What is Amigurumi – The Basics

Amigurumi. What a mouthful for the most adorable looking crochet dolls. I stumbled upon these when I first learned to crochet, and there is a reason for their popularity!

What is amigurumi? The word amigurumi refers to the Japanese art of crocheting tiny, cute stuffed animals, people or objects. Amigurumi blends two Japanese words, ami, which means “crocheted or knitted” and nuigurumi, which means “stuffed doll.”

The amigurumi dolls have a lot of detail, but don’t let them fool you into thinking they are too difficult to master. The most basic crochet or knit stitches are used to create the shell of the doll before being stuffed, making it a fun and easy crochet project for any skill level, and I mean any.

Materials to Get Started with Amigurumi

You might be surprised at how easy it is to get started with amigurumi. Not many materials are required, and you might even already have them on hand. Below is the list of basic items needed to make your first amigurumi doll.

Pattern
Yarn
Crochet hook or knitting needles/ double pointed knitting needles (DPNs)
Polyester stuffing
Bent tip tapestry needle
Stitch markers
Embroidery floss
Safety eyes *optional
Floral wire *optional

More details about each item on the list will be covered in the following sections.

Best Yarns for Amigurumi

There are so many different types of yarn out there. How do you know what kind to choose?! Here is a helpful chart of the most common types of yarn to choose for amigurumi starting with the strongest type fiber.

Type of Yarn	Appearance	Examples
Mercerized Cotton*	Strong, shiny, clearly defined stitches and holds shape well	Lionbrand 24/7 Cotton
100% Cotton	Strong, clearly defined stitches and holds shape well	Lily Sugar ‘n Cream
Cotton Blend	Clearly defined stitches that will hold shape well	Premier Home Cotton
Acrylic	Less stitch definition (fuzzier look) and loose stitches can pull out of shape easily	Caron Simply Soft

*Mercerized cotton is a chemically treated cotton yarn to increase the strength of the fibers.

Don’t stop here at the yarn choices though! Experiment with whatever yarn you want or have on hand. Some like the clean look of stitches made in 100% cotton, while others like the more fuzzy, less defined look of acrylic yarn for their creations.

Small Hook and Needle Sizes Give Best Results for Amigurumi

Tight stitches are extremely important with amigurumi. No one wants their stuffing poking out of the gaps! This means the size of crochet hook or knitting needle will need to be a smaller gauge than normal.

A good range of hook sizes to start with is 4.5 mm to 2.75 mm. The Craft Yarn Council has the US hook size equivalent for your reference if you click here. Another suggestion is to use a crochet hook 2-3 times smaller than the size recommended on the yarn label. This recommendation is from Stephanie, the blogger behind All About Ami (the ami is short for amigurumi), and you can find this information (and more) on her FAQ page.

The same can go for knitting needles. You want a small gauge for the same reasons as crochet. And you will need a set of double pointed needles (DPNs).

How Amigurumi are Constructed

1. Know the Crochet and Knit Stitch Terminology

As I stated previously, amigurumi is made up of the simplest, most basic stitches, whether you knit or crochet the doll. If you crochet, familiarize yourself with how to do:

Slip knot
Slip stitch
Single crochet
Half double crochet
Double crochet
Increase and decrease

If you are knitting, basically all you need to know is:

Casting on
Knit stitch
Purl stitch
Increase and decrease stitches
Binding off

Next, let me give you a general idea of how the stuffed doll will be crafted.

2. The Basic Amigurumi Parts

Whether knitting or crocheting, the same basic parts need to be made. However, the difference comes in how those parts are made.

Crochet Amigurumi Parts

Amigurumi basically uses various sizes of circles that are worked in single crochet (or other stitch determined by the pattern). The circles are then increased and decreased according to the pattern to achieve the final shape desired. Other shapes, such as rectangles and triangles, are also common for amigurumi.

For example, say you are making the head of a teddy bear. You will start by crocheting a small circle. Then, to make the circle bigger, you will increase the number of stitches in each row until your circle is the size you want. Imagine this as the top half of the circle. To finish the last half of the circle, you crochet the same as the top. Except instead of increasing stitches, you will decrease them. This will create a nice round head.

The method above is also used to create other parts of the doll, such as the body, legs, arms, ears, and tails. The only difference will be the size of the starting circle, or other shape.

Stitch markers come in handy when crocheting the circles because they are worked in a continuous round. This means, without a place marker, it is near to impossible to trace back the number of rows accurately.

Knit Amigurumi Parts

The shape construction may vary between knitting and crochet, but the basic concept is the same. A knit amigurumi can be knit flat, or it can be knitted in the round with DPNs. Oftentimes, the doll will be knit in parts, which is similar to that of crochet dolls.

The material for the doll that is knit will be stretchy. Much stretchier than if crocheted. So the parts need to be knitted with tight stitches and a small gauge.

3. Stuf the Amigurumi Creatures

Stuffing the dolls is completed after all parts are created. Be sure to use a polyester filling for a fluffy, lightweight doll that can also be easily washed.

4. Seam the Amigurumi Pieces Together

Once all the pieces of the stuffed animals are complete, you get to sew them all together to achieve the desired look. It is easiest to use a bent tip tapestry needle to sew parts together because it is much easier to pick up stitches. You can see where the needle is going, which makes it easier to control too.

5. Add Embellishments

Let your imagination run wild! If you understand how the pieces will all fit together, now you can think about the embellishments to add.

Safety eyes and safety noses make the face come to life with amigurumi. All different sizes and shapes are available.
Use wire on the inside of the parts to make ears or tails posable.
Make eyelashes or other details on the face with embroidery floss.
Gather different thicknesses of yarns to create beautiful hair on the dolls.
Accessorize the dolls by making cute clothing, purses, flower crowns, hats or whatever else you can imagine!

Conclusion

Amigurumi are fun projects for anyone for the following reasons.

Budget-friendly cost
Simple stitches, crocheted or knitted
Quick to work up
Use up those small bits of leftover yarn from other projects
BONUS: they are the most adorable little stuffed animals EVER!

Make amigurumi your next project and tell me about your amigurumi plans in the comment section!