Little Rosebud Bunny: Free crochet pattern

This plump stuffed bunny is worked bottom-up in continuous rounds so there are no seams to count along the way. The body and head are simple spheres shaped with increases and decreases; two flat floppy ears are pressed together from a dusty-rose face and a blush inner panel to give that satisfying two-tone look. A sage-green satin bow ties at the neck for a finishing flourish that photographs beautifully.

The Little Rosebud Bunny stands about 20 cm (8 in) tall — sized right for a first gift or nursery shelf accent. The only stitches you need are single crochet, the invisible increase and the invisible decrease, so a confident beginner can work through every section without stress. Gauge matters here: a tighter fabric keeps stuffing from peeking through and gives the bunny that satisfying squeezable feel.

After assembly, the WithMe signature heart is stitched to the front-left of the body, right where a real heartbeat would be. Work one for a baby shower, a birthday, or simply because making something warm with your own hands is reason enough.

What you need

• DK weight yarn, Color A Dusty Rose: approx 120 m (130 yds) — e.g. Paintbox Simply DK in Dusty Rose
• DK weight yarn, Color B Blush: approx 50 m (55 yds) — e.g. Paintbox Simply DK in Blush Pink
• DK weight yarn, Color C Warm Cream: approx 65 m (71 yds) — e.g. Paintbox Simply DK in Vanilla Cream
• 3.5 mm (US E/4) crochet hook
• Polyester toy stuffing, approx 60 g (2 oz)
• Two 8 mm black safety eyes
• Small amount of dusty-rose embroidery floss for nose and cheek details
• 50 cm (20 in) sage-green satin ribbon, 1 cm (⅜ in) wide, for neck bow
• Yarn needle, locking stitch marker, scissors

Gauge

18 sc × 20 rounds = 4 cm × 4 cm (4 in × 4 in) in continuous sc rounds with 3.5 mm hook. Gauge is important for a firm, even fabric that holds its shape when stuffed.

Abbreviations

• sc — single crochet
• inc — 2 sc in the same stitch
• dec — sc 2 together (invisible decrease)
• ch — chain
• sk — skip the next stitch
• tr — treble crochet
• dc — double crochet

Pattern notes

• Work in continuous rounds throughout (no joining slip stitch, no turning chain) unless a section states otherwise. Move a locking stitch marker into the first stitch of each new round.
• Color A = Dusty Rose, Color B = Blush, Color C = Warm Cream.
• Magic ring: wrap yarn twice around two fingers, work the stated stitches through both loops, then pull the tail firmly to close.
• Insert and lock safety eyes before completing the final decrease rounds on the head — it becomes too small to reach inside afterward.
• Stuff each piece firmly through the opening before the last decrease round. A smooth chopstick helps pack stuffing into corners.
• For very young babies substitute embroidered yarn eyes for the safety-eye hardware.

1. Body

The body is a firm sphere worked bottom-up in Color A. Increase steadily to the widest round, work straight across the middle, then decrease to the top opening where the head will attach.

• Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring [6]
• Round 2: inc × 6 [12]
• Round 3: (sc, inc) × 6 [18]
• Round 4: (2 sc, inc) × 6 [24]
• Round 5: (3 sc, inc) × 6 [30]
• Round 6: (4 sc, inc) × 6 [36]
• Rounds 7–13: sc in each stitch around [36]
• Round 14: (4 sc, dec) × 6 [30]
• Round 15: (3 sc, dec) × 6 [24]
• Round 16: (2 sc, dec) × 6 [18] — Stuff body firmly now before the opening narrows further.
• Round 17: (sc, dec) × 6 [12]
• Round 18: dec × 6 [6]

1. Cut yarn leaving a 15 cm (6 in) tail. Thread through the remaining 6 stitches with a yarn needle, pull tight and fasten off invisibly inside the body.

2. Head

The head is a slightly smaller warm-cream sphere. Safety eyes go in before the final rounds close the opening — place them symmetrically on round 7 before working round 12.

• Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring [6]
• Round 2: inc × 6 [12]
• Round 3: (sc, inc) × 6 [18]
• Round 4: (2 sc, inc) × 6 [24]
• Round 5: (3 sc, inc) × 6 [30]
• Rounds 6–10: sc in each stitch around [30]
• Round 11: (3 sc, dec) × 6 [24]
• Round 12: (2 sc, dec) × 6 [18] — Insert safety eyes between rounds 7 and 8, spaced 8 stitches apart. Stuff head firmly before continuing.
• Round 13: (sc, dec) × 6 [12]
• Round 14: dec × 6 [6]

1. Cut yarn leaving a 15 cm (6 in) tail. Thread through the remaining 6 stitches, pull tight and fasten off invisibly inside the head.

3. Ears — make 2 outer (Color A) and 2 inner (Color B)

Each ear is a slim flat rectangle tapering to a soft point. Make two in dusty rose and two in blush; whipstitch one pair together wrong-side to wrong-side to create a two-tone floppy ear. Repeat for the second ear.

• Row 0: 4 ch [4]
• Row 1: sk, 3 sc [3]
• Rows 2–12: sc in each stitch across [3]
• Row 13: sc, dec [2]
• Row 14: dec [1]

1. Fasten off each piece. Leave a 25 cm (10 in) tail on the Color A pieces only for sewing. Hold one Color A and one Color B piece wrong-sides together, blush facing inward. Using the Color A tail, whipstitch neatly around all edges, leaving the cast-on edge open. Repeat for the second ear.

4. Arms — make 2 (Color A)

Each arm is a small open-ended dusty-rose tube. Leave unstuffed so they stay soft and floppy at the bunny's sides.

• Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring [6]
• Rounds 2–8: sc in each stitch around [6]

1. Fasten off leaving a 25 cm (10 in) tail for sewing. Do not stuff.

5. Tail (Color B)

A small blush sphere forms the bunny's fluffy tail. Stuff it just before the final decrease round closes it up.

• Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring [6]
• Round 2: inc × 6 [12]
• Round 3: sc in each stitch around [12]
• Round 4: dec × 6 [6] — Stuff tail firmly before working this round.

1. Cut yarn, thread through 6 remaining stitches, pull tight and fasten off invisibly.

6. WithMe signature heart

The same little heart sits on every WithMe original — our way of signing it with love. Use any contrast colour from the project.

• Round 1: 3 tr, 3 dc, ch, tr, ch, 3 dc, 3 tr in a magic ring [15] — Ch 3 first (it doesn't count as a stitch). After the last stitch, ch 3 and sl st into the ring, then pull the ring tight — the dip at the top of the heart forms as you pull.

1. Fasten off, leaving a tail for sewing the heart in place.

Finishing

1. Head to body: pin the head centered over the open top of the body, flat closure of head facing down into the body opening. Using a length of Color C and a yarn needle, whipstitch firmly all the way around the join, passing through both layers. Weave all ends inside.
2. Arms: flatten each arm tube so the magic-ring base faces forward. Pin one arm to each side of the body between rounds 10 and 12, open edge flush against the body surface. Sew through the open edge, catching both layers of the arm and the body beneath, with small tight stitches. Knot off inside the body.
3. Ears: pin both assembled ears to the top of the head, side by side with the blush inner face pointing forward. The open cast-on edge sits flush on the head surface. Sew down firmly through the open edge using the yarn tails, stitching through several rounds of the head to anchor each ear securely.
4. Tail: sew the blush tail sphere to the center back of the body at round 10, using the yarn tail to pass back and forth through the base of the sphere and into the body several times before knotting off inside.
5. Nose and cheeks: with dusty-rose embroidery floss, work a small satin-stitch inverted triangle for the nose just below the midpoint between the eyes. Work two small filled circles of satin stitch as rosy cheeks, one below and to the outside of each eye.
6. Ribbon bow: wrap the sage-green satin ribbon once around the neck join, tie a neat bow at the front and trim the tails to an even length.
7. Signature heart: sew the WithMe standard signature heart to the front-left of the body, centered between rounds 8 and 10 counting up from the base.

Tips from the WithMe studio

• Work sc with a firm, even tension — a loose fabric lets stuffing show through and softens the defined sphere shape.
• If your swatch comes out loose, drop down to a 3.0 mm hook before starting the body.
• Close the magic ring with two firm tugs on the tail and weave it through at least four stitches in different directions to prevent it from reopening with use.
• When sewing the head to the body, work small close loops through both pieces rather than large swinging stitches — this hides the seam completely.
• Stuff in small pinches rather than one large wad so the filling distributes evenly to the edges without lumping.

Share your make with #withmelove — we would love to see it.