Boo Witchy Ghost

What You Will Need

Yarn:

• White (W), for the body, arms, and shoe soles
• Black (K), for the witch hat
• Orange (O), for the pumpkin and the shoes
• Purple (P), for the hat band and the striped socks
• Green (G), a small scrap, for the pumpkin stem and leaf
• Golden yellow (Y), a tiny scrap, for the hat buckle
• Light pink, a tiny scrap, for the cheeks (optional)
• Tip: Use a DK weight cotton or cotton blend yarn. Cotton gives crisp stitches that hide the stuffing and make the ghost look neat. Use a smaller hook than usual so your stitches stay tight.

Tools:

• 3.0 mm (D/3) crochet hook
• Black felt for the eyes, or black yarn for embroidering them
• Poly-fil or fiberfill stuffing
• Yarn needle with a large eye for sewing and embroidering
• Stitch markers
• Sharp scissors
• Straight pins for placing the pieces before sewing
• Fabric glue or a sewing needle and thread (if you use felt for the eyes)

The Basics (US Terms)

• MR = magic ring
• sc = single crochet
• inc = increase (work 2 single crochets into the same stitch)
• dec = decrease (work 2 single crochets together, invisible decrease is best)
• sl st = slip stitch
• ch = chain
• BLO = back loop only
• W, K, O, P, G, Y = white, black, orange, purple, green, yellow
• All pieces are worked in continuous rounds. Use a stitch marker to mark the first stitch of each round.
• When changing colors, pull the new color through on the last stitch of the previous round.

Let Us Get Started

The ghost is made of a body, two arms, two legs, two shoes, a witch hat, and a little pumpkin. Then add the face.

Part 1: The Body

Worked with white yarn. Start at the bottom.

1. Round 1: Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Round 2: Inc in every stitch around. (12 stitches)
3. Round 3: (1 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (18 stitches)
4. Round 4: (2 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (24 stitches)
5. Round 5: (3 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (30 stitches)
6. Round 6: (4 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (36 stitches)
7. Rounds 7 to 9: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (36 stitches)
8. Round 10: (4 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (30 stitches)
9. Rounds 11 to 12: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (30 stitches)
10. Round 13: (3 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (24 stitches)
11. Rounds 14 to 15: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (24 stitches)
12. Round 16: (2 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (18 stitches)
13. Rounds 17 to 19: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (18 stitches) This is the head. The eyes will go between Rounds 16 and 18.
14. Stuff the body firmly, making sure the bottom is nice and flat so the ghost sits upright. Add more stuffing as you go.
15. Round 20: (1 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (12 stitches)
16. Round 21: Dec 6 times. (6 stitches)
17. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail. Pull the tail through the front loops of the last 6 stitches and pull tight to close. Weave in the end.

Part 2: The Arms (Make 2)

Worked with white yarn.

1. Round 1: Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Rounds 2 to 5: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (6 stitches)
3. Stuff very lightly.
4. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing. Leave the end open.

Part 3: The Striped Legs (Make 2)

Worked with purple and white yarn.

1. Round 1 (P): Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Round 2 (W): (1 sc, inc) repeat 3 times. (9 stitches)
3. Round 3 (P): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
4. Round 4 (W): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
5. Round 5 (P): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
6. Round 6 (W): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
7. Round 7 (P): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
8. Stuff lightly.
9. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing. Leave the end open. Carry the unused yarn loosely up the inside of the leg, or cut it and weave in the ends for a neater stripe.

Part 4: The Shoes (Make 2)

Worked with white and orange yarn.

1. Round 1 (W): Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Round 2 (W): Inc in every stitch around. (12 stitches)
3. Round 3 (W): (1 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (18 stitches)
4. Round 4 (O): Work 1 sc in the BLO of every stitch around. (18 stitches) This leaves a ridge, so the white sole stands out from the orange shoe.
5. Rounds 5 to 6 (O): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (18 stitches)
6. Round 7 (O): (1 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (12 stitches)
7. Stuff firmly, packing the stuffing into the toe first.
8. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing. Leave the end open.

Part 5: The Witch Hat

Worked with black and purple yarn. Start at the tip.

1. Round 1 (K): Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Rounds 2 to 5 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (6 stitches)
3. Round 6 (K): (1 sc, inc) repeat 3 times. (9 stitches)
4. Rounds 7 to 9 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (9 stitches)
5. Round 10 (K): (2 sc, inc) repeat 3 times. (12 stitches)
6. Rounds 11 to 12 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (12 stitches)
7. Round 13 (K): (3 sc, inc) repeat 3 times. (15 stitches)
8. Rounds 14 to 15 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (15 stitches)
9. Round 16 (K): (4 sc, inc) repeat 3 times. (18 stitches)
10. Rounds 17 to 18 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (18 stitches)
11. Rounds 19 to 20 (P): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (18 stitches) This is the purple hat band.
12. Round 21 (K): (1 sc, inc) repeat 9 times. (27 stitches)
13. Round 22 (K): (2 sc, inc) repeat 9 times. (36 stitches)
14. Round 23 (K): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (36 stitches)
15. Join with a sl st to the next stitch and fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Do not stuff. If the tip droops, put a pinch of stuffing inside it, or use a thin piece of wire folded over. Press the brim flat, and it will hold a gentle wave.

The Buckle (yellow):

1. Ch 8 with golden yarn. Join with a sl st to the first chain to make a ring. Fasten off, leaving a long tail.
2. Flatten the ring into a small rectangle.
3. Sew the buckle to the front of the purple band, centered. With the tail, add one straight stitch across the middle of the buckle.

Part 6: The Little Pumpkin

Worked with orange and green yarn.

1. Round 1 (O): Work 6 sc into a magic ring. (6 stitches)
2. Round 2 (O): Inc in every stitch around. (12 stitches)
3. Round 3 (O): (1 sc, inc) repeat 6 times. (18 stitches)
4. Rounds 4 to 6 (O): Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (18 stitches)
5. Round 7 (O): (1 sc, dec) repeat 6 times. (12 stitches)
6. Stuff the pumpkin firmly.
7. Round 8 (O): Dec 6 times. (6 stitches)
8. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail. Pull the tail through the front loops of the last 6 stitches and pull tight to close. Do not cut the tail yet.
9. Pumpkin ribs: Thread the long tail on the needle. Starting at the top center, bring the needle down the side of the pumpkin to the bottom center, then back up the other side, wrapping the yarn tightly. Repeat 4 or 5 times around, so the pumpkin looks like it has deep ribs. Fasten off and weave in the end.

The Stem (green):

1. Round 1: Work 5 sc into a magic ring. (5 stitches)
2. Rounds 2 to 3: Work 1 sc in every stitch around. (5 stitches)
3. Cut the yarn, leaving a long tail for sewing. Do not stuff.

The Leaf (green):

1. Ch 6. Sl st in the 2nd ch from the hook, sc in the next ch, hdc in the next ch, sc in the next ch, sl st in the last ch.
2. Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing.

Assembly and Finishing

This is where your ghost comes to life. Take your time pinning before you sew.

Making the Face:

1. Cut two ovals from the black felt, each about 3/4 inch (2 cm) tall and 1/2 inch (1.2 cm) wide. Or embroider two ovals with black yarn, filling them in with small straight stitches.
2. Pin the eyes on the front of the head, between Rounds 16 and 18 and about 5 stitches apart. They should be big and wide-set for a sweet, innocent look.
3. Sew or glue the eyes in place. If you use felt, add a few small stitches around the edges, so they stay firm.
4. If you like, use a little light pink yarn to embroider 2 or 3 tiny stitches under each eye for rosy cheeks, or brush on a little blush.

Attaching the Legs and Shoes:

1. Stuff each shoe, then slide the open end of a leg into the open end of each shoe. Sew them together with a whip stitch, going all the way around.
2. Pin the legs to the front bottom of the body, about 4 stitches apart, with the toes pointing forward. The feet should stick out about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the sheet.
3. Sew each leg on firmly, going around twice. Check that the ghost sits up and can balance.

Attaching the Arms:

1. Pin an arm on each side of the body, about 4 rounds below the head. Angle them forward and inward, so the hands rest on the front.
2. Sew the top of each arm on firmly.

Attaching the Pumpkin:

1. Pin the pumpkin to the front of the body, between the arms and just below the face.
2. Sew the stem to the top of the pumpkin, and add the leaf beside it.
3. Tack the pumpkin to the body with a few small stitches, and tack each hand to the side of the pumpkin, so the ghost looks like it is hugging it.

Adding the Hat:

1. Pin the hat on top of the head, tilted slightly to one side, so the tip leans a little.
2. Sew all the way around the inside of the hat with the long tail, going through the top of the head with small stitches.
3. Weave in all remaining ends.

A Few Friendly Tips

• Keep it snug: Keep your tension tight and even. Loose stitches let the stuffing show through, especially on white yarn.
• Flat bottom: Press the bottom of the body flat as you stuff it. A flat base helps the ghost sit up straight.
• Standing strong: If the ghost tips forward, sew the legs a little closer to the front, and add more stuffing to the back of the body.
• Stiff hat: To keep the tip upright, stuff it lightly, or slide a small cone of craft felt inside. A little starch spray on the brim also helps it stay flat.
• Make it your own: Try a pink ghost with a bow, a ghost with a tiny broom, or a ghost with a black cat instead of a pumpkin.
• Size up: For a bigger ghost, use chunky yarn and a larger hook, with the same stitch counts.
• Safe for little ones: For babies and toddlers, embroider the eyes and cheeks instead of using felt. Sew the arms and legs on with extra stitches.

I hope you enjoy making this friendly little witchy ghost. It is such a fun project and makes a wonderful handmade gift or Halloween decoration.

If you run into any trouble or just want to share how your ghost turned out, please reach out. I love seeing what you create.

Happy crocheting and happy Halloween!