Amigurumi

Crochet amigurumi: Amigurumi balls and amigurumi monsters

April 29, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 7 Comments

Amigurumi Monster 1

Amigurumi monster

Yes, it’s another amigurumi…

I know, I know, lately, I’ve been posting a lot of amigurumi crochet items, but I’m having so much fun!

I’ve finally found my crochet groove, and it’s amigurumi. I’ve mastered the basic stitches, which has helped me tremendously with my amigurumi projects, since (from my research) many amigurumis use basic crochet stitches.

Crocheting Amigurumi, and more…

Although, I’m In love with amigurumi, that hasn’t stopped me from working on other crochet projects…

I’m still working on my Yo-yo afghan, and I’m working on crochet jewelry; I’ll start posting some of those pieces soon. Admittedly, the bulk of my time has been spent crocheting amigurumi, whether they’re aminekos, or cute little crochet amigurumi balls, I’m having a lot of fun.

Amigurumi balls Monster

Amigurumi balls and monster; work in progress

The above photos shows what I was crocheting; The cranberry ball was actually worked in a spiral. It’s my first time doing spiral crochet, and I must say, I’m pleased with the results. I’m loving the spiral pattern.

Saturday evening gave me an opportunity to crochet. My daughter and I were watching a Shrek Marathon; four hours, that’s a lot of hours for us, we rarely watch television, but we both like Shrek… and so I got out my yarn and hooks and crocheted amigurumi balls. And my first amigurumi monster!

These are all works in progress, I still have to add faces to the amigurimi balls; most likely they’ll be some type of amigurumi animal.

Originally, I was going to purchase eyes, for my crocheted amigurumi monster, but I’m still on that ‘all crochet kick’ for the amigurumis I’ve been creating. I crocheted the whites of the eye, and embroidered the pupils. French knots were made for the pupils, and I decided the red eye should be looking downwards.

The face was added before it was stuffed with fiberfill. The stitches are more secure since I was able to go into the inside of this amigurumi cavity, with my needle, to strengthen my embellishments.

Currently my amigurumi projects are simple, and I’m fine with that. I want to master crocheting the basic amigurumi shapes, before I tackle challenging projects.

Gaming inspired crochet amigurumi

My long term goal is to turn some of my much loved gaming characters into crochet amigurumi. What you’re seeing now is some of the shapes that I’ll be incorporating into the various characters I create.

For those of you who’ve met me through various games (in-game, forums or blogs) like World of Warcraft, The Elder Scrolls, Halo, Diablo, and Mass Effect, eventually you’ll see some of my favorite characters here, crocheted; of course. I’ve already sketched out designs for some of them…

Crocheted Amineko with amigurumi ball animals

April 28, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 2 Comments

Amigurumi ball bear 1

This crochet amigurumi ball, was made last evening. It didn’t take to long to make.

Once the amigurumi ball was complete, I crocheted the ears, and embroidered the eyes, nose, and mouth.

Looking through my stash; I’ll have to purchase single ply yarn, and perhaps some more embroidery floss, felt, and perhaps some eyes too.

Amigurumi ball bear 2

I think it looks like a cute crocheted amigurumi ball bear, what do you think?

My daughter is insisting it’s a baby amineko.

Amineko Amigurumi ball 1

And she’s already presented Marigold and Mario, their brand-new baby. Just look at the proud parents.

Although I didn’t get a chance to post anything for finished object Friday, I have plenty of finished objects to share, and so most of them will be featured in next Friday. The past few days, I haven’t had time to crochet Angry Birds, hopefully I’ll be able to do that this weekend. The lone crocheted Red Angry Bird that I made is rather lonely.

Today my daughter and I will be volunteering at our Lutheran churches food pantry; I’ll be bringing my crochet hooks and yarn. Occasionally we have down time, and I want something to keep my hands busy, while I chat with the other volunteers

Finished Objects Friday: Crochet; necklace and cats…

April 13, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 33 Comments

Has the week flown by for anyone else?

It seems like the other day my daughter was still on spring break.

Today, I have a few finished objects to share…

Crochet necklace 3 04 08 12

My daughter loves this necklace.

The night before Easter, I made this necklace. I design jewelry; wire and beads… but this is the first time I crocheted a necklace. No pattern was used, just single crochet. A simple chain stitch was used, at both ends, to ‘tie’ the necklace.

After taking this photo, I saw a few stray ends that needed to be woven in the necklace. Oops!

Daugher Easter 04 08 12 2

Easter morning, I made matching hair ribbons, to compliment the necklace (and dress).

I still need to learn how to put myself into the creating equation I started crocheting towards the end of last year, I’ve crocheted several items since that time. However, I’ve only made one item for myself, a crocheted headwrap. What can I say? I love sharing with others.

Amineko 1 04 13 12

Yesterday afternoon, I finished Amineko.

My daughter was so thrilled! I sort of led her to believe that I hadn’t finished it. Sneaky mom, I know… I know… 🙂

I didn’t lie to her, when I picked her up from her Lutheran school, she asked whether I had time to work on Amineko, I replied, “I need to do more, perhaps I’ll be able to do that this evening?” She took that to mean, that I hadn’t crocheted the tail or the other leg.

When I finished Amineko, I’d tucked it back into the box she’d placed it in, and pulled the covers up around its chin, so my daughter thought I didn’t touch it while she was away at school. She had a big smile on her face when she pulled Amineko from its ‘bed’ and discovered that the tail and legs had been added.

“Thank you, Mommy!”

Yesterday, she carried Amineko everywhere. She’s named it, Marigold.

While my daughter played on our upright grand piano, Amineko perched on the side, offering piano tips. I should have taken a picture of that.

Amineko daughter 04 13 12

I’m an early riser…

I usually peek into my daughter’s room to see how she’s doing. Here’s what I saw this morning… How sweet is that?

Amineko 2 04 13 12

My daughter made Marigold a bed from one of her shoe boxes. She thoughtfully placed a crocheted doll sized blanket over her too.

When I saw the box…

I was planning on surprising her, by modifying the bed while she’s away at school today, but now that I think about it… I believe this would be a fun project for us to do together.

I’m thrilled with this last project for a variety of reasons, it’s the first Amigurumi I’ve completed, and it’s first crocheted pattern I’ve followed. I usually come up with my own creations.

Although I’m still new to crochet, I didn’t have too many issues making the Amineko. I took my time, additionally, I used the numerous crochet videos available on Youtube, if I ran into any issues.

Crocheting another Amineko

Naturally, I’m already starting to work on my second Amineko, they are simply adorable. The second Amineko will be multicolored.

I used a pattern to crochet Aminko, the pattern is located in the book Hello my name is Aminkeo: The Story of a Crafty Crochet Cat.

Finished Object Friday Blog Hop

Crochet; Herding cats

March 7, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 12 Comments

Cats, cats, everywhere…. if my daughter had her way she’d have our house filled with felines.

My daughter absolutely adores cats. She’s been begging me for the longest to get a real cat, but thus far mommy isn’t budging! We have a few pets already; Shih Tzu, two guinea pigs, and one goldfish. So no… I not opening our home to any more animals.

Before the guinea pigs we had four ferrets, that we’d gotten from a local ferret rescue shelter. I absolutely adored them, but I have to admit that once they passed on — I wanted pets that didn’t do too much. Guinea pigs fit the bill nicely.

Amineko yellow 1

Since my daughter knows I’m not budging on a live cat… she’s settled for the stuffed cat toys — for now! I can live with that. High on her priority list are the incredibly cute crocheted cats. Above you can see the amigurumi cat, that I’m crocheting. The majority of it is finished, but I still need to complete a leg, tail, ears, stitch on the eyes, nose, and mouth.

A few weeks ago, I picked up the crochet book, Hello my name is Aminkeo: The Story of a Crafty Crochet Cat. This book differs from many crochet books I have, in that it tells a story (through pictures of crocheted kitties) about a crocheted cat named, Amineko and his friends, and their escapades.

Here’s what’s said about the author…

Born in Tokyo 1967, Nekoyama has been a life-long lover of cats. Cats and their endearing mischief have never failed to cheer her up. She created her first Amineko by accident and has never looked back. Today, she and her husband are the proud parents of many Aminekos. Nekoyama’s first book, A Day In the Life of Amineko, was published in Japan in 2005.

If you own a cat, I’m sure many of you will get a kick out of some of the cat like issues these crocheted cats encounter. I was impressed at how well the author did in mimicking a live cat behavior. I’ve had several cats throughout my life. My daughter loves this book, and has even taken it to her Lutheran school. I imagine to show it off to her classmates.

The direction on how to make these adorable kitties are included near the back of the book. It also has instructions for making additional accessories; fish, squid, and I think a sleep sack. Although I’m still new to crochet, I found the directions quite easy to follow.

Daughter: “Mommy, can you please make me cats in light grey, black, brown, white, red, and green?”

Me: (Mock horror) “All of those! Are you planning on becoming a cat herder?”

Daughter: (big grin) Yep!

Me: (fake grumbling) I’ll be busy for a while! We’ll see…

Daughter: Yeah!

From Wiki…

Herding cats may refer to:

An idiomatic saying that refers to an attempt to control or organize a class of entities which are uncontrollable or chaotic. Implies a task that is extremely difficult or impossible to do, primarily due to chaotic factors.

I’ll definitely post pictures once I finish my first crocheted amineko. Eventually I’ll get around to making her some additional amigurumi kitties. As mentioned in my housecleaning post, I picked up the audiobook 11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King. It came in handy, while I was reorganizing my bedroom. I’m halfway through it now. I’m loving the story, reminds me of Kings earlier work. ll be listening to that, while crocheting the adorable cats.

Edited to add:

Work in Progress Wednesday

I completely forgot it was Work in Progress Wednesday, I’m linking to the following works in progress…

Amigurumi: Chibi Cat – WIP (Work in Progress)

January 10, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 11 Comments

Crochet Amigurumi Chibi Cat

Amigurumi: Crocheted chibi cat

Yesterday, I posted about my first amigurumi crocheted project. My daughter love cats, and so she asked me to make one for her.

Naturally I agreed, but was a bit puzzled on how I’d turn my first project into a kitty. Look at it, the head is oversized. It literally dwarfs the body. Last evening, I thought about this, while I was working on the arms and legs… Then it hit me! I could make a Chibi cat!

Chibi envy by nuhfanik d34ucmo

Because of this cats oversized head, it easily falls under the Chibi category. You’ll find Chibi’s in Manga (Japanese comics — which I absolutely adore!) Chibi’s are easily recognizable since their limbs are overly exaggerated. I wanted to make the arms and legs smaller, but my daughter wanted them to be ‘normal size’.

Finishing the crocheted amigurumi chibi cat

I still have a bit more to do on this Amigurumi chibi cat. A mouth needs to be added, I still need to crochet ears and a super long and skinny tail — but this being my first amigurumi project, I’m really pleased with how it’s progressing. Regarding the eyes, originally I was going to use buttons (or purchase eyes) for this project, but I opted to crochet the eyes instead. I made one slightly larger than the other, to add to its deformity.

There’s another reason I chose crocheted eyes… Remember when I wrote about The Mother Bear Project? Well… the more I thought about it, I realized that I don’t know how young some of the children might be that receive a hand crocheted or knitted bear. To be on the safe side, I think it’s wise for me to make the items out of fiber, so it won’t be a potential choking hazard. Some of the techniques I’m trying with this project (like the crocheted eyes) will be incorporated into the bears I crochet.

Crochet: No time for idle hands

Today, I’ll be volunteering at my daughters school. It’s open house, and so I’ll be greeting potential parents. I’ll be sure to bring along some yarn, crochet hooks, and perhaps a bit of fiberfill so I can create some more Chibi pets. I’m thinking I’ll make about 17. Once they’re completed, I’ll hand them out to my daughters third grade class. Each school year I make some type of crafted item for her classmates.

My inspiration for this upcoming project comes from Nerdigurumi. I guess, you could say I’m already ahead of the game, since I’ve already made the heads. I made this this past weekend. I discovered her site this morning and have already liked her on Facebook. If you love Amigurumi, stop by the site and check out her adorable crocheted amigurumi critters.

Photo Source: Nuhfanik; Deviant Art

Amigurumi: First attempt; The making of cats

January 9, 2012May 29, 2012 Aynaria 10 Comments

When it comes to art creation, my main form of creativity is fiber; cloth, yarn, natural and synthetic fibers…

Crochet Brian Crane Amigurumi (pronounced ah-mee-goo-roo-mee) has been occupying most of my weekend crochet time. This is fueled by my daughter’s love of stuffed animals, She’s requested that my first amigurumi project be a cat, and so I’ve managed to squeeze hours throughout this weekend to focus on it. I’ve decided to devote some of my crochet time into making amigurumi creatures for my daughter, and some others…

The word Amigurumi is Japanese, it means “stuffed toy.” The toys are crocheted or knitted. Pretty clever, right?

Crochet Amigurumi Cat 1

Making daughters amigurumi cat

As you can see from the above picture, my daughters amigurumi cat isn’t complete. Actually, I’ll be making two. The second will be smaller than this one. I didn’t follow a pattern, I just picked up a size G crochet hook, and started doing my own thing. No surprise, since when it comes to crafts (or cooking) I rarely follow directions.

I found the head and body was easy to make, although in hindsight I should have made the body more cylindrical in appearance. When I attempted to correct that ‘flaw’ my daughter told me, No! It appears she loves the round body. I’ll make sure I do make corrections with some of my upcoming projects. My daughter is happy with how her kitty is progressing and is clamoring for me to finish.

The legs and arms were a bit of a challenge, until I started using a stitch marker (strip of yarn in another color) to make off my starting point. I believe I’ll remake the tail, since I think it should be slimmer than the legs. I still need to complete the arms.

Perfect timing: 12 for 12 in 2012; Charity

My interest in Amigurumi comes at an excellent time. I’ve mentioned The Mother Bear Project in a few posts, the crocheted and knitted bears that are created and sent to children in underdeveloped countries. My local yarn store, Lovely Yarns, supplies a pattern, but I’ve decided to make my own. I’ve already sketched out the design for that amigurumi bear, the only thing left is to make it. I’m getting my feet wet with the amigurumi cat, once that’s completed I’ll start working on the bear. I’ll be sure to post pictures of both completed projects.

This post should have been posted yesterday, since I’m participating in the 12 for 12 in 2012 Charity Crochet project. Head on over to Kathryn’s crochet blog, to see who else is participating in this project. This weekend, I haven’t been online as much. I’ve been spending time with my daughter, and working on the above amigurumi project.

I realize that everyone isn’t like myself, and might want instructions before they attempt to dive into Amigurumi, and so I’ve included a few links below, enjoy!

Amigurumi Resources

Photo Source: Crochet Spot

Tag: Amigurumi