Today we’re lucky enough to have a guest post written by Mirena of Mirena Made! Mirena has been a FreshStitches customer for years, and she creates hand-crocheted creations that she sells in her shop. (Yes, you too can sell anything you make with Shiny Happy World or FreshStitches patterns!)

Thank you so much, Mirena, for coming by and sharing this new technique with us! It’s a nifty trick that lets you crochet standing legs with no hole. Nice!

New Technique to Crochet Standing Legs in Amigurumi

I am a huge fan of FreshStitches designs and of Stacey and I also prefer patterns where the sewing and attaching is kept to a minimum (I suspect there are other amigurumi crocheters like me!)

One of my favorite FreshStitches patterns is Bentley the Bear, which is crocheted using standing legs.  In the standard technique, you get little hole that remains between the legs and you have to sew it afterwards… ah, sewing!

So, here is a technique that eliminates the hole and lets you continue your crocheting without worrying about it!

Step 1: You crochet the first leg exactly as stated in the pattern BUT at the end you cut the yarn, leaving a long tail and you DO NOT fasten off.

Step 2: You crochet the second leg as stated in the pattern (leaving the yarn attached, as instructed).

Step 3: You take both legs and you place the first one behind the second one, matching their stitches.

Step 4: You place the loop of the first leg on your hook and using its tail you single crochet in the next stitches through both thicknesses. You do 4 sc in total and you fasten off.

Step 5: You place the loop of the second leg on your hook and you are ready to continue crocheting!

The disadvantage to this technique is the stitch count. Normally, you would have 36 stitches after joining the legs but because we crocheted some of them them to attach the 2 legs together, we lost a few stitches. I solve this problem by increasing in the next round.

This technique will work with any pattern with standing legs, you just have to pay attention to the stitch count and adjust accordingly!

What a fabulous technique! Thanks so much for sharing, Mirena! You can use this trick to crochet standing legs with no hole in ANY of the standing-leg patterns in the shop. It’s my favorite body shape – so there are lots to choose from – but here are a few of my favorites.

Want to learn how to make adorable crocheted stuffed animals with an easy online workshop – totally free?

Sign up for Let’s Make Amigurumi here. You’ll learn how to get started, the tools and supplies you’ll need, and how to make an easy amigurumi from start to finish using simple crochet stitches.

It’s a fun, inexpensive, and totally portable craft. You can do it!

This blog post was originally published April 15, 2009.

Today I’m going to show you my favorite way to begin crocheting amigurumi: using the sloppy slip knot. I find it easier to do than the magic ring, and it closes up nicely so that you don’t have a hole at the start of your work. I’ve included a photo tutorial and a video tutorial.

(If you really want to use a Magic Ring, I’ve got a tutorial here. But trust me – the sloppy slipknot is soooooo much easier. Once I learned it I never looked back.)

Sloppy Slip Knot Photo Tutorial

Step one: To begin, don’t make a slip knot. Instead, simply twist the yarn once around your crochet hook.

Step two: Chain two stitches.

Step three: Single crochet 6 times in the second chain from hook. Not sure which one is the second chain? Check out where this arrow is pointing!

It’s important to note that you go into the second chain away from the hook, not the second chain that you crocheted. The loop on the hook doesn’t count as a stitch.

This is what your piece will look like when you have done your 6 single crochets. There’s a hole in the middle.

Step four: Here’s the magic part. Just pull the tail, and your hole closes up! And don’t worry, the hole won’t slip open over time.

It’s easy!

If the hole doesn’t pull closed, this probably means that you crocheted your 6 stitches into the incorrect stitch. No worries, try again!

See? Isn’t that a lot easier than the Magic Ring?

And now you’re ready for the second round. You’ll want to read this post on crocheting the 2nd round of amigurumi for help counting your stitches.

Sloppy Slip Knot Video Tutorial

A picture is worth a thousand words, but a video is probably worth a million! Here’s a video of me doing the Sloppy Slip Knot:

Do you think it’s a technique you’ll try?

Crochet an adorably cuddly hound dog. Get the pattern here.

A little while ago, I was invited to crochet-a-long with the facebook group, Learn Amigurumi Crochet with Us! We crocheted Howie the Penguin and had a blast!

(If you haven’t checked out the free Howie pattern, what are you waiting for?)

Carrie (one of the group leaders) designed sleepy eyes for crocheters who didn’t want to use plastic craft eyes… and she’s sharing her pattern with us!

Aren’t they adorable?!?

Maybe you’d like to add sleepy eyes to your next amigurumi!

Best,
Stacey