When I first started amigurumi and saw all of the cool characters that people had recreated, I thought about how perfect Chopper would be as an amigurumi doll. Chopper was the first crochet pattern that I made up on my own, so he’s a bit of a special one for me! And, as an added bonus, the hat fits my cat’s head 😽 He’s not the last One Piece crochet pattern I’ll be making!
I hope that you enjoy the pattern too, and I’d love to see what you make! Tag @53stitches on Instagram or send me a link!
What materials will you need?
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I use DK weight yarn.
- Pink yarn
- Blue yarn
- Brown yarn
- White yarn
- 3.00 mm crochet hook
- Yarn needle
Quick reference for beginners
Check out some of the below tutorials if you get stuck on any of the stitches or techniques
- How to read patterns
- Magic ring
- Single crochet
- Increase
- Decrease
- How to change colours
- Attaching amigurumi limbs
- Front loop only
- Back loop only
- Chain
If you get stuck anywhere else, check out the FAQ.
The Chopper pattern!
HAT
1. (in Pink) MR 6 (6)
2. [inc]x 12 (12)
3. [sc, inc]x 6 (18)
4. sc, inc, [sc 2, inc]x 5, sc (24)
5. [inc, sc 3]x 6 (30)
6. sc 2, inc, [sc 4, inc]x 5, sc 2 (36)
7. BLO sc 36 (36)
8. sl st, sc 35 (36)
9 – 17. sc 36 (36)
18. FLO sc 36 (36)
19. sl st [inc, sc]x (at this point the exact number of stitches isn’t important, repeat this pattern until you reach your marker again, we’re just giving the brim room to expand)
20. [inc, sc 2]x (same as above)
21. BLO sc around
Staggering the increases when making the circle makes it easier to lay the piece flat and keep it’s shape, which is good for the flat top we want.
The round worked in the back loop only gives a sharper curve to the top of the hat. The front loop only round gives the same effect in the opposite direction. And the last BLO round helps to keep the brim from curling upwards.
If you want to make the hat taller simply add more rows before the FLO.
Stitch the cross on in white. I position it so the bottom corners of the cross are two rounds above the brim and the top corners of the cross are six rounds above the brim. It then goes the same distance across as it does up, so you are left with a 4×4 white cross. 🙂
I double knot the loose strands together tightly, and then cut off the ends so nothing pokes out. As a neater alternative, you could glue on a white felt cross.
ANTLER (make 2)
Make 4 chains in brown yarn, leave long tails:
- ch 8
- ch 8
- ch 3
- ch 3
As an alternative to this method (which is something I just made up so my explanation is quite poor), you can make an i-cord. Planet June has a great tutorial for crocheted i-cords. I’ve also thought about using pipe cleaners, which would be much easier to mould and attach, and they come in a bunch of different colours. You can use whatever you like to make the antlers, this is just how I do it.
Each antler has two pairs of chains, which are sewn together. Above are two chains of eight.
For each chain place them back to back (so the v’s are facing outwards) and weave the tail back through the chains, the second picture demonstrates the needle weaving one of the tails back through the first stitch on both chains.
The third picture demonstrates the tail going through the second stitch on both chains. Continue in this fashion until all v’s in the chain are secured to their opposite.
After weaving one tail through, you end up with three tails at one end, and one at the other. Weave the single tail in the same way as you have just done.
You will have all four tails at one end, and a nice solid pipe (if you’re like me it’s very messy :P). Do the same with the chains of 3.
Attach the joined chain of three to the chain of 8 approximately 1/3rd of the way down, and weave the tails through so they are all at the same end.
You will end up with something that looks like this:
The antler ‘tails’ will be distributed between four stitches (I’ve marked them above with pins to check they’re symmetrical). The top row is in line with the bottom of the cross (2 rows above the brim) and the bottom row is 1 row above the brim. They are usually about 6 across from the cross.
Position the antlers so they are pointing in the right direction, then decide which holes the tails belong to in order to keep the antler standing in the correct position. Distributing them out over 4 holes gives it more stability in its position.
Simply thread all the tails through to the other side and pull them tight. Before you secure them you can check that the antler is sitting properly on the hat.
I go crazy knotting all of the tails tightly together. You end up with a big knot pile, and you may prefer to cover the knots with glue to ensure they don’t come apart, but I don’t and they never have. 🙂
Repeat on the other side and there you are! I tie a piece of gray yarn (but felt would work as well) around the right antler for the piece of metal chopper has on his and then the hat is done!
BAG
1. (in Blue) ch 9 (9)
2. first sc in second ch from hook, sc 7 (8)
3. rotate piece and sc in each ch on the other side (8)
You now have an oval with 16 stitches. Maybe you lost a couple (I almost always do), what’s important is that the oval you’re left with is long enough for the doll and the size bag that you want. To make it longer or shorter, increase or decrease the number of chains in your first row.
4-9. *sc* (16)
10. sc until you reach the edge of the bag, as shown in the pictures below to make a lid.
11-14. ch 1, turn, sc 7 (8)
BAG STRAPS (make 2)
1. ch 16 (16)
In this picture, the second row has already been completed and this is the beginning of the third row. Go back into the stitches you’ve already sc in and do the same on the other ‘v’ of the chain.
Stitch on a cross like you did with the hat. We used yarn folded over twice for the hat but the bag is smaller so it only needs a single thread. I glue a small felt circle on for the button.
You can use pins to mark the position of the bag straps.
The tails of the straps are pulled through each hole.
Tie the tails tightly together, then tug on the strap to pull it out properly. Do the same for the other strap and now Chopper can wear it! But first, you’ll need to actually make that doll.
HEAD
1. (in Beige) MR 6 (6)
2. [ inc ]x 6 (12)
3. [ inc, sc ]x 6 (18)
4. sc, inc, [ sc 2, inc ]x 5, sc (24)
5. [ inc, sc 3 ]x 6 (30)
6. sc 2, inc, [ sc 4, inc ]x 5, sc 2 (36)
7-12. sc 36 (36)
13. sc 2, dec, [ sc 4, dec ]x 5, sc 2 (30)
14. [ dec, sc 3 ]x 6 (24)
15. sc, dec, [ sc 2, dec ]x 5, sc (18)
At this point you want to insert the safety eyes, and stitch on the mouth and nose.
Insert safety eyes approximately halfway down the head, or one row lower than halfway. It depends on personal preference, but remember to try the hat on, since it will cover a lot of his head. Take a length of blue yarn and embroider his nose on – it should be in line with the bottom of the eyes. The mouth can then be embroidered on using black embroidering thread or thin yarn.
Stuff the head firmly, and then we’re ready to keep crocheting the rest of the body
16. FLO sc 18 (18)
17. [ inc, sc 5 ]x 3 (21)
18. [ inc, sc 6 ]x 3 (24)
19. [ inc, sc 7 ]x 3 (27)
20-22. sc 27 (27)
23. (in Maroon) BLO sc 27 (27)
24. sc 27 (27)
25. [ sc 7, dec ]x 3 (24)
26. [ sc 4, dec ]x 4 (20)
At this point you want to stuff the rest of the body. Put in a little more stuffing than you want and try to push it away from your working round, since when the legs are finished there won’t be space to put in anymore. The legs on my Chopper dolls have barely any stuffing, but they are so narrow that it still looks fine!
The next part can be tricky, just make sure to count your stitches in each round.
Stuff the body. Then pinch the opening together. Insert two stitch markers across the centre stitches. The markers should be in the middle of the body, and there should be 8 stitches between them – which makes 10 stitches for each leg (the 2 stitches marked by the markers, and the 8 in between).
The pictures below illustrate row 27 for the first leg. Crochet until you reach the stitch with the marker. The marked stitch will be the last sc on the backside of the doll for the first leg.
The next stitch after this should be the marked stitch on the opposite side.
27. sc 10 (10)
28. sc 10 (10)
29. [ sc 3, dec ]x 2 (8)
30-32. (in Beige/Brown) sc 8 (8)
33-34. (in Grey) sc 8 (8)
Finish off one leg. Make a slip knot, insert it into a stitch at the back of the doll for the next leg, and repeat rows 27-34 for the opposite leg.
ARM (make 2)
It can be easy for the piece to turn itself inside out, so that the wrong side is facing outwards. Be careful to keep realigning it.
1. (in Grey) MR 6 (6)
2. sc 6 (6)
3-9. (in Beige/Brown) sc 6 (6)
Leave tail for sewing, finish off. They don’t need any stuffing.
Now you have two arms ready to attach to the body! I like to pin them in place to make sure I’m comfortable with the position. If you want to, you can put wire in them at this point to make them posable. You can be a bit messy with the arm join, since it’s going to be covered by the bag straps anyway.
There you are! So cute 😀
Dressed in his finery!
If you make one for yourself and share on Instagram or Tumblr, don’t forget to tag @53stitches so I can check it out.
