Made and counted by Wren —

Amigurumi bumble bee with a 24-round striped body

4.5mm hook, chunky yarn: a 24-round amigurumi bumble bee with two 3-round wings.

IntermediateLevel

4-6 hoursTime

10 mmHook

BulkyYarn

Jump to the pattern

About this pattern

This pattern makes one amigurumi bumble bee from chunky yarn on a 4.5mm hook, with a 24-round spiral body in yellow with three black stripes and two 3-round white wings sewn to the second black stripe. It uses single, half double, and double crochet, magic rings, and invisible decreases, finished with 10mm safety eyes and firm stuffing. Expect several hours across body, wings, and assembly.

This amigurumi bumble bee is built as a single spiral body of 24 rounds, worked without joining each round (the pattern is worked in spirals and should not be joined), topped with two separate 3-round wings crocheted flat and sewn on afterward. The body starts in yellow and increases through round 6, then works plain rounds through round 9. From round 10 it alternates colors every two rounds — black (rounds 10-11), yellow (12-13), black (14-15), yellow (16-17), black (18-19) — before returning to yellow for the remaining rounds, giving the body three black stripes rather than just one. Each piece starts in a magic ring and grows with standard single crochet increases before the long straight middle rounds that hold the shape. Stuffing goes in before the final decrease rounds, and 10mm safety eyes set the face before the top closes.

The pattern

Written out round by round

Materials

Chunky yarn in yellow, black and white (bumblebee colors)
10mm safety eyes
Stuffing
4.5mm crochet hook (or whatever size suits your yarn; a smaller hook than usually suggested keeps stitches tighter)

Abbreviations

MR = Magic Ring
Inv dec = invisible decrease
Sc = Single Crochet
Hdc = Half Double Crochet
Dc = Double Crochet
Ss = slip stitch

Body

Start using yellow yarn.

Round 16sc into MR. (6)

Round 2(inc) x 6. (12)

Round 3(sc, inc) x 6. (18)

Round 4(2sc, inc) x 6. (24)

Round 5(3sc, inc) x 6. (30)

Round 6(4sc, inc) x 6. (36)

Round 7Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 8Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 9Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 9, change to black.

Round 10Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 11Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 11, change to yellow.

Round 12Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 13Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 13, change to black.

Round 14Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 15Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 15, change to yellow.

Round 16Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 17Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 17, change to black.

Round 18Sc in each stitch around. (36)

Round 19Sc in each stitch around. (36)After Round 19, change to yellow.

Round 20(4sc, inv dec) x 6. (30)

Round 21(3sc, inv dec) x 6. (24)

Round 22(2sc, inv dec) x 6. (18)Stuff the body before Round 23.

Round 23(sc, inv dec) x 6. (12)

Round 24(inv dec) x 6. (6)Cut yarn and run end around the outside loops of last 6 stitches. Cinch closed and weave in end.

Wings

Make 2

Use white yarn.

Wings are made with single crochet for round 1, half double crochet for round 2 and double crochet for round 3.

Join with ss and cut yarn leaving long end to sew to body.

Round 16sc into MR. (6)

Round 2(Hdc inc) x 6. (12)

Round 3(1dc, dc inc) x 6. (18)

Assembly

Step 1Sew wings to the middle of the 2nd black stripe.

Tester's notes

4.5mm hook: size it to the chunky yarn so the fabric stays dense enough to hide stuffing; a looser gauge lets white stuffing show through between stitches.

10mm safety eyes: place them before closing the final decrease rounds of the body, since they cannot go in after the opening tightens.

Color changes fall after rounds 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, and 19 on the body; carry or cut yarn at these points and weave ends in as you go rather than leaving them for the end.

Mark rounds 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, and 19 with a stitch marker before starting, since the spiral construction gives no round-end to count from.

Stuff firmly and evenly as rounds close on the body; add small amounts throughout the 24 rounds instead of packing it all in at the final decrease.

Pattern is worked in spirals, do NOT join at the end of each round.

Repeat pattern between the asterisks.

American stitch terms used.

At a glance

Rounds	27
Parts	2
Level	Intermediate
Time	4-6 hours
Hook	10 mm
Yarn	Bulky

Gauge check

After round 5, count stitches: the body should read 30 stitches and sit flat without cupping or flaring.

If the count is off, rip back to the last correct round rather than trying to adjust the increase pattern on the fly.

Stitch-count checkpoints

Body · Round 8: 36 sts
Body · Round 16: 36 sts
Body · Round 24: 6 sts
Wings · Round 1: 6 sts
Wings · Round 2: 12 sts
Wings · Round 3: 18 sts

If something looks wrong

The body cups or bows outward instead: This points to a tension mismatch between increase rounds and straight rounds; check stitch count against the round 5 total of 30 before continuing, and tighten or loosen tension to match.
The yellow and black stripes blur into: This happens when the color change is made mid-round instead of right after a round closes; cut and join the new color at the start of the next round (after rounds 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, or 19) for a sharp edge.
The wings come out a different size from each other.: Since both wings use the same three rounds (6, 12, 18 stitches), an uneven size usually means a missed or doubled increase; count stitches at the end of each round before moving on.
Stuffing lumps show through the fabric: Chunky yarn at 4.5mm leaves looser gaps than finer yarn, so stuffing needs to go in small handfuls across all 24 rounds rather than one large piece pushed in at the end.

Yarn substitutions

Bulky weight cotton	Holds shape with less give than chunky acrylic, making the 24-round body stiffer and more structured; stuffing needs less volume to fill the firmer fabric, and the 4.5mm hook still works.
Super bulky weight yarn	Scales the bee up past the original size; move to a 5.5mm or 6mm hook, and the 3-round wings will need extra careful pinning since the larger stitches leave bigger gaps to sew closed.

Original pattern: https://onrecip.com/free-bumble-bee-amigurumi-pattern/

FAQs

Questions

Why does the body change color so many times?

The body shifts from yellow to black and back five times between round 9 and round 19 (black 10-11, yellow 12-13, black 14-15, yellow 16-17, black 18-19), building three narrow black stripes instead of one wide block of color, which keeps the classic bumblebee look along the long straight body.

Where exactly do the wings attach?

Assembly calls for sewing both wings to the middle of the second black stripe, which falls at rounds 14-15 and only exists once the body has worked through the first yellow-black-yellow sequence from round 9 through round 13. Centering them there keeps the pair symmetrical on the body.