Crochet

Patterns, projects and techniques

ONLINE CROCHET SUPPORT – IT’S THERE FOR YOU!

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HAPPY Hooker - Debbie Stoller fanned the fire!

Real men DO crochet!crochet club - bring your hooks & have fun!Do you have any Crochet Partners? If not – or even if you do – why not visit http://crochetpartners.org and find some more?
CP is a website with lots of resources for crocheters. There are more than 80 free patterns for members – and membership is FREE! There is a wonderful discussion list associated with this site. Members on this list are from all over the globe. It’s great fun – and often informative – to correspond with crocheters in other countries. First, you’ll learn that crochet terminology is not universal! But, graphs are. So, you need to learn to crochet using a graph. More about that soon.Back to who’s on the CP list. Well, there are any number of crochet luminaries who routinely post. Jean Lienhauser, Noreen Crone-Findlay, Ferosa Herald, Margaret Hubert, Kim Guzman, and others are Crochet Partners. Jean and Rita Weiss are the owners of the list. The free patterns on the site are those created by CP’ers and donated to be used by all. There’s a wealth of patterns, crochet savvy, and inspiration to be had on this site and its companion discussion list. If you have a question about technique, pattern reading, yarn types, colorways, etc, you’ll likely find an answer on this wonderful list. Check it out! You’ll be welcomed as a new Partner.

Comments

  1. Am a new member to CP & so far have enjoyed the comments, advice, etc. Liked your Latin reply, once I knew what it meant, & I certainly do agree with you. Sad world if we were all identical seems to me. Lots more fun since we aren’t. Keep up the good work.
    AT Texas

  3. I need HELP on understand a pattern instuction. I am presently working on finishing a baby afghan but got stuck. The instruction reads Last Row: Ch 1, turn; sc in each st abd in each ch-1 sp across; do not finish off; 193 sc. I got this pattern for a book I bought “Leisure Arts, Our Best Baby Afghans” page 52. Please help me understand.

    Thank you for taking the time.

    Alicia,
    Long Island, NY

    ALICIA, I’ll try to help, but you might do better to post your request for help on the boards at crochetpartners or crochetville.  Both sites have thousands of crochet readers.  The instructions sound fairly straightforward to me. It looks like the row you’ve just finished is composed of single crochets and ch 1 spaces.  The instructions tell you to crochet into each one of those – into every single crochet and into every chain 1 space.  It’s very helpful that the final stitch count is given because that’s your failsafe.  If you are off on that number, then you know you’ve done something wrong.  So, before you crochet, count the # of sc’s and ch 1 spaces to see if it totals, with your turning ch 1 to see if those add up to 193.  If not, then you either have an error in the row you’ve just completed (and maybe more rows) or the directions are just wrong.  If you’re only off by 1 or 2 stitches, you can fudge those.  Let us know how it turns out.  jd

  4. What does “do not finish off” mean? I have that in a Leisure Arts booklet. It says, double crochet, do NOT finish off. (with the “not” bolded). It is in the middle of a pattern, so why would I “finish off”? I am thinking this must mean something different than I think it does. Any ideas? Am I not to finish the double crochet stitch before doing the chain 5 that follows?

Have you read?

Book Review: Irresistibly Cute Mini Amigurumi – 62 Tiny Crochet Projects

There is something slightly dangerous about a crochet book containing 62 tiny amigurumi projects.

You tell yourself you’ll just make the little panda.

Then perhaps the turtle.

Then suddenly you’re making a miniature donut, a bumblebee charm and an entire wardrobe for a tiny crochet doll.

Irresistibly Cute Mini Amigurumi: Easy-to-Make Small Crocheted Animals, Dolls and Charms by Boutique-sha is packed with exactly the sort of quick, ridiculously cute projects that make leftover yarn and thread suddenly look very useful.

What You’ll Find Inside

This isn’t just a collection of tiny crochet animals.

There are 62 projects, including teddy bears, dinosaurs, stackable turtles, sea otters and an owl, but you’ll also find a dress-up doll with handbags, hats, skirts, tops and overalls.

Then things get even smaller.

There are bumblebee charms, cat and sheep brooches, Halloween decorations, festive garlands and tree ornaments, miniature donuts and cakes and even a tiny basket of vegetables.

Basically, if it can be made smaller and crocheted, someone has probably put it in this book.

If tiny animals are your particular weakness, we’ve also reviewed Mini Amigurumi Animals: 26 Tiny Creatures to Crochet, which is a lovely collection for anyone wanting to concentrate specifically on miniature crochet animals.

Is It Beginner Friendly?

The publisher describes this collection as suitable for beginners, and one thing that caught my attention is the sheer amount of visual instruction.

The 96-page book includes more than 100 colour photographs and 550 diagrams, with the patterns illustrated using Japanese-style crochet diagrams alongside step-by-step instructions.

For visual learners, that’s a big plus.

Crochet charts can look a little intimidating the first time you meet one, but once you understand the symbols they can actually make small projects much easier to follow, especially when you’re working in rounds.

The projects use lace thread, rather than the thicker yarn many of us normally reach for when making amigurumi. That’s what gives these designs their lovely miniature scale.

It also means I wouldn’t necessarily choose the tiniest project for your very first attempt at crochet. Small hooks and fine thread can be fiddly until your hands get used to them.

But if you’re already comfortable with basic crochet and want to venture into miniature amigurumi, there is plenty here to keep you busy.

Tiny Projects Are Brilliant for Using Up Supplies

One of the joys of mini crochet is that each individual project uses very little material.

You can make charms, ornaments and tiny animals without sacrificing an entire skein, which is particularly useful when your yarn stash contains seventeen little balls you have been keeping because they’re obviously “too good to throw away.”

If you’d like to start with a quick little creature before diving into the book, our amigurumi bee crochet pattern takes around an hour and can also be turned into a keychain.

And if crocheted food makes you inexplicably happy, CraftBits has this free round dumpling amigurumi pattern, which would fit very nicely beside the miniature cakes and donuts in this collection.

More Than Just Tiny Toys

I actually think the charms, brooches and seasonal projects are what make this book particularly useful.

Tiny crochet projects can become:

  • keyrings
  • bag charms
  • zipper pulls
  • brooches
  • Christmas ornaments
  • garland decorations
  • little handmade gifts
  • stocking fillers
  • desk companions
  • doll accessories

They’re also perfect when you need something satisfying to make between larger projects.

Nobody needs to start another blanket at 9pm.

A tiny turtle, however, feels completely reasonable.

My Take

Irresistibly Cute Mini Amigurumi looks like one of those books you can keep dipping into whenever you want a small, cheerful project.

The variety is its biggest strength for me.

You’re not getting 62 variations of essentially the same animal. There are creatures, dolls, clothes, food, seasonal decorations and wearable little accessories, so there’s plenty of room to try something different.

I also really like the generous number of diagrams. Miniature crochet can become confusing very quickly when you’re squinting at tiny stitches and wondering whether you’ve somehow gained three stitches since the last round, so good visual instructions matter.

If you love amigurumi, miniature crafts or projects that use tiny amounts of thread, this one could become a very well-used addition to the crochet bookshelf.

Just don’t blame me when you start attaching miniature crochet creatures to everything you own.

Irresistibly Cute Mini Amigurumi: Easy-to-Make Small Crocheted Animals, Dolls and Charms is published by Tuttle Publishing and is due for release on October 27, 2026. The hardcover edition has 96 pages and a listed price of $17.99.