Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover Crochet Pattern by Jasmine Harward: Your Complete Guide
If you’ve ever wanted to add a touch of oceanic charm to your bathroom, this Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover crochet pattern by Jasmine Harward is exactly what you’ve been looking for. These adorable crocheted creatures sit right on top of your toilet paper roll, transforming a plain bathroom necessity into a delightful decorative accent. Whether you’re a seasoned crocheter or someone who’s been building confidence with beginner-friendly projects, this pattern is a wonderful addition to your crafting repertoire.
In this guide, we’ll walk through everything you need to know — from the materials and stitches involved, to tips for getting the best results, to ideas for displaying and gifting these sweet bathroom companions. By the time you’re finished reading, you’ll feel fully prepared to dive in and start crocheting your very own turtle or whale toilet paper cover today.
What Is a Toilet Paper Cover and Why Make One?
Toilet paper covers have been a beloved craft tradition for decades. Long before themed bathroom décor became a mainstream trend, crafters were crocheting, knitting, and sewing decorative covers to sit atop spare toilet paper rolls. They serve a simple but charming purpose — they tuck neatly over a standard roll of toilet paper to conceal it while adding personality to a bathroom shelf, vanity, or toilet tank.
In recent years, animal-themed toilet paper covers have surged in popularity, and it’s easy to see why. They’re whimsical, they make guests smile, and they’re one of those small handmade details that make a house feel like a home. The Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover pattern by Jasmine Harward takes this classic concept and gives it a fresh, modern, and utterly endearing twist. With a round, plump turtle sitting contentedly on its roll and a cheerful whale peeking up from the water, these designs bring a seaside feel to any bathroom space.
They also make incredible gifts. Baby showers, housewarming parties, birthdays — these covers are the kind of thoughtful, handmade gift that people genuinely treasure because they’re both functional and adorable. And because they’re relatively compact projects, you can make one in a single sitting or over a relaxed weekend of crafting.
About the Designer: Jasmine Harward
Jasmine Harward is a talented crochet designer known for creating patterns that feel approachable without sacrificing creativity or detail. Her designs tend to have that irresistible quality where they look impressive when finished but are structured in a way that guides the crocheter through each step logically and clearly. The Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover pattern is a perfect example of her style — the finished pieces look like something you’d find in a charming boutique, yet the pattern itself is written with enough clarity that crafters at varying skill levels can follow along.
Jasmine’s patterns often incorporate simple shaping techniques, clean stitch work, and creative color combinations that allow makers to express their own personalities through the craft. If you’re new to her work, this toilet paper cover pattern is a wonderful introduction, and many crafters find themselves seeking out more of her designs after completing their first one.
Materials You’ll Need
Before you cast on — or rather, before you make your magic ring — let’s talk about what you’ll need to gather. One of the great things about this pattern is that it doesn’t require a large investment in supplies. You’ll be working with small amounts of yarn, a standard crochet hook, and a few basic notions.
For yarn, you’ll want worsted weight yarn in the colors of your choice. For the turtle, most crafters reach for shades of green — a medium or forest green for the shell and body, perhaps a lighter green for the underbelly details. You might also want a small amount of tan or beige for accent details. For the whale, shades of blue are classic and beautiful — a medium or navy blue for the body, white for the belly, and a small pop of blue or teal for contrast. That said, there’s absolutely no rule that says your turtle has to be green or your whale has to be blue. Part of the joy of handmade crafts is making choices that reflect your personal taste. A lilac whale or a teal turtle could be just as charming.
You’ll need a crochet hook sized to match your yarn — typically a size 5mm or US H/8 hook works well with standard worsted weight. You’ll also want a yarn needle for weaving in ends and seaming pieces together, a small amount of polyfill or fiberfill stuffing for shaping the animal’s body, and safety eyes in an appropriate size (typically 12mm or 15mm work nicely for this scale of amigurumi-style work). If you’re making this for a young child, you may want to embroider the eyes with yarn instead of using safety eyes for safety reasons.
A stitch marker or two will also come in handy, particularly when working in the round, which is the primary construction method used throughout the pattern.
Skill Level and Stitches Used
This pattern is generally considered a beginner-friendly to intermediate project. If you’re comfortable with the basic crochet stitches and have worked in the round before, you’ll navigate this pattern with ease. If you’re newer to crochet and this is one of your first projects working in continuous rounds, it might feel a little adventurous at first, but the experience is absolutely worth it, and the pattern provides enough guidance to carry you through.
The primary stitches used include the magic ring (also called a magic circle), single crochet, half double crochet, double crochet, slip stitch, and basic increases and decreases. If you’ve crocheted a hat, an amigurumi animal, or even a basic dishcloth, you’ve likely already worked with most of these stitches. The pattern also uses some simple seaming to attach the animal’s body pieces to the toilet paper cover base.
The construction method involves working the main body of the cover — essentially a tube that fits snugly over a standard toilet paper roll — and then separately crocheting the animal components that sit on top. This modular approach makes the pattern flexible and allows you to customize proportions if needed.
Step-by-Step Overview of the Construction Process
While we won’t reproduce the full pattern instructions here (you’ll want to purchase the official pattern from Jasmine Harward directly to get the complete, detailed written instructions), we can walk through the general construction process so you know what to expect.
The toilet paper cover base is worked from the bottom up in continuous rounds of single crochet. You’ll start with a magic ring, work increases to form a flat circle for the bottom, and then transition into straight rounds to build up the walls of the cylinder. The goal is a snug but not tight fit over a standard toilet paper roll — you want the cover to stay in place without being difficult to remove. Most standard toilet paper rolls are roughly four and a half inches in diameter and about four and a half inches tall, so the base is worked to those approximate dimensions.
Once your base is complete, you’ll set it aside and work on the animal sitting on top. For the turtle, this includes the main body dome (which doubles as the shell), four little legs, a head, and a small tail. Each piece is worked separately and then assembled. The shell often features a decorative stitch pattern worked over the top to mimic the geometric pattern of a real turtle shell — this detail elevates the finished look considerably. The legs, head, and tail are lightly stuffed before being sewn to the body.
For the whale, the construction focuses on the main body shape, a wide flat tail (the fluke), and two small pectoral fins. The belly detail is typically worked in a contrasting color and seamed or worked directly into the body. A little spout of white yarn at the top adds the finishing touch that makes the whale instantly recognizable and incredibly sweet.
After all pieces are assembled for your chosen animal, the completed figure is sewn securely to the top of the toilet paper cover base. The result is a three-dimensional, sculptural piece that stands upright on its roll and looks perfectly at home on a bathroom shelf.
Tips for Getting the Best Results
A few practical tips can make a big difference in the quality of your finished cover.
Work your base cylinder with consistent tension throughout. Because the base is the structural foundation of the whole project, even tension ensures that it holds its shape and fits properly over a toilet paper roll. If you tend to crochet tightly, you might go up a hook size for the base portion; if you crochet loosely, you might go down a size.
When working the animal pieces, slightly tighter tension is actually your friend. Amigurumi-style pieces benefit from a denser fabric that doesn’t show gaps, especially when stuffed. Many crafters use a hook one size smaller than what the yarn label recommends when working the animal components.
Use a stitch marker to keep track of the beginning of each round. It’s remarkably easy to lose your place when crocheting in continuous rounds, and a marker takes the guesswork out of counting.
When stuffing the animal pieces, aim for a firm but not overstuffed feel. You want the pieces to hold their shape without pulling at the stitches or creating a lumpy appearance. A small amount of polyfill goes a long way.
Take your time with the seaming. The assembly stage is where your project really comes together, and careful, neat seaming makes a visible difference in the finished look. Use the same yarn you used to crochet the pieces, thread it onto your yarn needle, and use a whip stitch or mattress stitch to join the parts. Hide your knots inside the stuffed pieces whenever possible for a clean finish.
If you want to give your toilet paper cover as a gift, consider slipping it over an actual roll of toilet paper before packaging it. Not only does this make for a more impressive presentation, it also shows the recipient exactly how it’s meant to be used.
Color Inspiration and Customization Ideas
One of the most enjoyable aspects of making this pattern is choosing your colors. While the classic colorways are undeniably appealing, the pattern lends itself beautifully to customization.
Consider coordinating your toilet paper cover with your bathroom’s existing color scheme. If your bathroom features gray and white tones, a charcoal whale with a white belly would look sleek and sophisticated. If your bathroom has warm earth tones, a rust-orange turtle or a golden-sand whale could be stunning.
For a gender-neutral baby shower gift, soft mint greens and gentle creams are always a hit. For a child’s bathroom, bright primary colors or even rainbow-striped elements could make the cover feel playful and fun. You could also make a matched set — one turtle and one whale for a full ocean-themed bathroom display.
For seasonal or holiday versions, some crafters have adapted the basic construction to feature holiday colors — think red and green for Christmas, orange and black for Halloween, or pastels for Easter. The same structural pattern can produce endlessly different looks depending on the colors and any small embellishment choices you make.
Where to Find the Pattern
The Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover pattern by Jasmine Harward is available for purchase on popular craft marketplace platforms. Ravelry and Etsy are two of the most common places to find independent crochet designers selling their patterns, and searching for the pattern by name or by the designer’s name should bring it right up.
When you purchase the pattern, you’ll receive a PDF with the full, detailed written instructions, stitch counts for each round, assembly guidance, and typically photos of the finished pieces. Reading through the entire pattern before you begin is always a good habit — it lets you familiarize yourself with the construction sequence and catch any unfamiliar abbreviations or techniques before you’re mid-project.
If you do run into questions while working the pattern, many designers are responsive to messages through their shop platforms. There are also active crochet communities on Ravelry, Facebook, and Reddit where experienced crafters are generally happy to help troubleshoot.
Displaying and Caring for Your Toilet Paper Cover
Once your toilet paper cover is complete, it deserves a good home. The most natural display spot is simply on top of a spare roll of toilet paper on a bathroom shelf or windowsill. It also looks charming on a toilet tank, tucked into a wicker basket filled with bathroom essentials, or sitting on a decorative tray alongside other small bathroom accents.
For care, acrylic yarn versions can typically be gently hand washed and laid flat to dry. If you used natural fibers like cotton or wool, follow the care instructions on your yarn label. Because the cover doesn’t come into direct contact with water during normal use, it should stay clean with minimal maintenance, though a gentle wash every few months is a good practice.
Why Handmade Bathroom Décor Matters
In an era when home goods are mass-produced and endlessly replicated, there’s something genuinely special about a handmade piece that lives in your home. Crocheting a toilet paper cover might seem like a small act, but it’s an expression of creativity, care, and craft. Every stitch is intentional. Every color choice is personal. And every time someone walks into your bathroom and smiles at the little whale or turtle perched on the shelf, that’s a moment of connection between maker and viewer that no factory-produced item can replicate.
The Turtle and Whale Toilet Paper Cover pattern by Jasmine Harward gives you everything you need to create something like that — a small but meaningful handmade object that brings joy to an unexpected place. Whether you’re making it for yourself, for a friend, or for a family member who loves the ocean, this pattern is a delightful project that rewards you with something truly worth keeping.
Grab your yarn, find your favorite hook, and let the ocean come to your bathroom, one stitch at a time.
