I love the Sleepy Eyes design! Have you seen it? It’s on cups and pen holders and nursery decor, it’s basically everywhere.
I wanted to update my couch pillows and decided to add a little Sleepy Eyes Cushion of my own design.
And voila! A new pattern for you to enjoy!
It’s a very straightforward pattern with Half Double Crochet stitches in the round.
But, you’ll get to practice your embroidery skills with the cute little Sleepy Eyes that are the main bit of the entire cushion.
Ready? Let’s get Crafty!
Sleepy Eyes Cushion Crochet Pattern
Supplies:
Caron One Pound in White
Caron Simply Soft in Black and Strawberry
Optional: “I Love This Yarn” in Gold for gold trim
G/4mm hook
Straight Pins (big heads are best)
Scissors
Tapestry needle
Polyester stuffing/Polyfil
Stuffing stick/chopstick/pencil
Skill level:
Beginner
Finished Dimensions:
10 inches by 10 inches by 4 inches*
*Size may vary slightly with yarn size, hook size, and amount of stuffing used.
Abbreviations:
Ch: chain
Sl st: slip stitch
Sc: single crochet
HDC: Half Double Crochet
Inc: Increase, Two Sc in the same Sc
Dec: decrease or sc2tog (it will make your project look cleaner if you do an “invisible” decrease)
BLO: Back Loops Only
Notes before Starting:
*This pattern is written in U.S. terms.
*This project is worked in joined rounds.
*Your total stitch count will be in parentheses at the end of every row. This will help you to keep count of your stitches and make sure the finished product looks right. Chains and Slip Stitches do not count as stitches.
*I recommend crocheting over your yarn tails to make less work of weaving in ends when finishing off your work. You can find tutorials online or follow the instructions provided.
Cushion
*Join rounds with Sl st and ch 1 unless otherwise noted*
Round 1: Magic circle 8 HDC (8)
Round 2: Inc in each HDC (16)
Round 3: (HDC, Inc) repeat around (24)
Round 4: (Inc, HDC in next 2 HDC) repeat around (32)
Round 5: (HDC in next 3 HDC, Inc) repeat around (40)
Round 6: HDC in first 2 HDC, (Inc, HDC in next 4 HDC) repeat around, HDC in last 2 HDC (48)
Round 7: (HDC in next 5 HDC, Inc) repeat around (56)
Round 8: HDC in first 3 HDC, (Inc, HDC in next 6 HDC) repeat around, HDC in last 3 HDC (64)
Round 9: (HDC in next 7 HDC, Inc) repeat around (72)
Round 10: HDC in first 4 HDC, (Inc, HDC in next 8 HDC) repeat around, HDC in last 4 HDC (80)
Round 11: (HDC in next 9 HDC, Inc) repeat around (88)
Round 12: HDC in first 5 HDC, (Inc, HDC in next 10 HDC) repeat around, HDC in last 5 HDC (96)
Round 13: (HDC in next 11 HDC, Inc) repeat around (104)
Round 14: (In BLO) HDC in first 6 HDC, (Inc, HDC in next 12 HDC) repeat around, HDC in last 6 HDC (112)
Round 15: In BLO (HDC in next 13 HDC, Inc) repeat around (120)
Round 16: HDC in each HDC around (120)
Round 17: HDC in each HDC around (120)
Round 18: In BLO (HDC in next 13 HDC, Dec) repeat around (112)
Round 19: In BLO (HDC in next 12 HDC, Dec) repeat around (104)
Round 20: (HDC in next 11 HDC, Dec) repeat around (96)
Round 21: (HDC in next 10 HDC, Dec) repeat around (88)
Round 22: (HDC in next 9 HDC, Dec) repeat around (80)
Round 23: (HDC in next 8 HDC, Dec) repeat around (72)
Round 24: (HDC in next 7 HDC, Dec) repeat around (64)
Round 25: (HDC in next 6 HDC, Dec) repeat around (56)
Round 26: (HDC in next 5 HDC, Dec) repeat around (48)
Round 27: (HDC in next 4 HDC, Dec) repeat around (40)
Pull up a loop and set your hook aside. Stuff the cushion as firmly as you’d like. I understuffed mine a bit to help keep the shape.
Round 28: (HDC in next 3 HDC, Dec) repeat around (32)
Round 29: (HDC in next 2 HDC, Dec) repeat around (24)
Round 30: (HDC in next HDC, Dec) repeat around (16)
Round 31: Dec in each HDC around (8)
Finish Off and weave in all ends.
Cheeks (make 2)
Using Caron Simply Soft yarn in Strawberry
Round 1: Make a Magic Circle with 6 Sc (6)
Sl st to 1st Sc to join the Circle. Leave a tail about 8 inches long to sew the cheeks to the face.
Embroidering the Sleepy Eyes
Using your straight pins, make the Sleepy Eyes design between Rounds 4 and 8 on both sides of the pillow.
The curve of the eyes is shallow, only about a half inch deep.
The eyelashes are also short, about 3/8th of an inch long.
You can see in the photo the eye on the left is far too deep and the stitches are long, making it look messy. Do your best to make short stitches and make the eyelashes angle towards the center of the cushion to make the Sleepy Eyes.
Optional Gold Trim:
Using “I Love This Yarn” in Gold
Find your (Sl st and ch 1) seam that goes across the middle of the cushion exactly between your two middle BLO rows. Insert your hook into the middle row underneath the HDC there and pull the yarn through.
Ch 1, then Sc in the same Sc and continue to Sc around the cushion. You will continue to insert your hook underneath the HDC and Sc on top of it, working perpendicular across the HDC round.
Sl st into the first Sc and Finish Off, weaving in all ends.
Now you have an adorable and trendy little cushion for your chair, your bed, or your couch. It’s also a great little gift for a nursery or a college dorm. Get creative with your gifting!
Have an awesome day!
Jessica from 3rd House
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