Adorable Animal Motifs For Filet Crochet or Cross Stitch

Here comes Peter Cottontail, hopping down the bunny trail …….

….. and Peter brought some friends with him too!  All of these sweet filet crochet or simple cross stitch patterns come from a couple of vintage 1921 pattern books with designs for children.  These are similar to others that I've posted but it seems to have been a theme of the times.

First up, the rabbit family:

A lion; a turkey for a sampler, kitchen motif or for a Thanksgiving Day project; and little tin soldiers for a little boy's room:

A dove or blue bird, this would be cute in baby's room:

A simple repeat pattern good for a baby pillow or guest towel edging:

I think the top is a bear, but I'm not sure what she's doing; an adorable elephant pattern; and a classic pig motif for an animal sampler or country home:

 A deer that would be perfect on the corners of a throw pillow for a cabin in the woods:

Love this elephant pattern!:

A cute and easy squirrel pattern:

And of course, storks for baby's room:

There were so many patterns in the two books that I was looking through today that I've split them into two groups.  Today's offerings are the animals.  Up next will be children, baby lettering and sailboats….. stay tuned and keep on stitching!

Three Filet Crochet Baby Pillow Patterns

These adorable baby pillow filet crochet patterns come from a vintage 1920 pattern book devoted to baby and small children's clothing and accessories.  These lovely pillows would be beautiful in the nursery, maybe used for back support for mom in a rocking chair or as a boudoir pillow.

Butterfly filet pattern:

Duck filet pattern:

Bunny rabbit filet pattern:

Instructions for all three pillows:

The lace edging for the duck pillow is at the bottom of this illustration:

You could also adapt these patterns to other uses such as for a yoke to a pretty little dress -- the butterfly or roses would be so pretty for that.  

And naturally, as with other filet crochet patterns, these images can be worked in cross stitch too.  

Have fun stitching up something delightful with these beautiful vintage patterns!

1920 Apron Pattern With Filet Crochet Edging

For the crochet lovers out there we have this filet crochet pattern featuring bluebirds.  This is another treasure from the vintage 1920 pattern book that I've been pouring over for the past few days.

This neat little pattern makes a lovely apron, as you can see... and who doesn't need a new apron?  The pattern featured here is for the crochet edging and the beading at the top and very general instructions for the apron construction.  

The instructions:

The pattern:

Just like the patterns in my last post, this design could be used for filet crochet or cross stitch.  The instructions suggest using this design for a crocheted dresser scarf but I could see using it for any number of things.... crochet one bird and use it as a pocket on an up-cycled sweater, or trim hand towels for the guest bathroom.

Or imagine this lovely design at the hem of a beautiful, handmade heirloom Christening gown, or at the yoke of a First Communion dress; they actually look like doves to me.

Whatever you choose to make with this design will be lovely, I'm sure!  

Filet Crochet or Cross Stitch Animal Motifs

Today I have the animal filet crochet or cross stitch patterns that I mentioned previously.  These designs are also from the vintage 1920 pattern book that the last patterns came from.  These little guys were originally designed for a baby coverlet but could be used for anything.  

The instructions from the book say size 50 or 60 thread with a number 12 steel crochet hook.  Each grid gives an approximate finished size as well as how many meshes or squares are involved.

This chicken design would look terrific cross stitched onto a kitchen towel:

This would be so cute in a baby's room!

Imagine this little fellow cross stitched onto a Christmas stocking:

Stork for a baby shower:

A bunny for Easter:

Make this in orange and black for a Halloween candy dish towel:

Another design that speaks kitchen to me:

 Longer motifs for crocheted pillowcase edgings or towels.  They could be cross stitched for simple samplers too for baby's room.

 The book offers these suggestions:  "All the work patterns of the animals are suitable for either filet crochet or cross stitch work and they may be used in many ways to make the nursery a delight to its little owner."

Pony or horse:

Can't forget Fido for the dog lover!

Another bird motif:

This would look lovely in a country cabin:

The natural designs of these images would make perfect handmade Christmas ornaments.  The simplicity of the patterns would make teaching cross stitch to children easy and delightful.

The images used alone or used together, crocheted or cross stitched, these lovely little patterns offer so many possibilities.  Enjoy!

Crocheted Bunny Edging for Baby Linens

I was looking through several of my vintage pattern books today looking for something to share when I found these little treasures in a crochet book dated 1920.  Too cute!  The first two patterns call for size 50 or 60 crochet thread but you can work them in any size you'd like.  These patterns can be used for cross stitch as well.  A nice little cross stitch sampler for a baby's room would be one option.

This is the pattern that initially caught my eye, this bunny crochet pattern for a child's towel.  This would be sweet as a crocheted edging for a crib sheet or made into a cross stitched sampler.  Monotoned cross stitch can be very beautiful.  Here are the instructions as they were originally printed:

You can print out both sides and tape them together for easier reading:

The book illustration of a finished toddler towel:

The little book I took these patterns from has bunches of treasures so stay tuned!

Children's Motifs for Cross Stitch or Filet Crochet

Just like I promised, here are some more vintage cross stitch or filet crochet patterns from some of my wonderful vintage pattern books circa 1920s.  These adorable patterns were originally designed for a handmade rug and a child's chair cover, but they could be used for any number of things.  They are mostly animal motifs and remind me of a circus theme and I have to say, they're pretty dang cute!  Here you go:

Monkey:

Bear:

Duck:

Puppy dog:

Elephant:

 Boys:

Flower motif:

Girls:

Kitty cat: 

Pony or horse:

 Deer:

Sheep:

Stork:

Alphabet:

These vintage animal and alphabet patterns would look great incorporated into a baby's sampler, stitched onto a baby bib, filet crocheted onto a baby pillow, you could cross stitch onto a gingham dress or toddler's apron.  Really, there are so many things you could do with these cute, retro cross stitch or filet crochet patterns.  Have fun stitching!