Free Velvet Snake Amigurumi Pattern: Crochet Your Own Cuddly Serpent

There is something undeniably charming about turning one of nature’s most misunderstood creatures into a soft, huggable toy. Snakes have a reputation that their crocheted counterparts simply do not deserve, because a velvet yarn snake amigurumi is about as threatening as a bowl of marshmallows. Whether you are a longtime amigurumi enthusiast or someone who has just discovered the joy of crocheting tiny stuffed animals, this free velvet snake amigurumi pattern is going to become one of your favorite makes. It works up quickly, uses minimal materials, and produces a result that looks far more impressive than the effort it requires.

In this post, you will find everything you need to crochet your own cuddly serpent from start to finish, including a full materials list, gauge information, stitch counts, assembly instructions, and tips for working with velvet yarn. Grab your hook and let us get started.

Why Velvet Yarn Is Perfect for Amigurumi Snakes

Before we dive into the pattern itself, it is worth spending a moment talking about velvet yarn and why it is such a wonderful choice for this particular project. Velvet yarn, sometimes sold under names like chenille, velvet chenille, or “velvet” by various brands, has a plush, velvety texture that gives finished amigurumi an almost lifelike softness. When you run your fingers along a finished velvet snake, it feels genuinely smooth and sleek, which suits the subject matter beautifully.

Velvet yarn does have a learning curve. It is harder to see your stitches because the fibers tend to obscure the loops, and it sheds more than standard acrylic. However, once you get used to working with it, you will not want to go back. The payoff in terms of texture and finished appearance is absolutely worth the adjustment period. For beginners who have never used velvet yarn before, this snake pattern is an ideal introduction because the shape is simple and forgiving, and the stitch count is low enough that you are not likely to lose your place in a complicated section.

If you genuinely prefer to work with standard acrylic, this pattern works perfectly well with any worsted or bulky weight yarn. You will simply have a slightly different finished texture, which is no less cute.

Materials You Will Need

To make your velvet snake amigurumi, gather the following before you sit down to crochet. Having everything on hand makes the process much smoother and means you will not have to pause mid-project.

You will need approximately 100 to 150 grams of velvet yarn in your main color. This is enough for a snake that measures around 18 to 22 inches in length when finished. If you want a longer snake, simply buy a second skein. A small amount of a contrasting color for the tongue is helpful but entirely optional. Most velvet snake patterns benefit from a two-tone color scheme, and many crafters enjoy using a bright accent color for the belly section, which requires a second skein of a complementary shade.

For your hook, a 4.0 mm or 4.5 mm crochet hook works well with most velvet yarns. Check your yarn label for the recommended hook size, as brands vary. You want your stitches to be tight enough that the stuffing does not show through but not so tight that working into the stitches becomes a struggle.

You will also need polyester fiberfill stuffing, two safety eyes in 12 mm size (or you can embroider eyes for a safer toy suitable for babies and very young children), a yarn needle for weaving in ends and sewing pieces together, stitch markers, and scissors.

Optional but nice to have: a small amount of red or pink felt for the tongue, or you can crochet the tongue using the instructions included in the pattern below. Wire pipe cleaners can be inserted before you close the snake to make it poseable, but this step is not recommended for toys intended for small children.

Gauge and Sizing

Gauge: 14 single crochet stitches and 16 rows equal approximately 4 inches using a 4.0 mm hook and standard velvet weight yarn.

Finished size: Approximately 18 to 22 inches long and 3 to 4 inches at the widest point of the body when stuffed. These measurements are approximate and will vary based on your personal tension and yarn choice.

Abbreviations Used in This Pattern

MR — magic ring
sc — single crochet
inc — increase (2 single crochet in the same stitch)
dec — invisible decrease (insert hook through front loops only of the next 2 stitches and complete as a single crochet)
sl st — slip stitch
ch — chain
st — stitch
sts — stitches
BLO — back loop only
FLO — front loop only
( ) — work the stitches inside the parentheses the indicated number of times
[ ] — total stitch count at the end of the round

Free Velvet Snake Amigurumi Pattern

Head

The head of your snake is worked in continuous rounds. Use a stitch marker to keep track of the beginning of each round.

Round 1: Start with a magic ring, 6 sc into the ring. [6] Round 2: Inc in each st around. [12] Round 3: (Sc 1, inc) repeat 6 times. [18] Round 4: (Sc 2, inc) repeat 6 times. [24] Round 5: (Sc 3, inc) repeat 6 times. [30] Rounds 6 through 10: Sc in each st around. [30] — work 5 rounds even.
Round 11: (Sc 3, dec) repeat 6 times. [24]

Before continuing, insert safety eyes between rounds 7 and 8, approximately 5 to 6 stitches apart. If you are making this toy for a baby or toddler, skip the safety eyes and embroider them after stuffing using black yarn.

Round 12: (Sc 2, dec) repeat 6 times. [18]

Begin stuffing the head firmly with polyester fiberfill at this point.

Round 13: (Sc 1, dec) repeat 6 times. [12]

Add more stuffing to ensure the head holds its shape.

Round 14: Dec 6 times. [6]

Fasten off, leaving a long tail. Use your yarn needle to close the remaining opening by weaving through the front loops of the remaining 6 stitches and pulling tight. Weave in the end securely.

Body

The body of the snake is where most of the length comes from. It is worked in continuous rounds and begins with the widest point, tapering down toward the tail.

Round 1: MR, 6 sc into ring. [6] Round 2: Inc in each st. [12] Round 3: (Sc 1, inc) repeat 6 times. [18] Round 4: (Sc 2, inc) repeat 6 times. [24] Rounds 5 through 12: Sc in each st around. [24] — work 8 rounds even.
Round 13: (Sc 2, dec) repeat 6 times. [18] Rounds 14 through 20: Sc in each st around. [18] — work 7 rounds even.
Round 21: (Sc 1, dec) repeat 6 times. [12] Rounds 22 through 30: Sc in each st around. [12] — work 9 rounds even.
Round 31: (Sc 2, dec) repeat 3 times. [9] Rounds 32 through 40: Sc in each st around. [9] — work 9 rounds even.
Round 41: (Sc 1, dec) repeat 3 times. [6] Rounds 42 through 55: Sc in each st around. [6] — work 14 rounds even for the tail.

This gives your snake a naturally tapered shape from a plump middle body down to a slim, pointed tail. If you want a longer snake, simply add more rounds in the even sections. A good rule of thumb is that every 6 additional rounds adds approximately one inch of length.

Begin stuffing the body as you work, a little at a time, before the opening becomes too small to insert the fiberfill easily. Do not overstuff the tail section. Leaving it lightly stuffed or even unstuffed toward the very tip gives it a more realistic and flexible feel.

Fasten off at the end of round 55 (or your final round), leaving a long tail for sewing. If you added extra length, fasten off after your chosen final round.

Tongue (Crocheted Version)

The tongue is a simple forked piece that adds enormous personality to the finished snake. Use red or pink yarn for the best effect.

Chain 8. Sl st in 2nd chain from hook and next 2 chains. Chain 4. Sl st in 2nd chain from hook and next 2 chains. Sl st in remaining 3 chains of the original chain. Fasten off, leaving a tail for attaching.

Use your yarn needle to sew the tongue to the front of the head, tucking it into the center of the magic ring or just below it. Secure tightly so it does not pull out with handling.

Alternatively, cut a small forked tongue shape from red or pink felt and glue or sew it in place. Both methods look equally good on the finished toy.

Assembly Instructions

Once all pieces are complete, it is time to put your snake together. This step is straightforward because the snake consists of only two main pieces: the head and the body.

Pin the open end of the head to the open end of the body, aligning them carefully. Because both pieces have 6 stitches at their openings after decreasing, they should match up evenly. Use your yarn needle and the tail left on the head piece to whipstitch the two openings together, going through one stitch from each piece alternately. Work all the way around the join, then fasten off and weave in all ends thoroughly.

Add any additional stuffing through the join before closing it completely if you find the pieces need more filling.

Attach the tongue as described above, and your snake is finished.

Belly Stripe Variation

One of the most popular variations on this pattern involves adding a contrasting color belly stripe to give the snake a two-toned look. To achieve this effect, work the first few rounds of the body in your main color, then introduce a contrasting color for a section of rounds along the underside. This is best accomplished using the standing stitch method or the carrying yarn method for colorwork in amigurumi.

A simpler alternative is to work the entire snake in your main color and then use surface slip stitches along one side of the body in a contrasting color to suggest a belly pattern. Use your hook to pull up loops of the contrast yarn through the surface of the crocheted fabric, creating a chain-like line that follows the natural curve of the snake’s underside. This technique requires no colorwork knowledge and produces a clean, attractive result.

Tips for Working with Velvet Yarn

Working with velvet yarn for the first time can be frustrating if you go in without a few strategies. Here are the things that will make the biggest difference.

Use a hook with a slightly larger diameter than you think you need. Velvet yarn compresses and fluffs out, so going up half a size from the label recommendation often produces a better fabric with more visible stitch definition.

Work in good lighting. The nature of velvet yarn is that it absorbs light, making it genuinely difficult to see your stitches in dim conditions. A bright lamp positioned directly over your work makes a significant difference.

Count frequently. Because stitch visibility is lower with velvet, losing a stitch is easy. Get in the habit of counting at the end of every single round rather than every few rounds.

Use a smooth, contrasting color stitch marker. Velvet yarn can swallow thin or fuzzy stitch markers. Opt for a smooth, brightly colored marker that will be easy to find against the plush fibers.

Do not rip back unless you absolutely have to. Velvet yarn does not unravel and re-work as well as standard acrylic. The fibers mat and flatten with repeated handling, so prevention through careful counting is better than correction.

Customization Ideas

One of the best things about a pattern this simple is how endlessly customizable it is. Here are some ideas to make your snake uniquely yours.

Change the color combination to mimic real snake species. A black and yellow pattern suggests a corn snake. Muted greens and browns create a convincing woodland vibe. Bright tropical colors make a playful fantasy serpent that no child will be able to resist.

Add small crocheted features like a textured back ridge, tiny nostrils worked in surface crochet, or a rattle tail for a rattlesnake variation. The rattle can be made by stuffing a small ball piece with a few beads or dried rice before closing it up, then attaching it to the end of the tail.

Make a family of snakes in graduating sizes. A large mama snake and two or three smaller baby snakes make a wonderful gift set, and the smaller versions work up incredibly quickly once you are familiar with the pattern.

Use this pattern to create a sensory toy by stuffing different sections with different materials. Crinkle material in the head section, fiberfill in the body, and a rattle bead or two near the tail creates a toy with wonderful tactile variety for babies (using embroidered eyes in that case).

Finishing and Care Instructions

Once your snake is complete, give it a gentle blocking if needed. Velvet amigurumi generally does not need wet blocking, but you can steam it lightly from a distance to help it sit the way you want.

For care, hand washing in cool water with a gentle detergent is the safest option for velvet yarn toys. Lay flat to dry rather than machine drying, which can cause velvet yarn to mat and lose its texture. If the toy is intended as a display piece rather than a heavily played-with toy, spot cleaning is usually sufficient.

Store finished velvet amigurumi away from direct sunlight, which can fade the colors over time, and away from sources of lint or pet hair, which velvet attracts enthusiastically.

A Few Words Before You Begin

Every crocheter works at a slightly different tension, and amigurumi is wonderfully forgiving of individual variation. If your finished snake is slightly larger or smaller than the measurements listed here, that is perfectly fine. Amigurumi is not a precision craft in the way that garment making can be, and the charm of handmade toys is partly in their slight imperfections.

If you are new to amigurumi specifically, the most important skills to have in place before starting are the magic ring, single crochet, increases, and invisible decreases. All four of these appear in this pattern and between them cover about ninety percent of all amigurumi ever made. If you are uncertain about any of them, a quick refresher video before you start will pay dividends throughout the project.

This pattern is free for personal use. You are welcome to sell finished items made from it, but please credit the pattern. If you make your own velvet snake using these instructions, sharing a photo in a crochet community or tagging your creation online is a wonderful way to inspire other crafters to try the pattern for themselves.

Happy crocheting, and may your snake be the softest, cuddliest, most charming serpent anyone has ever seen.