Crochet Pattern Buying Guide: Sammie the Turtle & His Removable Shells

Hi there! If you’re here that means you’re interested in making Sammie the Turtle. Yay! Since Sammie is unique in that you can swap out his shells, sometimes there is a little confusion involved when you’re trying to get the patterns. That’s what this post is for! In this crochet pattern buying guide: Sammie the Turtle & His Removable Shells, I’ll walk you through how you can get Sammie and collect all of his costume shells.

This post will be periodically updated as new shells get released. Latest update as of: 11/04/2025.

Crochet Pattern Buying Guide: Sammie the Turtle & His Removable Shells

Where can I get Sammie the Turtle?

What’s awesome about Sammie is that you only have to make him once and then you can make as many shells as you want! Of course you can always make him a friend too, I’m sure he’d love that!

So if you want to get started on your turtle, there are 2 ways to get the base pattern:

• Free version: Yep! The text-only version of Sammie the Turtle is available for free right here on cbfiberworks.com. This version comes with instructions for making the base turtle and the rainbow shell (6-color spiral shell).
  • Check out Sammie for free right here
• Paid PDF: The premium, printable version of Sammie the Turtle is available in my shops: Etsy, Ravelry, and Ko-Fi. Here’s what comes in the paid version:
  • Price: $10
  • Instructions for the base turtle, the rainbow shell (6-color spiral), a solid color shell, a 2-color spiral shell and a 3-color spiral shell.
  • Tons of photos and video tutorials.
  • Bonuses:
    • Coloring Page: This way you can test out colors before you even pick your yarn.
    • Notes Pages: If you like taking notes while you work or just want to stay organized, these pages can help you keep track of your project.
    • Printer-friendly pdf: Want to print out your pattern, but hate wasting ink? Print out the text-only version, which is only 9 pages.

Where can I get his removable shells?

Wide Release Shells

Check out all of Sammie’s shells that are currently available in my shops:

Now that you know where to get Sammie, let’s talk about his shells! All of Sammie’s removable shells are sold as separate patterns (besides the spiral ones) or in shell pattern bundles. Every shell mod pattern is available in my shops: Etsy, Ravelry, and Ko-Fi.

The shells are $2 each so you can pick and choose your favorite designs or you can get the bundles which are discounted.

For example, this is Sammie’s Cauldron shell:

You can get this shell on it’s own, which comes with a coloring page and notes pages. Or you can grab all of his 2024 Halloween shells in a bundle like this one:

The 2024 Halloween bundle is only $9 (reg. $12) and you get all 6 shells as well as their coloring pages and notes pages!

Each bundle may be slightly different depending on the number of shells added and other factors, but bundles will be released seasonally. Yes, I absolutely intend to make Sammie a shell costume for every holiday, haha!

Head over to my shops to see all of the shells currently available for Sammie!

Exclusive Shells

UPDATE: As of 11/03/2025 the Collectors Club is paused. After a lot of thought, I decided to take a step back from things to focus on the last trimester of my pregnancy and the upcoming challenges of having a newborn. I am still designing shells for Sammie and plan to stockpile them until things level out a little bit. As for the shells below, they are not currently available, but I am working on a special, limited release for sometime in either December of 2025 or January of 2026. If you have any questions, please email me at chanel@cbfiberworks.com.

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If you’re just as obsessed with dressing up Sammie as I am, then you’ll want to check out my membership on Ko-Fi! Check out these exclusive shells:

Here’s what you get when you sign up for my membership:

• 1 Exclusive Shell Pattern when you join (Hot Chocolate Shell)
• 1 Exclusive pattern per month
• 20% discount on all my patterns on Ko-Fi
• Social media shout out
• Behind the scenes content

On top of all of that I run polls periodically so you can vote on upcoming patterns! And all of this is only $5 per month! Sign up for The Collectors Club here!

Info & FAQ

The pattern for Sammie the Turtle was originally written in 2021 and some of his Halloween/Christmas shells were written in 2022. As of the date of this post, Sammie has 10 shells available in my shops and 2 exclusive shells available through my membership. I will be regularly updating this post to showcase new shells and any other updates with Sammie!

If you want to get notified when new shells are released or old shells are updated, sign up for my newsletter here.

FAQ

All of that being said, below are some frequently asked questions:

1. What if I already bought the old version of Sammie and/or his shell patterns?
   • No problem! If you purchased Sammie and/or his shell patterns through Ravelry, you should have received an automatic email with the updated files. If you purchased Sammie and/or his shell patterns through Etsy, you’ll receive an Etsy message from me following the update. However, I have a number of people to contact, so to speed up the process, you can Etsy message me with your order number or the email you bought it under and I can then send you the updated files.
2. Why is the Demogorgon shell missing from the update?
   • I discontinued the Demogorgon shell because it was a little too close to copyright infringement for my liking. (Stranger Things had me a little too excited in 2022.) That being said, I have a new design in the works to replace it, but it likely won’t be released until next Halloween (2025).
3. Do you take shell design requests?
   • Kind of. If you would like to suggest a shell design, you can always email me at chanel@cbfiberworks.com. However, submitting a suggestion does not mean the shell will be immediately produced. If you join my membership (The Collectors Club) you’ll have the chance to vote on upcoming shell designs.
4. Are there text-only, printer-friendly versions of the shell patterns?
   • Yes, they are available upon request. If you would like a printer-friendly version of a specific shell, please email me at chanel@cbfiberworks.com.

If you have any other questions about Sammie the Turtle and his shells that aren’t listed here, please email me at chanel@cbfiberworks.com. I do my best to respond to every email within 24 hours (excluding weekends).

Summary

You made it to the end, yay! I hope you’re as excited to make Sammie and a whole collection of costume shells as I am!

Be the first to be notified when new shell costumes come out by joining my newsletter! I hope you enjoy making your turtle and I’ll see you next time.

Happy stitching!