr Catania also has a large range of colorways, so it’s perfect for those of us who need a million colors in the same yarn to make the perfect amigurumi! The yarn I used for the overalls was slightly thinner, but I have notes to account for that in the pattern.

A note on yarn substitution: there is a lot of variation between brands of yarn that are categorized as sport weight. The best way to compare skeins from different brands, fiber contents, and origins, is to look at the yardage per gram. This can be found on the yarn label on any ball or skein of yarn.

When blending yarns within one project, try to make sure that two given balls of yarn differ no more than 0.5 yards per gram from each other and that the gauge is similar.

The Pattern

• Get the ad-free, printable, PDF pattern on Etsy here!
• Pin this pattern to your Pinterest boards here:

Description

Almanzo the amigurumi farmer boy is a quick, cute, and customizable doll with overalls perfect for fall-themed decor or gifts. Dress him up as a scarecrow or a farmer or make him a mini-me for a boy who loves overalls. The possibilities are endless with this stash buster, so get started on the free crochet pattern now!

Abbreviations (US):

• MR: Magic ring
• Sc: Single crochet
• Ch: Chain
• Sl st: Slip stitch
• Yo: Yarn over
• Hdc: Half double crochet
• Dc: Double crochet
• Inc: Increase
• Dec: Decrease
• Sts: Stitches
• FO: Fasten off
• (…) x: Repeat stitches within parentheses … times
• Sk: Skip one stitch
• FSC: Foundation Single Crochet (tutorial here)

Tools and Materials: 

• 2.5-3.0mm crochet hook
• Tapestry needle and scissors
• Polyester fiberfill stuffing
• 6.0 mm safety eyes
• Blocking materials (optional)
  • Foam mats, pins, and steam iron
• Fabric glue for hair
• Schachenmayr Catania in Creme (<1 skein)
  • Sport weight beige yarn for skin—you can swap for any other skin color
• Schachenmayr Catania in Leinen (<1 skein)
  • Sport weight light brown yarn for shirt and patches
• Schachenmayr Catania in Royal  (<1 skein)
  • Sport weight dark blue for overalls
• Schachenmayr Catania in Loewenzahn (<1 skein)
  • Sport weight yellow yarn for hair
• Lion Brand DIYarn (scrap)
  • Worsted weight dark brown yarn for boots and also for eyebrows (this can be swapped for brown embroidery thread)
• Small blue buttons (optional)

Technical Notes:

• Crochet in continuous spiral rounds unless otherwise specified, and use a stitch marker or piece of yarn to keep track of the last stitch in each round.
• When filling with polyester stuffing, pull apart each large chunk into many smaller chunks. This ensures an even distribution of firmness within the amigurumi.
• To avoid large holes in the crochet fabric, increase tension until the holes cannot be seen, or choose a crochet hook a size down.
• Use sewing pins to secure limbs of the amigurumi before you sew them.

Legs: (begin in dark brown yarn, then light brown) x2

• R1: sc6 in MR (6 sts)
• R2: inc x6 (12 sts)
• R3-4 (2 rounds) sc all around (12 sts)
• R5: (BLO) dec, sc2, hdc dec x2, sc2, dec (8 sts)
• R6-8 (3 rounds): sc all around (8 sts)
• Switch to light brown yarn
• R9-14 (6 rounds): sc all around (8 sts)

Invisible finish off. Make another leg identically but do not finish off or cut the yarn. Stuff both legs lightly, using the back of crochet hooks or chopsticks to push fiberfill inside.

Connect legs: sc4, ch2, sc all around (8 sts), sc 2 in the chains between the legs, sc 4 (20 sts total)

Continue from connected legs to make body:

Body: (in light brown yarn)

• R1-9 (9 rounds): sc all around (20 sts)
• Begin stuffing.
• R10: (sc3, dec) x4 (16 sts)
• R11: sc all around (16 sts)

Finish stuffing using the back of crochet hook to push fiberfill in, and finish off, leaving a long tail for sewing.

Head: (in any skin colored yarn)

• R (round) 1: sc6 in MR (6 sts)
• R2: inc x6 (12 sts)
• R3: (sc, inc) x6 (18 sts)
• R4: (sc2, inc) x6 (24 sts)
• R5: (sc3, inc) x6 (30 sts)                                                                                
• R6: (sc4, inc) x6 (36 sts)                                                                           
• R7: (sc5, inc) x6 (42 sts)
• R8-16 (9 rounds): Sc all around (42 sts)
• If you wish to, place 6.0 mm safety eyes between round 10 and 11 (middle of head), 7 stitches apart. However, I suggest placing safety eyes at the very end if you don’t mind not being able to secure the safety eyes to be able to arrange the face more easily.
• R17: (sc5, dec) x6 (36 sts)
• R18: (sc4, dec) x6 (30 sts)
• R19: (sc3, dec) x6 (24 sts)
• Finish stuffing.    
• R20: (sc2, dec) x6 (18 sts)
• R21: (sc, dec) x6 (12 sts)          
• R22: (dec) x6 (6 sts)

Cut yarn, leaving a short tail. Using a needle, thread the yarn through all 6 stitches in the last round, and pull it tight so the opening closes like a drawstring bag. Finish off and weave in the end. Sew head to body.

Arms: (beginning in skin colored yarn, then light brown) x2

• R1: sc6 in MR (6 sts)
• R2-4 (3 rounds): sc all around (6 sts)
• Switch to light brown yarn
• R5-14 (10 rounds): sc all around (6 sts)

Stuff lightly. Invisible finish off and weave in ends, leaving a tail for sewing. Make another one identically and attach arms to the left and right sides of the body.

Overalls pant leg: (using 2.5 mm hook in dark blue)

• R1: sc20 in MR (20 sts)
• R2-7 (8 rounds): sc all around (20 sts)
  • As you can see, I used thinner yarn for the overalls which resulted in more rows being needed for the pants. If you want your doll to look how it is pictured (right), then use yarn one size down and follow these steps:
  • R2-14 (13 rounds): sc all around (20 sts)

Invisible finish off and weave in the end. Make another pant leg identically, but do not finish off.

Connect the pant legs: beginning on one pant leg, sc all around, then sc all around the other leg (total 40 sts). Pull the pants onto the doll’s legs and continue working with the pants on the doll body.

Joined pant legs:

• R1-2 (2 rounds): sc all around (40 sts)
• R3: (sc6, dec) x5 (35 sts)
• R4: (sc5, dec) x5 (30 sts)
  • If you are using thinner yarn, follow these steps:
  • R5: sc all around 30sts)
• R5: (sc4, dec) x5 (25 sts)

Invisible finish off, weave in end.

Overalls bib: (worked in turned rows)

• R (row) 1: FSC 6, chain and turn (6 sts)
• R2-5 (4 rows): sc to the end, chain and turn (6 sts
• Finish off.

Make straps:

• Chain 14, sew to the front of the bib.
• Sew the bib to the front of the pants and the straps to the back of the pants

Hair: (use hair color yarn)

The hair is going to be built from a circle 24 stitches around, with hair strands coming from that circle. If you refer to the diagram, you can see that the circle is split into 2 sections (A and B). We will begin at the beginning of section A, which comprises 6 of the 24 stitches of the circle, and move on to section B, completing the circle around with the remaining 18 stitches.

Circle:

• R1: sc 6 in MR (6 sts)
• R2: (inc x6 (12 sts)
• R3: (sc, inc) x6 (18 sts)
• R4: (sc2, inc) x6 (24 sts)

Invisible finish off, and weave in the end. Make standing crochet stitch anywhere in the round to begin crocheting hair.

Section A:

Strand 1-6 (6 strands): ch7, sc6 back (beginning from second chain from hook), slst in next stitch

Section B:

Strands 7-24 (18 strands): ch10, sc9 back (beginning from second chain from hook), slst in next stitch

Cut yarn and weave in the end. To create straight hair, block hair by pinning it down on a foam mat and using a steam iron and leaving it overnight to dry. If you don’t have a steam iron, you can just soak it in water and lay it out to dry. Different blocking methods can be found here. After blocking, pin the circle on top of the doll’s head.  Section A forms the bangs, and Section B is the sides and back. Pin down each of the hair strands and create texture by putting the strands directly in front of the doll’s face over the hair on either side. Either sew or glue the hair down to the head with craft glue.

Patches: (in light brown yarn, worked in turned rows)

• R (row) 1: FSC 3 (3 sts)
• R2-3 (2 rows): sc3, chain and turn (3 sts)

Finish off, leaving a short tail for sewing. Make two and sew onto overalls in random positions.

Final touches:

1. Insert 6.0mm safety eyes between rounds 10-11, 7 sts apart
2. Embroider a nose one row below the eye line, covering two stitches.
3. Embroider eyebrows directly above the eyes using one ply of brown yarn (pull yarn apart into separate plies) or embroidery thread. The eyebrows are diagonals, 3 stitches across and one up. The bottom of the eyebrow is 3 rows above the eye (and the top of the eyebrow is 4 rows above).
4. Embroider pink lines one row below eyes (across two stitches) for blush.
5. Sew small buttons onto the bottoms of the suspender straps.
6. Sew on small patches on the overalls.

I hope you enjoyed making Almanzo the Farmer Boy! Please share your finished projects with me by tagging me on Instagram @littleworldofwhimsy. If you have trouble with the pattern, drop a comment down below.

For more doll patterns, check out:

• Kitsune the Fox Girl Doll
• Aurora the Princess Doll