Free Crochet Elf Patterns for Hats, Baby Costumes, Loveys, Christmas & More

By Jan Bay

This collection of free crochet elf patterns includes hats for babies, children and adults, an adorable baby elf costume, a Christmas elf lovey, an appliqué and curly-toed baby booties. You're bound to find at least one of them irresistible. What could be more festive than baby's first Christmas pictures with your little one dressed in a handmade elf outfit, complete with pointed ears and curly-toed booties? Take your pick of the long, floppy elf hat with a pom-pom or the beanie with elf ears attached. Whether you're planning Christmas family photos, making a special holiday gift or looking for a small project to use up leftover yarn, you'll find the individual elf patterns and instructions right here.

See Supplies for These Projects Here.

Browse All Six Free Crochet Elf Patterns

Take a look at the finished projects and pick your favorite. Each image leads directly to the complete free pattern, with instructions for making your own Christmas elf creation.

Which of These Free Crochet Elf Patterns Should You Make First?

If you're having trouble deciding where to start, think about what you want to do with the finished project. A little Christmas elf costume for baby's first pictures is a completely different undertaking from making three matching hats for the whole family. And if you're looking for something you can finish without committing to a complete outfit, those little elf faces deserve a second look.

For matching family Christmas pictures: I'd choose the long, floppy elf hats. The pattern includes baby, child and adult sizes, so everyone can wear the same design without having to hunt down separate instructions. The holly-green hats have deep cranberry ribbed brims, narrow ivory stripes and wonderfully long tails ending in oversized ivory pom-poms. I wouldn't change those long tails. They're what give the hats so much personality.

For baby's first Christmas pictures: The elf costume with the pointed-ear beanie and striped diaper cover would be my choice. You get two coordinating pieces, and the ears make the outfit recognizable even if the baby is sitting down with most of the diaper cover hidden. Add the curly-toed booties and you've got a complete little elf without needing a complicated sweater or jacket.

For a traditional Christmas baby hat: Don't overlook the separate peppermint-striped elf baby hat. It's a different design from the matching family hats and gives you another choice if you love the look of a long Christmas elf hat but want something with striped holiday character.

For a handmade Christmas keepsake: The elf lovey has a character all its own, with sleepy embroidered eyes, pointed ears, a floppy hat, striped legs and those wonderfully curled shoes. It's a more involved project than an appliqué, but it's also something that can become part of a Christmas tradition.

For a smaller Christmas project: Make the boy and girl elf face appliqués. You don't have to commit to making an entire doll or outfit, and the finished faces can decorate a Christmas stocking, gift bag or holiday blanket. You can even make both elves and use them together.

There's no reason to make all six projects, of course. Pick the one that fits what you're planning, and if you end up making a second project to go with it, even better.

Putting Together a Handmade Baby Elf Outfit for Christmas Pictures

Imagine getting baby dressed for those first Christmas photographs. You've got the little green hat with its cranberry-red brim and pointed ears, the matching striped diaper cover and a pair of curly-toed elf booties. A soft little green top underneath, and you're finished.

I'd keep the outfit simple enough that the handmade pieces get all the attention. You really don't need to add a Christmas sweater covered in decorations when the hat already has those oversized elf ears and the diaper cover has its own pointed tunic trim.

Start With the Elf Hat and Diaper Cover

The crochet baby elf costume pattern includes a snug green beanie with a folded cranberry brim and separate pointed ears. The coordinating diaper cover has cranberry and ivory candy-cane stripes, green sections and pointed trim around the upper edge.

Both pieces come in baby sizes from newborn through 12 months. Choose the hat size from baby's head measurement and the diaper cover size from the waist and rise measurements. There's no rule saying they have to be the same labeled size. A baby with a larger head may need a different hat size without needing a larger diaper cover.

If you're putting the outfit together for photographs, try both pieces on before the day you've planned. You want the ears standing where you can see them and the diaper cover fitting comfortably over the diaper, without pulling at the leg openings when baby moves.

Add the Curly-Toed Elf Booties

Those little turned-up toes are almost too cute to leave out! The Christmas crochet baby booties pattern makes a nice companion to the costume, especially if you use coordinating green yarn.

One detail worth thinking about before you begin is the decoration on the curled toes. The original booties feature silver jingle bells, but I'd leave the bells off a pair intended for a baby. You still get the distinctive elf shape without adding small metal pieces that could come loose.

For a coordinated outfit, use the same deep green for the booties and hat, then repeat the cranberry red in the bootie cuffs. You'll already have plenty of color from the striped diaper cover.

Or Choose the Long-Tail Hat Instead

If you prefer that dramatic Christmas elf silhouette, you could use the baby size of the long-tail elf hat pattern with a simple Christmas outfit.

I'd choose one hat style or the other rather than trying to combine the long-tail hat with the pointed ears from the beanie pattern. They're two different designs, and each looks good on its own.

The family version also lets an older brother, sister or grown-up wear a coordinating hat in the same Christmas pictures. That's a particularly sweet option when you want baby to be the center of attention without leaving everybody else out of the fun.

Little Crochet Elves for Christmas Stockings, Blankets and Gifts

Not every Christmas crochet project has to be something baby can wear. Sometimes a small decoration or a handmade Christmas keepsake is exactly what you need, especially when you've already got a basket full of other holiday projects waiting to be finished.

Boy and Girl Crochet Elf Face Appliqués

The free crochet elf appliqué pattern includes two matching elf faces, one boy and one girl. Each has pointed ears, a cheerful embroidered expression and its own Christmas hat. The girl's little bows add just enough detail to distinguish the pair.

These are faces only, not full-body elf dolls, which makes them especially useful for decorating other handmade projects.

A Christmas stocking would be my first choice. Sew one elf face onto the front of a plain stocking, leaving enough room above it for a name on the cuff. If you're making stockings for two children, use the matching boy and girl designs, or change the hat colors to suit the project.

You could also attach an elf face to a Christmas gift bag, a holiday wall hanging or the corner of a handmade blanket. Just remember to consider where the finished item will be used, particularly if it's intended for a young baby.

And don't feel that you have to decorate everything with both elves. One appliqué can be plenty.

A Crochet Christmas Elf Lovey Snuggler

The crochet elf lovey pattern is a completely different kind of project. Instead of making a flat decoration, you'll be making a soft elf character with a floppy body, little arms, long striped legs and curled elf shoes.

Its sleepy embroidered eyes give it a sweet expression, and the pointed ears and Christmas hat make it recognizable as an elf without needing lots of extra decorations.

I'd choose this one for a special handmade Christmas gift rather than a quick embellishment. It's the sort of project that looks lovely tucked into a Christmas gift basket, sitting on a shelf or included in a holiday keepsake display.

The embroidered facial features are an important detail. There's no need to add plastic safety eyes or buttons to make the elf look finished. Its expression is already part of the design.

Choosing Yarn Colors for Matching Crochet Elf Projects

One of the nice things about having several elf patterns together is that you can make them look like they belong to the same Christmas collection without making everything identical.

I'd start with a rich holly green, a deep cranberry red and a soft ivory. Those three colors appear throughout the collection, and they're especially pretty together when the red is deep enough to contrast with the green.

For the family elf hats, keep the green crowns, cranberry ribbing, narrow ivory accent stripe and ivory pom-poms. Those are the details that tie the three sizes together.

The baby elf costume gives you a little more room to play with the colors because the diaper cover has stripes. You can repeat the same green and cranberry in the booties without adding another complicated pattern to the outfit.

The appliqués are a good place to use smaller amounts of leftover yarn. Since you're only making elf faces and hats, you won't need to coordinate a whole outfit. Just make sure you have the colors needed for the embroidered faces and other small details.

Don't assume every pattern uses the same yarn weight or gauge simply because the colors match. Check each individual pattern before choosing yarn, especially for the hats and diaper cover. Those pieces need to fit, and a change in yarn thickness can make a noticeable difference.

If you're making more than one project as a Christmas gift, using the same shades wherever the specified yarn weights permit is an easy way to make the finished pieces look thoughtfully coordinated.

A Few Things to Check Before Baby Wears a Crochet Elf Costume

Christmas elf hats and booties are adorable in pictures, but some of those festive details deserve a little extra attention when you're making something for a baby.

Jingle bells: The original curly-toed booties feature silver bells. I would omit the bells entirely from any pair intended for a baby. Small metal decorations can come loose and become choking hazards. The turned-up toes are festive enough without them.

Pom-poms and long hat tails: Check that every yarn attachment is securely fastened. Long, dangling hat tails and large pom-poms should be treated as supervised photo accessories, not something for an unattended baby to wear. Remove the hat after the pictures.

Elf ears and appliqués: Sew the crocheted ears and other attached pieces firmly in place. For embroidered faces, secure the thread ends so the stitching doesn't work loose. Avoid adding beads, plastic eyes or detachable decorations to baby items.

Fit: A baby hat shouldn't squeeze the forehead or slide down over the eyes. Check the diaper cover around the waist and legs, too. You want enough room for comfortable movement over a diaper.

Sleeping: Remove costume hats, booties and other decorative accessories before putting baby down to sleep. The elf lovey and other soft decorations belong outside an infant's sleeping space. The American Academy of Pediatrics' safe-sleep guidance explains why soft objects and loose items should be kept out of a baby's crib or bassinet.

For Christmas pictures, I'd have the outfit ready before getting baby dressed, take a few photographs while everyone is happy, and remove the accessories when you're finished. There's no reason to keep baby dressed up longer than necessary just to get one more picture.

More Handmade Christmas Crochet Ideas

Once you've picked your favorite elf project, you might find yourself wanting to make a few other handmade Christmas decorations and gifts to go with it. The elf hats would look awfully cute beside matching Santa hats in a family Christmas picture, and the little elf appliqués could easily share a stocking with a crochet Christmas tree or snowflake.

You'll find plenty of other holiday projects in my free Santa crochet patterns collection and the Christmas crochet appliqué patterns page.

Or you can browse the larger Christmas crochet patterns collection if you're still deciding what to make.

Personally, I'd start with one of those wonderfully floppy elf hats. But I have to admit, the little pointed ears on the baby costume are pretty hard to resist! And then again, those booties put the bow on the complete elfin package, don't they?