All About Ami
a blog about my love of ami-gurumi & crochet
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A few weeks ago, I found out about another technique that has changed and greatly facilitated the way I make amigurumi, much like the Magic Circle which I previously blogged about. Before, I would lament about how there were holes and bumps when I decreased my stitches when closing up a ball. Imagine my delight when I learned about “The Invisible Decrease” method, in which you can’t even tell that the stitches are decreasing- there are no holes or bumps in sight!
Typically when you are decreasing, you are instructed to either single crochet 2 together (sc 2 tog) or single crochet decrease ([insert hook into next stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop] twice; yarn over and pull through all 3 loops on hook). The Invisible Decrease uses a different method, and it is very important to know the difference between the front loops and the back loops of stitches.
When crocheting amigurumi, you usually work through both loops of the stitches. The front loops are those on the outside of the circle closest to you. The back loops are those on the inside of the circle.
Let’s begin doing our Invisible Decrease!
Sometimes it’s easier seeing this all in action, so here’s a great video by Nerdigurumi that shows exactly how to do the “Invisible Decrease”:
If you are not already using “The Invisible Decrease” when making amigurumi, I HIGHLY recommend trying it out. Just like the Magic Circle, once you’ve started using it, you won’t ever go back!
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This is the third and final tutorial of my cell phone cozy series (check out the first two here and here). This one takes the most time and effort, but the results are beautiful. This is the cozy I made for myself, hence the pink- my favourite colour!
I started off by crocheting a long piece. Make sure the width of the piece is the same width as your phone (you do not have to take into account the thickness of the device as in the other tutorials).
Wrap the piece around your phone to make sure it fits.
This cozy will have a front flap, so wrap the piece over itself.
We will be making a button hole in this front flap, so make rows of single crochets that run only halfway across one side. Bind off the end when finished.
Now even it out by making rows of single crochets on the other side.
Single crochet all the way across to close up the hole. For a more in-depth look on how to create a hole in the front flap for a button, see Tutorial #2 (has step-by-step pictures with arrows).
This is the new part: we will be using fabric for the lining of the cozy! You may remember this fabric from the Spring Bunnies (lining of their ears). I had material left over, so I was happy to use it in another project. Wrap the fabric around your cell phone and sew a straight seam down the middle.
Wrap the crocheted piece around the fabric lining.
Sew the crocheted piece around the fabric lining. You can see the seam in this picture.
Sew on your favourite button with colourful thread for contrast. In this case, I used a wooden button with hot pink thread. These materials may look familiar because I used the same silk bamboo pink yarn, wooden button and hot pink thread when I made my mom’s cup cozy!
Here is the finished cozy, all buttoned up with the cell phone inside!
The fabric lining really adds a nice touch with the decorative patterns only peeking out on the sides.
As you can see, I really like pink!
This cell phone cozy is a welcome addition to the other must-haves in my purse: my Kindle (I love whipping this out and reading whenever I have time to pass), keys, handcream, Sashiko kleenex holder and now my new handmade, chic-looking cozy!
And that concludes my series on cell phone cozies :) Hope you found them useful and that you’ve been inspired to make one for yourself or for a loved one. It’s great being able to use and carry something special you’ve made that can’t be bought in stores!
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This is the second tutorial of my three-part cell phone cozy series (Check out Tutorial #1 here and Tutorial #3 here). With this second method, we crochet a “sock” for our cell phones. There are no seams and no joining of edges required. This is actually my favourite way of crocheting cell phone cozies because I think it is the most simple and quick method.
To begin, you make a series of chain stitches that is about the width of your cell phone (or a little bit longer if your device is thick). Once you are done, single crochet to the left side (1) starting from the second chain from the hook as shown below in the top loops (aka back loops).
Once you have reached the left side, begin single crocheting in the bottom loops (aka front loops) of the beginning chain going towards the right side (2). In essence, we will be crocheting around and around the beginning chain.
From here on in, we will be crocheting in both loops (top and bottom or front and back loops). We single crochet towards the left side at the top (3) and then towards the right side on the bottom (4). This is similar to crocheting around a circle for amigurumi, except now we get a long, oval-like shape.
Once you keep crocheting around and around, the edges will start to curl up on itself since we are not increasing at all (the number of stitches in each row is the same). Be sure that the right side of your piece is showing outwards (see my “Right Side of Amigurumi” post).
After many more rows…
The finished product with the cell phone inside! The cozy really fits like a glove with the cell phone snugly tucked inside.
To make the cozy cuter, we added this little bunny (reminiscent of the Spring Bunnies!). See my tutorial on how to add felt shapes to your cozy here.
The bunny adds a nice touch :)
Next, I will talk about some other ways you can decorate or add some closure to your cozies. Here, I’ve crocheted a plain black cozy using the “sock” method.
I crocheted a 5-petal flower (click here to learn how to make them) and found a cute colourful button.
I sewed the button in the centre of the flower and sewed the flower onto the cozy for a pop of colour.
If you want your cell phone to be extra protected, you could use some form of closure at the top. For example, you could put the flower/button near the top front of the cozy and make a series of chain stitches on the back of the cozy to loop around the flower/button.
I opted to use the flower as a decoration in the corner.
Another option is to make a full front flap with a button for even more secure protection. Here, I’ve crocheted a pink cozy that is the length of my cell phone.
Next, I crochet across half of the sock (the back), chain 1 and then turn instead of continuing to crochet around in a loop.
Once the flap is long enough, we will get ready to create a hole for where the button will go through.
To create a hole or gap in our flap, we will single crochet half-way across on the right side (1) and stop. Do not continuously go across to the left side to complete the row.
Next, we chain one and go back across to the right side (2). Then we chain one again and go back halfway towards the left (3). Bind off here (or keep going a few more rows depending how big your button is).
Join yarn with slip stitch at the point indicated in the picture below. We will now work on the left side.
Single crochet across the left side (4), chain one, crochet towards the right side (5), chain one, then crochet towards the left side once again (6). Both the left and right sides should be even now.
Now, you can single crochet straight across the row (not stopping halfway), forming a hole in our flap.
Keep single crocheting rows until you’ve reached your desired length.
Next, it’s time to add our button. There are so many cool buttons out there, but I thought it’d be cute to add a crocheted button. To do this, I started off with a magic circle and crocheted around a small button (increasing then decreasing rows).
I then sewed the crocheted button onto my cozy.
And here it is with the button slipping through the hole we created very nicely :) You could also use a piece like this to hold credit cards and ID. Add a crocheted strap to the corner and you’ve got yourself a cute wristlet for days when you don’t feel like carrying a big purse!
While on a long road trip, I made these striped cozies because I was trying to think of ways to use up my old yarn from when I was little. There are so many different colour combinations to try! If changing colours, be sure to make the change towards the edges of the cozy so that the switch in colour is not readily visible.
Here are all the cozies we talked about using the “sock” method. Of course, you could add a button or do the same flap technique using Tutorial #1 (with the single crocheted edges) as well. Be sure to also check out Tutorial #3 which is what I actually used for my own cell phone!
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This week I will be blogging about three different ways you can crochet cell phone cozies. There are variations within each of these three ways I’ve come up with, so hopefully there will be one way you’ll like and want to try making. Cozies are functional since they protect your cell phones, and they can look super cute and stylish too! And of course, you can use this tutorial to make cozies for any device you have, including iPods, iTouches, mp3 players, etc.
The first way consists of crocheting either one or two pieces and single crocheting these pieces together along the edges. Here, I’ve crocheted one long piece that will wrap around the iPhone 4. I measured the width of the device and single crocheted row after row until I got an appropriate length. If your device is thick (has more depth), start with the width a little bit longer than the device itself to account for this (otherwise it may be too tight). Be sure to measure your crocheted piece around your cell phone as you crochet to make sure it’s not too snug or too big.
Fold the piece in half and single crochet the edges together down the left side as shown below. Bind off and hide the ends once you’ve reached the bottom of the left side.
Attach the yarn at the bottom ride side and single crochet upwards. Bind off and hide the ends once you’ve reached the upper right side.
You should get this finished product with two single-crocheted edges!
Another variation is to crochet two separate pieces measuring the same size. I wanted to vary the texture up a bit, so I alternated rows of back post and front post double crochets (click here to see how to do these stitches).
Place the two pieces ontop of one another and crochet down the left side (1), across the bottom (2) and up the right side (3). With this way, you do not have to bind off and reattach the yarn as you continuously single crochet around the edges. The bottom gets a single crocheted edge as well (as opposed to the pink cozy above).
Here are the two cozies we’ve crocheted so far. They’re a bit plain, so if you’d like to jazz up your cozies, you can add felt pieces to make different designs.
We wanted to add a cute little ice cream cone to the pink cozy! Working with felt can be difficult, particularly if you’re cutting very small, precise shapes. And so, Ryan came up with this method to make this process easier. He sketched out the shapes that we wanted on plain paper and then carefully cut them out.
Next, we glued them onto small pieces of felt.
We then carefully cut out the pieces of felt. Here are the sides with the paper showing.
And here are the sides with the felt showing.
The ice cream cone is ready for some embroidery floss :)
Ryan added some embroidery floss for the swirls in the ice cream and also added some eyes and a cute smile, just like our amigurumi!
We then used a glue gun to attach the ice cream cone to the cozy! Of course, you can always just cut the pieces out of felt (without using paper) and sew the pieces onto the cozies as well.
The ice cream cone suddenly brightens up the cozy and adds a cute touch!
We made a cherry for the tan cozy! Thinking up different shapes and using your favourite foods is pretty fun :)
Adding a cute face makes everything super kawaii!
And here you have it! The first way to crochet cell phone cozies by single crocheting along the edges. I love making cozies since they’re pretty quick to crochet and you don’t have to keep the count (unlike amigurumi!). Check out Tutorial #2 and Tutorial #3 to see some other designs and ways to make cell phone cozies!
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A while back, someone requested that I do a nose tutorial for amigurumi. I thought this was an excellent idea since the noses are such a key feature for stuffed animals. Different noses make amigurumi look happy or sad, and the placement of the noses greatly affects the overall look of their faces.
Here are some step-by-step photos we used to make one particular nose. I’ll show pictures of all the different noses we’ve made so far at the end of this post so you can see the differences. To make most of the noses I’ve used for my amigurumi, cut a small circular piece of felt. I buy my felt at my local dollar store for cheap. Get your needle and embroidery floss ready.
Start from the back side of the felt so that your knot will be hidden underneath. We will be creating a triangle for this particular nose. As illustrated in the photo below, stitch one line across at the top and then poke your needle below at a point that is halfway between the top line.
Join the sides of the triangle.
Fill in the triangle.
Stitch a line straight down.
Then stitch two small lines to create a “v” on the right side.
Next, stitch a “v” on the left side. The nose is complete!
The next important step is placing the nose on the face. This is definitely personal preference, but I will show you how I like to place the noses based on my experience.
This nose is placed too low…
This nose is placed wayyyy too low…
This nose is placed a little too high…
I prefer to place my noses as shown in the picture below. The middle of the nose lines up with the middle of the eyes (as shown by the dotted line). Once again though, this is really personal preference.
This nose was used for Graduation Teddy (pattern found here).
Next, I will show you some close-ups of various noses we’ve made. Click on the name of each amigurumi to see the full step-by-step blog posts . When the noses are upturned (bottom lines curve upwards), they make the amigurumi look happy. Here is another example of an upturned nose.
This was for Cupcake Bear.
This nose is simple with a cute little smile.
This was for Brown Bear with Scarf.
This next nose has a triangle shape with a small smile.
This was for Bunny.
The next series of noses are all downturned (bottom lines go downwards), making the amigurumi look a little sad. There’s just something about these noses that make them look adorable though!
This was for Fuzzy White Bear.
Here’s another one…
This was for Mini Cupcake Bear (pattern found here).
This nose is similar to the one above except there’s no line going straight down.
This was for Valentine Teddy (pattern can be found here).
This nose was very different and was stitched directly onto the face (no felt used). A step-by-step tutorial for this nose as well as the pattern can be found here.
This was for the Spring Bunnies.
Here are a variety of noses, including upturned, downtowned and neutral to depict different expressions:
These were for my Teddy Bear Keychains in my first giveaway!
I will continue to add noses to this post as I make more amigurumi. There are many different ways to make noses, but these are just some of the ways that we’ve made them. You can stitch the noses directly onto the face or stitch them onto felt and then sew or use a glue gun to attach the felt to the face. Try out these different noses and make up your own styles! Keep your eyes out for cute expressions when watching cartoons or when you see other stuffed animals at toy stores. They really help give amigurumi different personalities and looks!
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This is a quick tutorial on how to make a tassel. This tassel was used to attach to the mortarboard of a Graduation Teddy I made, but you can use tassels as a finishing feature to decorate other items as well, such as carpets and drapes.
Choose what colours you would like your tassel to be comprised of using embroidery floss or yarn. If you are making this tassel for a graduation teddy, I recommend using the school colours of your graduate. Get a piece of paper of an appropriate size (or fold the paper) and begin wrapping the embroidery floss around the paper.
Cut the ends after you’ve finished wrapping the embroidery floss to your desired thickness.
Holding the embroidery floss on both sides firmly, cut the floss in half along the edge of the paper.
Choose what colour you want the knot of the tassel to be (as well as the string that will attach to the centre circle of the mortarboard). Cut a piece of embroidery floss using that colour and tie a double knot firmly in the centre of the strings (where they were folded).
Fold the yellow and purple embroidery floss back upon themselves in half. Keep the purple embroidery floss (the one just used to tie the double knot) separate and out of the way (if you have an extra pair of hands, have that person hold this piece taut away from you). Use another piece of embroidery floss (same colour of floss used to tie double knot) and wrap it multiple times around the rest of the floss that is folded in half. When desired thickness is reached, tie a double knot.
Using crochet hook, pull ends of floss down and through the wrapped portion to hide them and have them blend in with rest of embroidery floss. Pull only the ends of the most recent double knot (used for wrapping) and NOT the original double knot that was kept separate (these ends will be used for attaching the tassel).
Trim ends using sharp pair of scissors.
Tassel is complete!
If making tassel for Graduation Teddy, attach tassel to mortarboard by wrapping ends around centre circle.
The tassel adds a nice touch!
If you would like to watch a video on how to make a tassel, click here (this is the one I used to make this tutorial).
As I was looking up graduation quotes, I came across this witty one: “The tassel is worth the hassle!“ Of course, this tassel in particular is quick to make and not a hassle at all :) Give it a try to add a nice decorative touch to your projects!
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After making these amigurumi cups, I thought I’d try my hand at making some actual cup cozies since I love drinking tea. These cup cozies will protect your fingers when your cups get too hot from your warm drinks :) Follow along with my tutorial to make your very own!
Make a series of chain stitches and measure it around the cup you’d like to use. Make the chain a bit longer than the circumference of the cup.
Single crochet along each row until you’ve reached your desired height.
Wrap the crocheted piece around the cup (to visualize where you’ll be crocheting). Make sure that the top edge of the piece has the “v’s” showing outwards (flip if necessary). Single crochet down the left side.
Next, make a series of chain stitches to run across the bottom of the cup. Make sure the cup cozy fits nice and snug, so do not chain too many stitches. Slip stitch to the right side.
Single crochet back across from the right side to the left side (1), and then slip stitch to the left side. Then single crochet from the left side to the rght side (2) and then slip stitch to the right side.
Next, single crochet up the right side.
Now, single crochet down the right side (1), across from the right to the left side (2), and then up the left side (3) to give a decorative touch to all the edges. Of course, you can adapt how you crochet around the handle any way you’d like (depending on which side you started on).
Sew a button onto one of the sides.
Make a loop by chaining stitches on the other side. Measure it to make sure it comfortably and snugly loops around the button.
This is the finished product!
My mom loves drinking coffee and tea, so I wanted to make a cup cozy for her too. I made a few changes to this one since it was my second time around. I made the cup cozy lower so that there would be more space for the lips to drink from the cup. I also chose a cup that was two-toned (light grey on the outside, green on the inside) for colour variation, and I also used a deeper pink thread when sewing on the button for a nice pop of colour.
It was somewhat tricky crocheting a cup cozy for this cup since it tapered downwards and was not the same size throughout the height.
And so, I had to crochet this shape. I started off with the widest length and then decreased some of the rows throughout to accomodate for the tapered shape of the cup. To make life easier, I’d recommend choosing a cup that is the same width throughout.
This is how the cup cozy turned out! I followed a similar pattern to join the edges, this time adding a few more rows of single crochets along the sides and the bottom. I also placed the button further inwards and downwards to help hold the cup cozy up (otherwise the cozy would slip down).
I love the look of the crocheted cup cozies! They look both rustic and kind of modern at the same time.
And here’s what it looks like in action! Now you can look cute and chic drinking your coffee and tea :)
Try making these cup cozies with different colours and buttons! I think it’d be cute to add felt shapes, faces (a smiley cup!), crocheted hearts and flowers to these cup cozies too :) These cup cozies would also make great gifts! Comment and let me know how it goes if you try making these! To see how other people’s cup cozies turned out, check out my “Crochet Corner” post about them here :)
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