A typical amigurumi.

Louis the Royal Lion Free Crochet Pattern

Louis the Lion is a mini lion that fits in the palm of your hand. This amigurumi is beginner level with a few new techniques that you can get under your belt, including the picot stitch, the technique to work the mane, and embroidering a French knot (optional).

Louis the Lion—a regal amigurumi lion—is my newest free crochet pattern!

Read on to learn more about my design process and inspiration, or scroll to the end to get the free pattern. If you’re in a hurry and need to take this pattern offline, grab the beautifully formatted, ad-free, PDF pattern from Etsy here. To grab the exact yarn I used for this pattern, check out Good Loops Yarn’s website here, for the softest cotton you’ve ever felt that’s both environmentally sustainable and natural!

A musically inspired series!

As a classical trained cellist, music is one of my major inspirations and forms the backbone of my lens into the world. Although this may not seem to easily translate to amigurumi, there are many pieces that are wonderfully evocative and descriptive of stories, scenes, and even of animals. The Carnival of the Animals is one such suite, in which the French composer Saint-Saëns playfully recreates an entire menagerie of animals through a series of short pieces that have rolling arpeggios for a lion’s roar, fluttering flutes that evoke an aviary, and rippling piano reminiscent of a shimmering aquarium.

Through this series, I hope to recreate amigurumi for many of the movements in this suite, to tie together both my love of programmatic music and whimsical creatures, as well as dive into how each piece (in sometimes comical and hilarious ways) is able to describe each creature.

Let’s take a brief look at the first movement, the Introduction and Royal March of the Lion!

In the beginning, the lower strings form a jaunty march that strikes a strong and confident tone—perfect for heralding the king of the jungle! I love how pompous and comical these sections are, since I feel like it really sells the image of the regal lion. Then, the main feature of this first movement comes in: the distinctive lion’s roar, which can be heard in the lower register of the piano beginning at 0:32 seconds in the video. After this section, the strings and piano switch roles, with the strings creating the lion’s roar and the piano playing the march, to keep things interesting. The short movement ends with one last roar from the lion, who just has to have the last word.

Louis the Royal Lion

Inspired by this first movement of the Carnival of the Animals, I created Louis the Lion, a mini lion wearing a tiny crown who fits in the palm of your hand. This amigurumi is beginner level with a few new techniques that you can get under your belt, including the picot stitch, the technique to work the mane, and embroidering a French knot (optional).

The character of the entire movement is grandiose and a little self-important, so I created a lion with a huge ruffled mane that helps him stand out as king of the animals. I also added a tiny crown with a sparkling crown that ensures that he has the attention of everyone who looks at him!

The Softest Cotton Yarn

Everyone has their own preferences for yarn, and ever since I started crocheting, cotton yarn has been my least favorite to work with. As a result, all the skeins of cotton I have languish in the back of my yarn stash, barely used and some even with the labels still on them. But when I first tried Good Loops Yarn, I realized that I had finally found a cotton yarn that I could use and… dare I say… love?

Unlike most cotton yarn, which is mercerized, Good Loops Yarn (supplied by Nurturing Fibers) is soft to the touch and doesn’t hurt your hands to work with. The texture is slightly buttery and results in the incredible stitch definition that cotton is known for, and also doesn’t split. Since it’s soft and easy to work with without splitting, I highly recommend this yarn for beginners or those who have trouble working with small amigurumi pieces like in this pattern and don’t want to size up for yarn.

Cotton yarn is also significantly more eco-friendly than synthetic yarns like acrylic or rayon, since it doesn’t result in micro plastics being released into the air and is biodegradable. Being sustainable and environmentally friendly has come to my attention more as I continue to acquire yarn, and plant based, natural yarns like cotton are comparatively the most sustainable option. I’m truly glad to have found yarn that is both easy on the eyes and easy on the environment!

For Louis’ crown, I used Good Loops Yarn’s cotton and bamboo blend, a unique yarn that combines the sheen of bamboo with the strength of cotton. It’s perfect to make his crown stand out and shimmer against his golden head! I’ve never encountered this blend anywhere else and it’s a good compromise between the gorgeous shine of bamboo without it being too slippery or difficult to work with. I love how it turned out!

The Pattern

  • If you want to take this pattern offline, grab the beautifully formatted, ad-free, PDF pattern from Etsy here!
  • Pin this pattern to your Pinterest boards here:

Description

Louis the Lion is a mini lion that fits in the palm of your hand. This amigurumi is beginner level with a few new techniques that you can get under your belt, including the picot stitch, the technique to work the mane, and embroidering a French knot (optional).

Yarn

Notions

Abbreviations (US)

  • BLO: back loop only
  • CC: contrast color
  • ch: chain
  • dc: double crochet
  • dec: decrease
  • FSC: foundation single crochet (tutorial here)
  • inc: increase (2 scs in same stitch) main color
  • MR: magic ring
  • rnd: round
  • sc: single crochet
  • slst: slip stitch
  • st(s): stitch(es)
  • x sc: sc x number of times
  • (…) x: x total stitches in round/row repeat stitches within brackets x times

Special Stitches

  • Invisible finish off: click here for tutorial.
  • Picot stitch: Chain 3, slip stitch into the third chain from the hook. Slip stitch into the next 2 stitches.
  • French knot: click here for tutorial.

Technical Notes

  • Crochet in continuous rounds unless otherwise specified
  • When filling with polyester stuffing, pull apart each large chunk into many smaller chunks. This ensures an even distribution of firmness.
  • To avoid large holes in the crochet fabric, increase tension until the holes cannot be seen, or choose a crochet hook a size down.
  • Stuff the head and the body firmly at the openings so that the neck is stable upon completion.
  • For this pattern, the MC is Sunglow (cotton), CC1 is Pecan, CC2 is Bessie (bamboo), and CC3 is Ruby Pink.

Final Size

3″ x 3.5″

HEAD (in MC)

  • Round 1 6 sc in MR (6 sts)
  • Round 2 inc x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 3 (sc, inc) x6 (18 sts)
  • Round 4 (2 sc, inc) x6 (24 sts)
  • Round 5 (3 sc, inc) x6 (30 sts)
  • Round 6 (4 sc, inc) x6 (36 sts)
  • Insert 6.0mm safety eyes between rounds 4 and 5 across from each other, with round 1 in the center.
  • Round 7-10 (4 rnds) sc around (36 sts)
  • Round 11 BLO, sc around (36 sts)
  • Round 12-14 (3 rnds) sc around (36 sts)
  • Round 15 (4 sc, dec) x6 (30 sts)
  • Round 16 (3 sc, dec) x6 (24 sts)
  • Round 17 (2 sc, dec) x6 (18 sts)
  • Stuff.
  • Round 18 (sc, dec) x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 19 dec x6 (6 sts)
  • Finish off and weave in end.
Note the placement of the eyes.
Side view of head: you can see the ridge from round 11 running around the head. This is where the mane will go.

BODY (in MC)

  • Round 1 6 sc in MR (6 sts)
  • Round 2 inc x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 3 (sc, inc) x6 (18 sts)
  • Round 4 (2 sc, inc) x6 (24 sts)
  • Round 5-9 (5 rnds) sc around (24 sts) Round 10 (2 sc, dec) x6 (18 sts) Round 11 sc around (18 sts)
  • Stuff. Finish off, leaving a tail for sewing, and sew between rounds 8 and 12 on the head. Round 11 of the head has a small ridge going all around from the BLO stitch, and this line should be covered by the body.
Sew the body to the head, centered at the ridge on round 11.

FRONT LEG (in CC1, then MC in round 5)

  • Round 1 6 sc in MR (6 sts)
  • Round 2 inc x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 3-4 (2 rnds) sc around (12 sts)
  • Cut CC1 and switch to MC.
  • Round 5 sc around (12 sts)
  • Round 6 (2 sc, dec) x3 (9 sts)
  • Round 7 sc around (9 sts)
  • Round 8 (sc, dec) x3 (6 sts)
  • Stuff lightly. Finish off and weave in end, leaving a tail for sewing. Flatten the opening and sew across in a running stitch to seam shut. Make another identically. Sew the two front legs to the front of the body.
Sew the front legs directly at the front of the body.

BACK LEG (in CC1, then switch to MC in round 4)

  • Round 1 6 sc in MR (6 sts)
  • Round 2 inc x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 3 sc around (12 sts)
  • Cut CC1 and switch to MC.
  • Round 4-5 (2 rnds) sc around (12 sts) Round 6 (2 sc, dec) x3 (9 sts)
  • Stuff lightly. Finish off and weave in end, leaving a tail for sewing. Flatten the opening and sew across in a running stitch to seam shut. Make another identically. Sew the back legs sideways to the left and right of the bottom of the body, with the seam vertically aligned with the body.
Sew the back legs to the left and right of the bottom of the body.

MANE (in CC1)

The mane is formed by many double crochet stitches worked into the BLO round (round 11) on the head. Work counterclockwise into the back loops visible around the head. Attach CC1 and work 3 double crochets into each loop all around the head. Follow step by step directions below for more guidance.

1.Working counterclockwise around the head, insert the hook into the first loop closest to the body.
2. Attach CC1 by pulling up a loop and chaining one.
3. Work 3 double crochets into the first loop, then repeat for all the other loops all around. Finish off and weave in the end.

MUZZLE (in MC)

  • Round 1 6 sc in MR (6 sts)
  • Round 2 inc x6 (12 sts)
  • Round 3-4 (2 rnds) sc around (12 sts)
  • Finish off, leaving a tail for sewing. Using black embroidery thread and an embroidery needle, embroider a triangle nose (see video tutorial here) and a line going downwards. Stuff lightly and sew directly between the eyes between rounds 1 and 5.

CROWN (in CC2. Begin by creating a foundation row and then join in the round at round 2. See Abbreviations for FSC and Special Stitches for picot stitch and french knot.)

  • Row 1 FSC 10, slip stitch to join in the round (10 sts)
  • Round 2 ch, sc around, slip stitch to the first stitch (10 sts)
  • Round 3 picot stitch x5 (5 points on the crown)
  • Using CC3, tie a french knot under one of the points on the second round.

TAIL (begin in MC, then switch to CC1 at the end.)

Attach MC to the back of the body. Chain 10, then switch to CC1. Chain 3, then slip stitch into the 4th chain from the hook (the last chain in MC). Finish off and weave in end.

I hope you enjoyed making Louis the Lion! If you run into any problems feel free to ask me a question in the comments section below or through email at littleworldofwhimsy@gmail.com.