# Orange Fox Baby Swaddle Cocoon Free Crochet Pattern
If you have never seen a newborn dressed as a tiny fox, curled up in a rust-orange cocoon with pointy ears and a fluffy white-tipped tail — well, you are about to understand why photographers charge extra for this setup. This swaddle cocoon keeps brand-new babies snug and warm while looking impossibly adorable, and it works up in a weekend in squishy bulky yarn.
The construction could not be simpler: start at the bottom, increase to full width, cruise upward in half double crochet, then finish with an eyelet round and a drawstring that gathers the top softly around baby’s shoulders. The ears and tail sew on in minutes.
What You’ll Need
- Bulky weight yarn (CYCA 6), soft and washable:
- Main color (rust orange): approximately 350 yards (320 m)
- White: approximately 50 yards (46 m) for ear liners and tail tip
- Small amount of black yarn or embroidery floss for the nose
- US size K-10.5 / 6.5 mm crochet hook
- Stitch marker, yarn needle, scissors
Finished size:
- Newborn (0–3 months)
- Approximately 20 inches (51 cm) long × 18 inches (46 cm) around
Gauge:
- 10 half double crochet stitches × 8 rounds = 4 × 4 inches (10 × 10 cm), worked in the round
- The cocoon should have gentle stretch — if yours is drum-tight, go up a hook size
The Pattern
Stitch guide: ch = chain, sl st = slip stitch, sc = single crochet, hdc = half double crochet, dc = double crochet, sk = skip, st(s) = stitch(es). Work in continuous rounds (move the marker up each round) except where noted. Ch 2 at the start of a round does not count as a stitch.
Cocoon Body
With orange, make a magic ring.
Round 1: Ch 2, work 8 hdc into the ring, pull closed. Do not join; mark the first st. (8 hdc)
Round 2: 2 hdc in each st around. (16 hdc)
Round 3: [2 hdc in next st, hdc in next st] 8 times. (24 hdc)
Round 4: [2 hdc in next st, hdc in next 2 sts] 8 times. (32 hdc)
Round 5: [2 hdc in next st, hdc in next 3 sts] 8 times. (40 hdc)
Round 6: [Hdc in next 7 sts, 2 hdc in next st] 5 times. (45 hdc)
Checkpoint: Lay it flat — the circle should measure about 7 inches across (45 sts ÷ 2.5 sts per inch ÷ π ≈ 5.7… do not overthink it; it should look like a generous circle about 7 inches wide).
Rounds 7–38: Hdc in each st around. (45 hdc each round — 32 rounds)
Checkpoint: The cocoon should measure about 17 inches from the bottom center.
Round 39 (eyelet round): Ch 3 (counts as dc), [ch 1, sk 1 st, dc in next st] 22 times, ch 1, join with sl st to 2nd ch of beginning ch-3. (23 dc, 23 ch-1 sps)
Round 40: Ch 1, sc in each st and each ch-1 sp around, join. (46 sc) Fasten off.
Drawstring
Cut 3 strands of orange, each 60 inches long. Knot them together at one end and braid tightly to about 40 inches. Knot the other end and trim. Weave the cord in and out of the eyelet round (Round 39), starting and ending at the center front, and tie in a soft bow — never tie it tightly around baby, just gather gently.
Fox Ears (Make 2)
Outer ear (orange): Chain 2.
Row 1: 3 sc in 2nd ch from hook, turn. (3 sc)
Row 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next st, 2 sc in last st, turn. (5 sc)
Row 3: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next 3 sts, 2 sc in last st, turn. (7 sc)
Rows 4–5: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn. (7 sc) Do not fasten off.
Inner ear (white): Chain 2.
Row 1: 3 sc in 2nd ch from hook, turn. (3 sc)
Row 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next st, 2 sc in last st, turn. (5 sc)
Row 3: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn. (5 sc) Fasten off with a tail.
Center the white liner on the orange ear, pin, and sl st the layers together around the sides and tip with orange, leaving the bottom open.
Tail
With orange, make a magic ring.
Round 1: Ch 2, 6 hdc into ring, pull closed, join. (6 hdc)
Rounds 2–4: Ch 2, hdc in each st around, join. (6 hdc each round)
Round 5: Join white. Ch 1, sc in each st around, join. (6 sc)
Rounds 6–8: Ch 1, sc in each st around, join. (6 sc) Stuff lightly with yarn scraps or a cotton ball, cinch the top closed, and fasten off with a long tail.
Assembly
Sew the ears to the top edge of the cocoon, about 3 inches apart and centered on what will be the back, tilting them slightly outward. Sew the tail to the lower back of the cocoon. With black, embroider a tiny triangle nose and two little closed eyes (curved lines) on the front upper third of the cocoon — keep the face high so it peeks out above the drawstring. Weave in all ends.
Safety note: This cocoon is for supervised naps and photos, not unsupervised sleep — and keep the drawstring bow loose and to the side, never near baby’s neck.
Sophie’s Tips
- The drawstring is doing real work here, so braid it tightly and make it long — a skimpy cord is frustrating to thread through 23 eyelets.
- Sew the ears on before you weave in the cocoon’s top ends; you can hide every tail under the ear bases.
- In cream with rust ears this becomes an arctic fox, and in gray it is the sweetest little wolf — same pattern, new animal.
Snuggle that tiny fox close — happy crocheting, friend!
