Free Crochet Teddy Bear Granny Square Pattern: Baby Blanket Motif

Create a cozy, handmade treasure for your nursery with this sweet baby blanket motif, featuring a charming teddy bear face centered inside a classic granny square. The design comes together in honey, cream, and sage yarns, making it a wonderful heirloom project to stitch for a little one or a thoughtful handmade gift.

Free Crochet Teddy Bear Granny Square Pattern: Baby Blanket Motif

Quick Facts

• Skill level: Intermediate
• Finished size: About 8 in wide by 8 in high
• Yarn: Worsted weight cotton yarn in Honey, Cream, Sage, and Dark Brown/Black
• Hook: 4 mm (US G/6) crochet hook
• Stitches used: ch, sl st, sc, hdc, dc, tr, puff stitch
• Time to make: About 2 hours per square

Size customization tips are included further down to help you plan your blanket dimensions.

What Makes This Motif Special

This design transforms a traditional granny square into an adorable keepsake by building the square outward from a textured teddy bear center. You will work in the round to shape the bear’s snout and ears, transition into warm cream shells that form the ruffled frame, and anchor the entire block with a sturdy sage border for easy joining.

Skill Level

• Working in the round and in rows
• Basic increasing and decreasing
• Simple surface embroidery for facial features
• Joining squares seamlessly

You can easily master this motif if you are comfortable with basic granny square construction and simple shaping.

Finished Measurements

Materials You Will Need

• Hook: 4 mm (US G/6) crochet hook
• Notions: Yarn needle, stitch markers, black yarn for eyes and nose embroidery

Yarn Suggestions

⚠️ Note: Avoid stretchy acrylic yarns for this project, as cotton yarn holds the square’s sharp geometric shape and flat profile much better when joined into a blanket.

Gauge

• Rounds 1 to 4 of the Teddy Center measure about 3.5 inches across using a 4 mm hook.

Abbreviations

• ch: chain
• sl st: slip stitch
• sc: single crochet
• hdc: half double crochet
• dc: double crochet
• tr: treble crochet
• puff: puff stitch
• st(s): stitch(es)
• sp(s): space(s)
• rep: repeat
• rnd(s): round(s)
• sk: skip
• inc: increase (work 2 sts in the same st)
• dec: decrease (work 2 sts together)

UK: sc = dc, hdc = htr, dc = tr.

Special Stitches Explained

1. Magic Ring: Wrap yarn around your fingers to create a loop, insert hook through center, pull up a loop, and ch 1 to secure.
2. Puff Stitch: Yarn over, insert hook into stitch, pull up a loop. Repeat 3 times in the same stitch (9 loops on hook), yarn over and draw through all 9 loops, ch 1 to close.

Pattern Instructions

Section 1: Teddy Center (Honey and Cream, make 1)

• Rnd 1 (Snout, Cream): Working into a magic ring, ch 1, 8 sc in ring, join with sl st to first sc (8 sc).
• Rnd 2 (Cream): Ch 1, 2 sc in each st around, join with sl st (16 sc).
• Rnd 3 (Face Base, switch to Honey): Ch 2 (counts as hdc here and throughout), 1 hdc in same st, 1 hdc in next st, (2 hdc in next st, 1 hdc in next st) rep around, join with sl st (24 hdc).
• Rnd 4 (Honey): Ch 2, 1 hdc in next st, 2 hdc in next st, (1 hdc in each of next 2 sts, 2 hdc in next st) rep around, join with sl st (32 hdc).
• Rnd 5 (Ears and Edge, Honey): Ch 1, sc in first 5 sts, [sk next st, work (2 dc, 2 tr, 2 dc) in next st, sk next st] to form first ear, sc in next 10 sts, [sk next st, work (2 dc, 2 tr, 2 dc) in next st, sk next st] to form second ear, sc in remaining 5 sts, join with sl st, fasten off Honey leaving a long tail (44 sts).

✅ Checkpoint: At this point, your teddy face should measure roughly 4.5 inches across with clearly defined ears at the top.

Section 2: Corner Rounds (Cream and Sage, make 1)

• Rnd 6 (Cream): Join Cream in any corner space between ears, ch 3 (counts as dc), (2 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in same space for first corner, [sk 2 sts, 3 dc in next st] 4 times, sk 2 sts, (3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in corner space 3 times, ending with [sk 2 sts, 3 dc in next st] 4 times, join with sl st, fasten off Cream (4 corner ch-2 sps, 48 dc).
• Rnd 7 (Sage): Join Sage in any corner ch-2 space, ch 3, (2 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in same corner sp, [3 dc in next ch-sp between 3-dc groups] 5 times, (3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in corner sp 3 times, ending with [3 dc in next ch-sp] 5 times, join with sl st, fasten off Sage (4 corner ch-2 sps, 84 dc).

Section 3: Join Squares

• Align two finished squares with right sides facing up. Join Sage yarn in a corner chain-2 space of both squares simultaneously, work a continuous slip stitch seam through the back loops of both squares across the edge, or join using your preferred flat braid join method.

Finishing

• Use black yarn and a yarn needle to embroider a small triangular nose and vertical mouth line centered on the cream snout. Add french knots or small straight stitches for the eyes between Rnd 3 and Rnd 4 of the face.
• Weave in all loose ends securely on the wrong side.
• Block the finished square lightly with steam or by pinning it face down on a blocking mat to ensure crisp 8-inch dimensions.

Size Customization Tips

• Each extra round of granny clusters added after Rnd 7 will increase the overall width of the square by approximately 1.5 inches.
• To create a larger baby blanket, join a grid of 4 x 4 squares for a blanket measuring roughly 32 x 32 inches, or 5 x 5 squares for a 40 x 40 inch throw.

Care Instructions

• Machine wash gentle in cold water with mild detergent.
• Lay flat to dry in shade. Do not tumble dry or iron directly over embroidered facial features.

FAQ

Can I use acrylic yarn instead of cotton?

Yes, you can use worsted weight acrylic yarn, though cotton provides a crisper definition for the teddy facial features and helps the square hold its shape better during blocking and joining.

How do I make the teddy bear face larger?

You can increase the starting hook size to 4.5 mm or 5 mm and use a heavier weight aran yarn, which will proportionately increase the final width of the square beyond 8 inches.

Are safety eyes safe for a baby blanket?

For items intended for infants under 3 years old, it is strongly recommended to embroider the eyes using black yarn rather than using plastic safety eyes to prevent any choking hazards.

Happy Crocheting!

I hope you enjoy creating this adorable teddy bear granny square motif. Save this pattern pin on Pinterest for your next cozy evening of making, and drop a comment below to share what colors you are using for your blanket!