{"id":5040,"date":"2022-12-18T22:57:35","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T03:57:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/littleworldofwhimsy.com\/?p=5040"},"modified":"2022-12-18T22:58:29","modified_gmt":"2022-12-19T03:58:29","slug":"what-is-amigurumi-my-complete-guide-inspiration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/littleworldofwhimsy.com\/what-is-amigurumi-my-complete-guide-inspiration\/","title":{"rendered":"What is amigurumi? (my complete guide + inspiration!)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Amigurumi is the art of crocheting stuffed toys. It originated in Japan and has gained worldwide popularity for its cute aesthetic and ease of the craft. Amigurumi are made out of just one basic crochet stitch, making it relatively easy to learn.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amigurumi<\/a> is the term commonly used to refer to crocheted stuffed toys, although they can sometimes (more rarely) be knit as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m an amigurumi designer and have been crocheting adorable soft toys since 2020. If you’re curious about the wondrous world of amigurumi and want to know all about what it is, how to get started, and whether it’s a good fit for you, let me break it all down for you!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Free pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Free pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Affiliate Disclaimer:\u00a0Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission. Know that I only recommend tools and services I personally use, test and believe are genuinely helpful, not because of the small commissions I make if you decide to purchase them.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is amigurumi?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Amigurumi is the name of the art of crocheting soft toys, as well as the name of the actual soft toys themselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the photos above, you can see my amigurumi Sugar Plum Fairy, as well as my amigurumi bubble tea, both designed by yours truly!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All amigurumi are entirely crocheted. While it’s possible to knit amigurumi, it tends to be a lot more difficult and there aren’t as many patterns available for knit amigurumi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most amigurumi tend to be objects, foods, animals, or dolls designed in a kawaii style. This means that they tend to be small with baby-like features, with cute faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there are a lot of different amigurumi styles, especially now that it has become much more popular and a worldwide phenomenon there are many crochet toys that don’t exactly fit the description.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Jessie at Projectarian designs huge, fully posable amigurumi with incredible detail and many, many parts. Her projects are amazingly detailed and have found a devoted audience!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Jumbo penguin pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Jumbo strawberry pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Jumbo Waffle pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Recently, amigurumi made with velvet, and sometimes jumbo velvet yarn have become extremely popular. These patterns tend to be less detailed and more chunky, and often extremely oversized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Pattern here<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the other end of the spectrum, Diana at Pink Mouse Boutique designs incredible micro crochet items that are absolutely miniscule. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you can see, although amigurumi may have originated with a particular aesthetic, nowadays there are as many styles are there are designers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you can imagine it, there’s probably a sub-niche out there of amigurumi, or you can be the one to start it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s the difference between amigurumi and crochet?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Crochet is the art of using a hook to interlock loops of yarn or thread to create a variety of 2D textiles. Amigurumi is essentially the same as crochet, but it refers specifically to the process of making 3D toys. Crochet uses a range of techniques, whereas amigurumi almost always involves working in the round, making spheres which are then stuffed to form the limbs of some adorable little animals.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although amigurumi and crochet both use similar stitches and techniques, amigurumi refers specifically to making soft toys. I have a whole article on what the difference is between amigurumi and crochet<\/a>, but I’ll also summarize below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means that although a conventional crocheter used to making shawls and hats will likely recognize all of the stitches used in an amigurumi pattern, they may be implemented in unusual ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specifically, amigurumi only uses the single crochet stitch for most pieces, and half double or double crochet stitches may occur rarely for more complex shapes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, since all toys are three dimensional, crochet stitches are used more as building blocks rather than just for decoration or to add texture, as they often are in hats and mittens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, amigurumi have some specific demands for the toys to turn out well that differ from the usual techniques recommended for conventional crocheting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For instance, amigurumi stitches should always be pulled extremely tightly, without any gaps, to prevent stuffing from falling out from the inside and to maintain structural integrity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, there are methods specific to amigurumi for finishing off in the round, as well as sewing parts together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In essence, amigurumi uses crochet techniques as well as general toy making principles combined together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I started learning how to crochet amigurumi, I had never crocheted anything else before. Later on, when I wanted to crochet a scarf, it was a bit of a transition until I got used to the conventions used for crocheting garments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Incredibly grainy photo of the first amigurumi I ever made!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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My second and third amigurumis, with much better pictures \ud83d\ude42<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Is amigurumi easy?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Making amigurumi is relatively easy and can be learned in a few days from scratch. Crocheting amigurumi is not difficult and requires only the most basic stitches, and construction of most amigurumi toys are the same, making for a straightforward assembly.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning to crochet amigurumi is slightly different from learning how to crochet, so it can be learned independently (that’s what I did!) but I would say that it’s slightly easier to pick up if you already crochet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main reason is because the learning curve for amigurumi is much steeper than just crocheting a square, because the most basic unit for an amigurumi project is a ball, which demands that you immediately master three or four skills without much time to practice them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, although it may technically be easier to start by learning crochet, I believe that you should make whatever you most want to make, not what you technically should make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s because from personal experience, I had unlimited motivation to learn to make a cute whale, but I would be extremely unmotivated if someone told me to practice the single crochet stitch over and over again to make a scarf I would never wear. (Psst… I told the whole story here in this blog post about whether amigurumi is easy<\/a>!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That being said, amigurumi is not insurmountably difficult to learn from scratch, without any prior knowledge, and there are plenty of people I know who started amigurumi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re interested in getting started, I would highly<\/em> recommend checking out my complete beginner’s guide to amigurumi<\/a>, which will take out so much of the guesswork that I had when I started!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also broke down the absolute easiest amigurumi patterns<\/a> to get started with, which actually are in the exact order that I learned to make amigurumi. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So if you follow all of the patterns from the easiest to the hardest, you should be able to slowly accumulate relevant skills and be able to tackle more and more patterns as you go! How cool is that?!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Before long you’ll be able to make these!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Is amigurumi an expensive hobby?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Amigurumi is a fairly inexpensive hobby because all of the supplies can be sourced on a budget. The only materials required are yarn, a hook, and some notions, which can be found at big box stores, on Amazon, or for even cheaper at yard sales or community organizations.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crochet in general is a relatively inexpensive hobby, and amigurumi follows suit! (If you’re curious about whether crocheting is expensive<\/a>, read my other blog post!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most amigurumi supplies can be found on Amazon or at Michael’s for just a few dollars, and since amigurumi projects are usually smaller than shawls or blankets, you’ll need even less yarn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have a single box that holds my entire palette of amigurumi yarn, and although I make amigurumi quite often I rarely have to replace more than one ball at a time because they last so long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re looking for the best places to buy yarn online<\/a>, I have a full breakdown you can read!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aside from yarn, you’ll just need a crochet hook, a yarn needle, and a stitch marker. These can be acquired cheaply on Amazon or your local big box store, or you can even ask around if anyone has crochet supplies lying around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is actually pretty common, so you’ll be surprised with what you find! There are also Buy Nothing groups on Facebook all over the US, as well as Freecycle communities, so there are many options for getting started without investing a lot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re looking for recommendations for my favorite supplies<\/a>, you can find them all here!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What materials do I need to get started for amigurumi?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Click here<\/a> for the pattern!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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(dress is made from alpaca yarn, click here<\/a> for the pattern!)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
All of these amigurumi were made with Brava Sport<\/a> yarn!
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