Can I make this blanket smaller for a lighter weight piece?

Yes, you can shorten the Foundation chain and reduce how many filet rows you repeat before moving to the border in Part 4. Just keep the appliqué sizes as given so the octopus and flowers stay proportional to a smaller base.

Do I need both the 5.0mm and 4.0mm hooks?

The pattern uses the 5.0mm hook for the blanket base and border, and the smaller 4.0mm hook for the appliqués, which keeps the octopus and flower shapes tighter and better defined. Using one hook for everything will leave the appliqués looser than intended.

Is this a good first amigurumi project?

If you already know basic single crochet and increasing in the round, the octopus bodies in Part 5 are a reasonable entry point into amigurumi. The filet base in Foundation is more technical than the appliqués themselves, so that part may be the bigger learning curve.

How do I attach the appliqués without them looking lumpy?

Pin or lay out the octopus bodies and smaller leaf, flower, and seashell pieces on the finished base before stitching anything down. Use a yarn needle and sew through the back loops of the base stitches so the attachment stitches stay hidden.

What if my border ruffles or pulls in like the pattern warns about?

The pattern itself tells you that ruffling means too many stitches on Round 1 of Part 4, and pulling in means you need to add more. Rip back just that round and adjust your stitch count before working the shell round on top of it.

Tropical octopus baby blanket crochet pattern with appliqués

LevelIntermediate
Time4-6 hours
Hook5.0 mm
YarnWorsted

About This Pattern

This one feels like a tide pool on a lazy afternoon, cream water with two curious octopus friends floating through it. The filet mesh base gives the whole thing a breezy, open quality before a single appliqué goes on. Once the coral and turquoise shapes land, the mood turns playful without losing that calm, sandy palette.

Picture this one draped over the arm of a glider in a nursery, or spread flat on a rug during tummy time. The shell border gives it a finished, boutique edge even though it started as a plain cream rectangle. It is the kind of blanket that gets photographed, then gets used anyway.

Chain a long foundation row and work the open filet mesh base using the chain-one, skip-one pattern.
Repeat the alternating filet rows until the cream background reaches the size you want.
Work the second octopus body in turquoise the same way, so you end up with two distinct creatures.
Add the leaf, flower, and seashell appliqué pieces in their own colors using the smaller hook.
Arrange and stitch the octopus bodies and smaller appliqués onto the finished mesh base with a yarn needle.
Work the border round of single crochet evenly around the whole blanket, tripling stitches at each corner.
Finish with the shell border round, alternating five-double-crochet shells with single crochet all the way around.

On the desk

Worsted weight yarn (medium weight, category 4) in the following colors:
Cream or off-white for the base blanket, approximately 800 yards
Coral pink for the main octopus and border, approximately 200 yards
Turquoise or aqua blue for the second octopus, approximately 100 yards
Lime green for leaves, approximately 150 yards
Hot pink for flowers, approximately 50 yards
Golden yellow and orange for flower centers, approximately 30 yards each
Peach and cream for seashells, approximately 30 yards each
5.0mm (H/8) crochet hook for the blanket base
4.0mm (G/6) crochet hook for appliqués
Yarn needle for weaving ends and attaching appliqués
Scissors
Polyester fiberfill for stuffing octopus bodies
With 5.0mm hook and worsted weight yarn:
Always check your gauge before starting. If your blanket is coming out too small, go up a hook size. Too large? Go down a hook size.

Stitch shorthand

ch — chain
st — stitch
sts — stitches
sl st — slip stitch
sc — single crochet
hdc — half double crochet
dc — double crochet
inc — increase
dec — decrease
mr — magic ring
shell — shell stitch

Tropical octopus baby blanket crochet pattern with appliqués

Easy to get wrong

Losing count in the filet rows

Count your ch-1 spaces at the end of each row against the stated totals in Foundation before turning. A single missed skip early on throws off every row that follows.

Overstuffing the octopus body

Add fiberfill gradually as you work the increasing rounds in Part 5 rather than packing it all in at the end. A dome stuffed too firmly will distort the final rounds and make it hard to close neatly.

Uneven shell border tension

If the Part 4 shell border starts to ruffle or pull in, check that you are consistently skipping two stitches before each five-double-crochet shell. Adjust stitch count evenly at corners rather than bunching extra stitches in one spot.

Between the songs

The appeal here is in the contrast between two completely different skill sets living in one project. The filet base teaches you to read a chain-one, skip-one grid almost by feel, which is oddly meditative once you get past the first few rows. Then the octopus appliqués flip the script into amigurumi territory, with standard round increases building a dome you actually stuff with fiberfill before attaching. The shell border on Part 4 ties it together, alternating five-double-crochet shells with single crochet for a scalloped edge that reads as polished rather than homemade. Layering a flat mesh, a dimensional creature, and a structured border in one piece is a satisfying stretch for anyone ready to move past basic blankets.

Listener questions

Can I make this blanket smaller for a lighter weight piece?
Yes, you can shorten the Foundation chain and reduce how many filet rows you repeat before moving to the border in Part 4. Just keep the appliqué sizes as given so the octopus and flowers stay proportional to a smaller base.
Do I need both the 5.0mm and 4.0mm hooks?
The pattern uses the 5.0mm hook for the blanket base and border, and the smaller 4.0mm hook for the appliqués, which keeps the octopus and flower shapes tighter and better defined. Using one hook for everything will leave the appliqués looser than intended.
Is this a good first amigurumi project?
If you already know basic single crochet and increasing in the round, the octopus bodies in Part 5 are a reasonable entry point into amigurumi. The filet base in Foundation is more technical than the appliqués themselves, so that part may be the bigger learning curve.
How do I attach the appliqués without them looking lumpy?
Pin or lay out the octopus bodies and smaller leaf, flower, and seashell pieces on the finished base before stitching anything down. Use a yarn needle and sew through the back loops of the base stitches so the attachment stitches stay hidden.
What if my border ruffles or pulls in like the pattern warns about?
The pattern itself tells you that ruffling means too many stitches on Round 1 of Part 4, and pulling in means you need to add more. Rip back just that round and adjust your stitch count before working the shell round on top of it.

Original pattern: https://bunnypatterns.com/tropical-octopus-baby-blanket-free-crochet-pattern/

About the Author

Marisol QuinteroWho runs Crochet Obsessed, why a stitch count sits at the end of every round, how a pattern gets written here, and the things this site will never do.

Tropical octopus baby blanket crochet pattern with appliqués

About This Pattern

On the desk

Stitch shorthand

Tropical octopus baby blanket crochet pattern with appliqués

Foundation

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Notions

More shots

Where it goes

Color ideas

Care