Jun
Getting Started with the Paddington Thing
So I made my first Paddington back in summer 2022 when I was staying at my sister’s place and honestly it turned out way better than I expected even though the hat gave me SO much trouble. But we’ll get to that.
First thing you need to know is that Paddington is basically just a bear shape with some specific color blocking and that famous blue coat and red hat situation. The pattern I used wasn’t even a real pattern at first, I just kind of looked at pictures and figured it out, which is probably why some parts were harder than they needed to be.
Yarn and Materials You’re Gonna Need
For the bear itself I used Caron Simply Soft in like a caramel brown color. I think it was called Taupe or something? Whatever the brownish tan one is. You need maybe two skeins depending on how big you make him. I made mine about 12 inches tall sitting down.
The blue coat I did with Red Heart Super Saver in Royal Blue because honestly it’s cheap and it works fine for this kind of thing. You don’t need fancy yarn for a stuffed bear that’s probably gonna end up on a shelf or in a kid’s toy pile.
Red hat was also Red Heart, just their basic red. I can’t remember the exact color name but literally any red works.
You’ll also need:
- Black yarn for the nose and eyes or you can use safety eyes if you want
- Stuffing, like a whole bag probably
- A darning needle for sewing pieces together
- Stitch markers because you WILL lose track of your rounds
- Hooks in 3.5mm and 4mm depending on your tension
The Basic Bear Body
Start with a magic ring for the head. I do 6 sc in the ring, then increase every stitch for round 2 so you have 12. Then you do that increase pattern where you sc 1, inc, sc 1, inc all the way around. Keep increasing every other round or every third round until you get to like 48-54 stitches depending on how big you want the head.
Work straight without increases for maybe 12-15 rounds. This is where my cat kept batting at my yarn ball and I had to shut her in the other room because it was actually getting annoying.
Then you decrease the same way you increased. Dec every 6th stitch, then every 5th, then every 4th, you know the drill. When you get down to like 12 stitches left, stuff the head REALLY firmly. Like more than you think. I didn’t stuff mine enough the first time and it got all floppy.
The Snout Part
The snout is what makes it actually look like Paddington instead of just a random bear. Start with another magic ring, 6 sc, then increase to 12, then one more round increasing to 18. Work straight for like 4 rounds, then stuff it lightly and sew it onto the face. Position it kind of low, not right in the middle of the face.
For the nose I just embroidered a triangle shape with black yarn. Safety eyes go on either side of the snout, pretty close together. If you’re doing embroidered eyes instead just make some french knots or something, I dunno, whatever looks bearish to you.
Body and Limbs
The body is basically the same process as the head but more oval shaped. Start small, increase up to like 36-42 stitches, work straight for a while, then decrease. I made mine pretty round and chubby because that’s how Paddington looks in the books.
Arms and legs are just tubes. For the legs start with 6 in a magic ring, increase to 12 for the foot part, work straight for a few rounds, then continue up for like 10-12 more rounds for the leg. Don’t stuff them super tight or they won’t pose well. The arms are even simpler, just skinny tubes, maybe 9 or 10 stitches around.
I attached the limbs with regular sewing but some people use button joints if you want them to move. I didn’t bother because it seemed like too much work and also I couldn’t find the right buttons at the time.
The Blue Coat That Almost Made Me Quit
Okay so the coat is annoying because it has to actually fit over the bear and look like a real coat with sleeves and everything. What I did was basically make a rectangle for the back that wraps around, then added sleeves.
Chain like 20 or whatever width fits around your bear’s body. Work back and forth in rows for maybe 12-15 rows depending on how long you want the coat. This is the back panel.
Then you make two front panels that are each half the width, maybe chain 10 and work the same number of rows. Leave gaps for armholes or you can do what I did and just kind of figure it out as you go.
Sleeves are just… ugh the sleeves were the part that annoyed me so much because getting them attached evenly was weirdly hard. Make two tubes that are wider at the top (like 16 stitches around) and narrower at the bottom (like 10 stitches). Sew them into the armholes and hope for the best honestly.
I added toggles made from little brown yarn buttons but you could use real buttons too. The coat should overlap in the front like a pea coat type situation.
That Stupid Hat
The hat is iconic but also it was SO FIDDLY. It’s supposed to be kind of a bucket hat or rain hat shape.
Start with a flat circle for the top. Magic ring with 6, increase every round until you have like 36-42 stitches. Then work straight WITHOUT increasing for several rounds to make the sides of the hat. This is the part that sits on his head.
For the brim you need to increase again but not as much. Maybe increase every 3rd or 4th stitch for one round so it flares out slightly. Work straight for 2-3 more rounds and that’s your brim.
The thing that annoyed me SO MUCH about this hat is getting it to sit on the head at the right angle. I ended up tacking it down with a few stitches so it wouldn’t fall off but it still looks kind of weird from certain angles. Whatever, it’s recognizable.
The Suitcase If You’re Feeling Ambitious
I didn’t make a suitcase for my first one but I did for the second one I made in like March 2024 as a gift. It’s basically just two rectangles crocheted in brown or tan, stuffed flat, and sewn together around the edges. Leave a gap at the top for the “opening.”
I added a handle made from a chain stitch cord and some little yarn details to look like suitcase clasps. You can write “WANTED ON VOYAGE” on a little tag if you’re good at embroidery but I’m not so I skipped that part.
Actually Assembling This Thing
Sewing everything together takes longer than you think it will. I did this while watching old episodes of Great British Bake Off and it took like two full episodes just to get the limbs attached properly.
Attach the head to the body first, making sure it’s centered. Use a LOT of yarn and weave it back and forth multiple times because you don’t want the head falling off. Then add the arms at shoulder height and the legs at the bottom of the body.
The ears I almost forgot about—just make two small semicircles and sew them to the sides of the head. They should stick out a bit.
Put the coat on before you attach the arms permanently or you’ll have to wrestle with it later. Trust me on this because I didn’t do that the first time and had to actually cut some stitches to get the coat on, then resew the arm.
Details and Finishing
The marmalade sandwich is optional but fun. Just crochet a small tan square, fold it in half, and add some orange yarn in the middle for the marmalade. Tuck it in his coat pocket or his paw.
Some people add a little luggage tag around his neck that says “Please look after this bear” but I never got around to doing that. Maybe for the next one.
For the face you might want to add some brown embroidery around the eyes to give him that sweet Paddington expression. I did a few straight stitches above each eye like eyebrows, just subtle.
Sizing and Variations
If you want a bigger or smaller Paddington just use thicker or thinner yarn with the appropriate hook size. I’ve seen people make tiny ones with thread and they’re really cute but seem like they’d be a pain to stuff properly.
You can also change up the coat color if you want but honestly the blue is so iconic that it looks weird in other colors. I thought about doing a yellow raincoat version but never actually did it.
Common Problems I Had
The proportions are the hardest part. If the head is too big he looks like a bobblehead. If it’s too small he looks weird and alien. The body should be slightly bigger than the head but not by much.
Getting the snout positioned right took me three tries. I kept sewing it on, looking at it, hating it, and ripping it off to try again. Look at reference photos and really pay attention to where it sits on the face.
The limbs on my first one were too thin and floppy. Make them slightly thicker than you think they should be and stuff them enough that they hold their shape but not so much that they’re stiff.
Also that coat will probably be too tight the first time you make it. I had to add like three extra stitches to the width on my second attempt because it was strangling the poor bear.
How Long This Actually Takes
The bear body itself maybe took me like 6 hours total? But spread out over several days because I can’t crochet for that long in one sitting without my hands cramping. The coat was another 3 hours probably, and the hat was like an hour but felt longer because I kept messing it up.
Sewing everything together and adding details was another 2-3 hours. So all in all maybe 12-15 hours for the whole project if you’re working at a normal pace and not rushing.
What I’d Do Differently Next Time
I would probably use a slightly bigger hook for the coat so it’s easier to get on and off. And I’d make the hat brim a bit wider because it looks kinda small in photos even though it seemed fine in person.
Also I’d plan out the arm attachment better so the coat situation isn’t such a nightmare. Maybe make the coat first and then size the bear to fit it instead of the other way around? I dunno, something to think about.
The stuffing I used was cheap polyester fill from Walmart and it worked fine but it’s not super soft. If I was making one as a gift for a little kid I’d probably use better quality stuffing or even wool roving.
Resources and Pattern Notes
I didn’t follow a specific pattern but there are some on Etsy and Ravelry if you want something more structured. The free patterns I found online were kind of hit or miss—some were really detailed and some were basically just “make a bear shape lol.”
If you’re new to amigurumi in general you should probably practice making a basic bear first before trying to add all the Paddington details. The coat and hat require some understanding of how garments work in crochet which isn’t super intuitive if you’ve only made like scarves and blankets before.
Tension matters a lot for stuffed animals because you don’t want gaps where the stuffing shows through. I crochet pretty tight naturally but if you’re a loose crocheter you might want to go down a hook size.
Anyway that’s basically everything I learned from making Paddington twice now. He’s sitting on my bookshelf right now looking slightly wonky but charming and I’m still pretty proud of how he turned out even with all the frustrating parts.
