Amigurumi: Crocheted Coraline

Coraline will be my first crocheted amigurumi doll. It seems appropriate, after all, I’m a huge fan of Neil Gamon’s work,  and have read Coraline many times.

When my daughter was five-years old, I read Coraline to her. It’s a children’s book.  Part creepy/part goth, with a twisted adventure that kept me consuming the pages, until I reached the end.

By the time I’d read Coraline, I’d already read many of Neil Gamon’s adult books. I was pleased that I enjoyed this “children’s book” so much.  What’s funny is, even though parts of the book scared her, she still wanted to hear the story. She’s definitely my daughter, she already loves horror,  and loves Stephen King’s books.

Speaking of King, I read my first Stephen King book, The Shining, when I was seven or eight-years old. I purchased it at a local five and dime store, tucked it safely in my book bag, and brought it home. I still remember the price; it cost me 0.25! The year was 1977 or 1978; and that was a lot of money for someone who received a meager allowance. But even at that age, spending my allowance on books was worth every penny!

And so began my fascination with horror, and I read through countless stacks of horror, along with other genres throughout my life. It didn’t take long for me to become jaded, and horror books or movies no longer scared me, but that still hasn’t stopped me from reading them.

But back to Coraline…

Last evening, I’ve printed the free crocheted Coraline pattern from Sharon Ojala website; Homemade Obsessions. If you crochet, you should check it out. Go on… it’s free!

When my daughter saw Sharon’s free pattern, she got excited and asked (quite nicely, I might add) if I would start working on her, and I did. I didn’t have any peach colored yarn, so I used white.

As you can see, Coraline’s head is almost complete.

I’m doing things a bit differently than Sharon, since my next step is to add her facial features; eyes, nose, and mouth. That’s always the fun part, for me, since I get to embroider. Perhaps, I’ll add the hair too, instead of waiting. I’ll be rooting the yarn, to Coraline’s crochet head. Just like I’d root for a regular doll. I was pleased to see that Sharon uses this technique too. After that’s completed, I’ll start working on the body. Who knows, I might have my crocheted Coraline completed before the weekend is over.

I wonder if any Neil Gamon fans read this site, at some point, perhaps a Coraline doll would make a nice giveaway?