Make a charming crochet carousel complete with three tiny horses and a rotating wooden frame. This pattern guides you through crocheting toys, building the wooden base, wrapping the central post and shaping a conical roof reinforced with fishing line. It uses clear step-by-step rounds, assembly photos and hardware tips so you can create a durable, playful keepsake.
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— Horses :
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For horse body use ivory Alize Cotton Gold Hobby 01. For hooves and mane with tail use any bright shades of the same color (darker for hooves and lighter for mane/tail). I used 2 shades of pink, 2 shades of blue and 2 shades of yellow. Start crocheting with ivory yarn. Use a piece of yarn of contrasting color as a marker for easier rounds counting.
Round 3 :
(1 sc, inc)*6=18 sc
Round 4-6 :
3 rounds of 18 sc. Finish with a sl st, leave a long end. Set aside the detail (this is the muzzle of a horse).
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Chain 7 with ivory yarn to start muzzle extension.
Round 1 :
3 sc in the second loop from the hook, 4 sc along the chain, 3 sc in the last loop of the chain. Turn the work and crochet along the bottom side of the chain 4 sc = 14 sc around.
Round 2 :
inc*3, 4 sc, inc*3, 4 sc = 20 sc
Round 3 :
(1 sc, inc)*3, 4 sc, (1 sc, inc)*3, 4 sc = 26 sc
Round 4 :
(1 sc, inc, 1 sc)*3, 4 sc, (1 sc, inc, 1 sc)*3, 4 sc = 32 sc
Round 5-8 :
4 rounds of 32 sc
Round 9 :
Work only 14 sc (stop working the other 18 sts)
Round 10-12 :
Do not continue the round, but go right to the first st of the round (the first one after the marker) and work spiral rounds of the 14 sc. Sc 3 rounds up - it should be the neck.
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Thread the end of the yarn from the muzzle into the needle and sew to the neck. To do this sew together 2 sc of the neck (right in the center of the neck front) and 2 sc of the muzzle.
Round 13 :
Work around both parts 28 sc.
Round 14 :
Make a decrease at the junction of the neck with the muzzle on both sides, it turns out 26 sc.
Round 15 :
Make 1 more decrease on both sides in the same place, 24 sc remain.
Round 17 :
(2 sc, dec)*6=18 sc. Stuff the neck and the muzzle of the horse.
Round 18 :
(1 sc, dec)*6=12 sc
Round 19 :
Dec every st until the opening closes, adding fiberfill as necessary. Cut the yarn and hide the end.
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Stuff the body and sew the opening on the back.
— Legs :
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Start crocheting with colored yarn: 6 sc in AR, then sc one more round of 6 sc with colored yarn and 4 rounds of ivory yarn. Finish with a sl st. Do not stuff, leave a long end. Make 4 pcs.
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Sew the legs to the body.
— Ears :
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For ears crochet small triangles with ivory yarn. Chain 5.
Round 2 :
Do not make a turning ch, insert the hook right into the second st = 3 sc
Round 3 :
Do not make a turning ch, insert the hook right into the second st = 2 sc
Round 4 :
Do not make a turning ch, insert the hook right into the second st = 1 sc
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Leave a long end. Thread the end of the yarn into the needle and sew together the 2 corners of the triangle. Sew the ear to the horse head. Crochet and sew the second ear in the same way.
— Mane and Tail :
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Crochet the mane with yarn a little lighter than the hooves. Attach the yarn to the forehead of the horse, crochet 3 ch and 2 dc in the same point.
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Next, crochet along the neck for 3 dc from each point. The hook is simply inserted under the posts along an imaginary line. At the end, crochet 2 dc and 3 ch, finish with a sl st. Cut the yarn and hide the end.
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For the tail, cut 4 pieces of yarn 10 cm each. Fasten one thread at a time.
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Embroider eyes with thin black yarn.
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Crochet 2 more horses in other colors using same steps.
— Carousel Frame and Base :
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For the frame, you will need 2 round plywood blanks for clocks with a diameter of 20 cm (find in craft stores or marketplaces). Also in the craft store grab wooden beads with a diameter of 1 cm, you will need 8 pcs. Now we go to the hardware store: We need a screw 8 mm*100 mm, 3 nuts suitable for it (8 mm), 2 large washers and 1 small one.
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Glue 5 plastic sleeves together with ordinary tape. Or cut a cardboard tube/plastic pipe with a diameter of 28 mm and a length of about 17.5 cm.
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Glue 4 beads on one of the wooden circles at the same distance. Glue 4 more beads between them on the other side.
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Insert the screw into the hole and fix it with a nut on the reverse side, applying a drop of superglue under the nut.
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Put washers on the screw in this order: large, small, large. Put a second wooden circle on the screw. Check that it should spin freely without touching the beads. At the same time, the beads will not allow it to fall sideways.
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Let's start crocheting the base. Work spiral rounds with turquoise yarn using a marker. I use a contrasting color piece of yarn.
Round 1 :
Chain 12, sl st in the 1st loop.
Round 2 :
(1 sc, inc)*6=18 sc
Round 3 :
1 sc, inc, (2 sc, inc)*5, 1 sc = 24 sc
Round 4 :
(3 sc, inc)*6=30 sc
Round 5 :
2 sc, inc, (4 sc, inc)*5, 2 sc = 36 sc
Round 6 :
(5 sc, inc)*6=42 sc
Round 7 :
3 sc, inc, (6 sc, inc)*5, 3 sc = 48 sc
Round 8 :
(7 sc, inc)*6=54 sc
Round 9 :
4 sc, inc, (8 sc, inc)*5, 4 sc = 60 sc
Round 10 :
(9 sc, inc)*6=66 sc
Round 11 :
5 sc, inc, (10 sc, inc)*5, 5 sc = 72 sc
Round 12 :
(11 sc, inc)*6=78 sc
Round 13 :
6 sc, inc, (12 sc, inc)*5, 6 sc = 84 sc
Round 14 :
(13 sc, inc)*6=90 sc
Round 15 :
7 sc, inc, (14 sc, inc)*5, 7 sc = 96 sc
Round 16 :
(15 sc, inc)*6=102 sc
Round 17 :
8 sc, inc, (16 sc, inc)*5, 8 sc = 108 sc
Round 18 :
(17 sc, inc)*6=114 sc
Round 19 :
9 sc, inc, (18 sc, inc)*5, 9 sc = 120 sc
Round 20 :
(19 sc, inc)*6=126 sc
Round 21 :
10 sc, inc, (20 sc, inc)*5, 10 sc = 132 sc
Info :
Change yarn to the pink and continue crocheting to the edge of the wooden circle. Keep in mind that due to varying gauges, you may need more or fewer rounds in the base circle.
Round 22 :
(21 sc, inc)*6=138 sc
Round 23 :
11 sc, inc, (22 sc, inc)*5, 11 sc = 144 sc
Round 24 :
(23 sc, inc)*6=150 sc
Round 25 :
12 sc, inc, (24 sc, inc)*5, 12 sc = 156 sc. Finish with a sl st. Do not fasten off.
Round 26 :
156 sc through the back loops.
Round 27-31 :
3 rounds of 156 sc through both loops. Finish with a sl st. Cut the yarn.
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Join yellow yarn to the 25th round and work through the front loops: skip 2 st, (3 dc, 1 ch, 3 dc) in the third st. Skip 2 st, 1 sc in the 6th st. Repeat around. Cut the yarn and fix the end.
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Join yellow yarn to the end of the last pink round and sc in the pink st capturing the ch loop on the top of the yellow corners. At these points, crochet 2 sc in 1 st. It turns out alternation (5 sc, inc)* until the end of the round.
Info :
Crochet 3 more rounds without inc. Put the crocheted canvas on the base, gluing it to the plywood around the screw by about half the radius. Finish gluing and cut any excess. Tighten the 2 nuts in such a way that there is a gap of about 1-2 mm between the floor and the lower nut so that the top circle can rotate. Glue nuts with superglue.
— Central Post :
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Crochet the central post with yellow and white colors. Chain as long as necessary to wrap around the pipe. Sl st in the 1st loop. I got 24 loops. Now we need to calculate the strips pattern. I will have an alternation of 2 yellow and 3 white sc. For even stripes, 25 sc in a round will need. In order for the strips to twist, we need 1 loop less, that is, just 24. If you got a different amount of ch, try another pattern, for example 2 yellow and 2 white sc. Then the number of loops should be a multiple of 4 minus 1 (23 or 27). Or 3 yellow and 3 white, then the number of loops should be a multiple of 6 minus 1 (23 or 29).
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Crochet 2 yellow sc, 3 white sc. Change the yarn color in this order: leave the second yellow sc incompleted (2 loops on the hook). Finish the yellow st with white yarn and continue crocheting with white.
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Due to the lack of one loop, the colored stripes will shift and spiral. Crochet as high as the pipe is, insert the pipe inside. Cut the yarn and hide the ends.
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Glue the lower edge of the pipe to the base with a gun. Be careful not to get glue on the screw and nuts, otherwise it will interfere with the rotation of the carousel. For reliability, also sew the bottom of the pipe to the base, using white and yellow yarn alternately.
— Roof (fishing-line reinforced) :
Info :
Let's crochet the roof. To keep the roof in shape, we will crochet it with fishing line. Need an ordinary fishing line with a diameter of 1 mm. So that the fishing line does not get tangled, clamp the skein with such a hairpin. Melt the tip of the fishing line with a lighter to form a ball at the end. It will not let the fishing line slip out of crocheting.
Round 1 :
Start crocheting with pink yarn. 6 sc in AR
Round 2 :
inc*6=12 sc. Starting from the second round, apply the fishing line to the previous round and crochet so that it passes under the stitches.
Round 3 :
(1 sc, inc)*6=18 sc
Round 4 :
Join turquoise yarn and crochet in this order: (pink 2 sc, inc, turq 2 sc, inc)*3=24 sc. Do not forget to change the yarn color correctly.
Round 5 :
(pink 3 sc, inc, turq 3 sc, inc)*3=30 sc
Round 6 :
(pink 4 sc, inc, turq 4 sc, inc)*3=36 sc
Round 7 :
(pink 5 sc, inc, turq 5 sc, inc)*3=42 sc
Round 8 :
(pink 6 sc, inc, turq 6 sc, inc)*3=48 sc
Info :
Important! The roof scheme corresponds to the usual flat circle. And its shape will depend only on the tension of the fishing line! In the beginning, try to pull the line a little more to get a conical shape. The farther from the middle, the looser the fishing line should lie so that the shape becomes flatter towards the edges. Crocheting should not be too loose, otherwise the fishing line will freely crawl wherever it pleases. The stitches should hold it tightly.
Round 9 :
(pink 7 sc, inc, turq 7 sc, inc)*3=54 sc
Round 10 :
(pink 8 sc, inc, turq 8 sc, inc)*3=60 sc
Round 11 :
(pink 9 sc, inc, turq 9 sc, inc)*3=66 sc
Round 12 :
(pink 10 sc, inc, turq 10 sc, inc)*3=72 sc
Round 13 :
(pink 11 sc, inc, turq 11 sc, inc)*3=78 sc
Round 14 :
(pink 12 sc, inc, turq 12 sc, inc)*3=84 sc
Round 15 :
(pink 13 sc, inc, turq 13 sc, inc)*3=90 sc
Round 16 :
(pink 14 sc, inc, turq 14 sc, inc)*3=96 sc
Round 17 :
(pink 15 sc, inc, turq 15 sc, inc)*3=102 sc
— Small Decorative Round (top ornaments) :
Round 1 :
Start crocheting with pink yarn. 6 sc in AR
Round 2 :
inc*6=12 sc. Starting from the second round, apply the fishing line to the previous round and crochet so that it passes under the stitches.
Round 3 :
(1 sc, inc)*6=18 sc
Round 4 :
Join turquoise yarn and crochet in this order: (pink 2 sc, inc, turq 2 sc, inc)*3=24 sc
Round 5 :
(pink 3 sc, inc, turq 3 sc, inc)*3=30 sc
Round 6 :
(pink 4 sc, inc, turq 4 sc, inc)*3=36 sc
Round 7 :
(pink 5 sc, inc, turq 5 sc, inc)*3=42 sc
Round 8 :
(pink 6 sc, inc, turq 6 sc, inc)*3=48 sc
Info :
Finish the yellow stitch with white yarn and continue crocheting with white as needed for color transitions. Cut yarn and hide ends where indicated.
— Final Assembly :
Info :
Glue 4 beads on one of the wooden circles at the same distance and 4 more beads between them on the other side. Insert screw into hole and fix with nut and superglue. Add washers and second wooden circle, ensure it spins freely. Glue or tape plastic sleeves together or use a cardboard tube for the central pipe. Glue pipe to base and sew bottom for extra reliability. Place crocheted base canvas glued around the screw. Tighten nuts so top circle rotates with 1-2 mm gap. Insert striped post into pipe and glue lower edge to base. Put roof on top and adjust. Sew horses to rotating top or suspend as desired. Embroider horse eyes with thin black yarn.
This delightful Merry-go-round pattern combines crochet with simple hardware to create a playful and durable rotating toy. The pattern includes full rounds for horses, the base, the striped post and the fishing-line-reinforced roof. Make one for a baby room, a special gift, or a charming centerpiece that spins with handmade magic! 🧶🎠
