This is a crochet pattern review of the Mr. Crab crochet pattern by Katrine Klarer. It features information about the pattern, my personal modifications to the pattern, and a link to the free crochet pattern.
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links for Wal-Mart, Amazon, and Etsy. If you go through them to make a purchase, I will earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for your support!
I recently had a customer reach out to me on Etsy for a custom stuffed crab. After looking through lots of different patterns for crocheted crabs, I decided to go with the Mr. Crab pattern by Katrine Klarer since it looked the closest to the picture that my customer provided.
The Mr. Crab pattern is a super cute, free crochet crab pattern that creates a hexagonal body and really puts an emphasis on claws that are ready-to-pinch. This pattern was easy to follow and worked up nicely! In my pattern review below, you can find more details about this pattern, as well as some adaptations I made to the pattern to meet my customer’s requests and my personal preferences.
What Do You Need to Make a Crochet Crab?
- Red Acrylic Yarn – I Used I Love This Yarn in Red
- G6/4.0 mm Crochet Hook – I used my Clover Amour Ergonomic Crochet Hook
- Yarn Needle
- Small Amount of Black Worsted Weight Yarn
- Polyester Fiberfil
How Long Does It Take to Make a Crochet Crab?
It took me about three hours to crochet and sew together this crab.
If you were planning to make a bunch of crabs for market prep, you could certainly cut down the time to finish the crab by making them in batches.
How Big is a Crocheted Crab Using This Pattern?
The finish crab measures 6 1/4 inches across at the legs and 7 3/4 inches wide at the tips of the claws. The front claws are 3 1/2 inches long and the legs are about 1 1/2 inches long each. The crab is just about 3 inches tall.
How Do You Make a Crochet Crab?
You definitely want to start out by reading through Katrine Klarer’s awesome blog post that features the original Mr. Crab pattern! Hers turned out really cute and used a traditional hexagon motif to create the body.
For my crab, I used the Mr. Crab pattern to create the legs and arms. I made these parts first before making the body. If you would like to do that as well, be sure to look at the original pattern to find how to make those!
While I love how the original pattern looks, I knew that my customer was looking for a more traditional amigurumi-style body on the crab, so I wanted to use single crochet in the round. I used the stitch counts of the last row and the six-sided structure of the original pattern to make the following adjustments when creating my crab’s body:
Making the Top of the Body:
Round 1: SC 6 in magic circle
Round 2: INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: *INC in first stitch, SC in next*, repeat from * to * 6 times (18)
Round 4: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 2*, repeat from * to * 6 times (24)
Round 5: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 3*, repeat from * to * 6 times (30)
Round 6: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 4*, repeat from * to * 6 times (36)
Round 7: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 5*, repeat from * to * 6 times (42)
Round 8: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 6*, repeat from * to * 6 times (48)
Round 9: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 7*, repeat from * to * 6 times (54)
Rounds 10 – 15: SC in each stitch around (54) – total of 6 rows
Slip stitch and fasten off. Leave a long tail for sewing later.
Making the Bottom of the Body:
Round 1: SC 6 in magic circle
Round 2: INC in each stitch around (12)
Round 3: *INC in first stitch, SC in next*, repeat from * to * 6 times (18)
Round 4: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 2*, repeat from * to * 6 times (24)
Round 5: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 3*, repeat from * to * 6 times (30)
Round 6: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 4*, repeat from * to * 6 times (36)
Round 7: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 5*, repeat from * to * 6 times (42)
Round 8: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 6*, repeat from * to * 6 times (48)
Round 9: *INC in first stitch, SC in next 7*, repeat from * to * 6 times (54)
Round 10: SC in each stitch around (54)
Slip stitch and fasten off. Leave a long tail for sewing later.
Finishing the Crochet Crab
To finish putting the crab together, you will want to use the tutorial provided by the original designer. She provides a great picture of where to place the arms and legs when sewing them on to the bottom of the crab. After all the arms and legs are attached, you will then sew together the two pieces.
Embellishments
If you are using safety eyes, you will want to put them in place before sewing the top and bottom of the crab’s body together. I used crocheted eyes that I made by making a magic circle with six single crochets slip stitched together using black worsted weight yarn. I attached the eyes after my crab was stuffed, but it may be easier to attach them before sewing and stuffing.
I used the yarn eyes at the request of my customer, but felt eyes would also be an easy way to add eyes to your crab without having to utilize safety eyes. To finish the crab, I added a little smile and some eyebrows to give it character. I recognize that real crabs don’t have eyebrows, but I love the way these little embellishments bring personality to stuffed toys!
Other Fun Sea Creature Patterns to Try
If you enjoyed making this adorable Mr. Crab pattern, here are some other fun patterns you may want to try out:
Mini Octopus Pattern by EssHaych
I hope you enjoyed this pattern review and that you give this cute crochet crab pattern a try! If you do, please be sure to tag me in all your pictures on social media so I can see your finished crab!
Happy Crocheting!
~ Candace
Thank you so much for trying out my pattern and for your nice comments. Yours turned out so cute! ❤
Thank you so much! I love your adorable pattern!