This character, Chirin, is from my favourite Japanese animated movie, Ringing Bell (Chirin no Suzu) 1978, based on a book of the same name by Takashi Yanase. This crochet pattern is designed by me as a fanwork and released for free.

Chirin is an adorable young lamb named after the sound of the bell he wears around his neck. He enjoys cavorting with other animals and loves his mother very much.

Young Chirin stands about 20cm (8in) tall and can stand without support.

You will need DK yarn in the following colours:

• white (less than one ball)
• tan or light brown (less than half a ball)
• black (less than half a ball)
• yellow (small amount)

You will also need:

• a 3.5mm hook
• pins
• a darning needle
• stuffing
• scissors

Short rounds, colour changes, sewing, and very simple embroidery are used in this pattern. I consider this to be an easy pattern for people who have done these before.

I have included two PDFs: a light mode and a dark mode. Both are large text to be viewable on phones, and contain many pictures to assist in making Chirin.