Handmade by Ani

Mei from amiguruMEI has released her new book Amigurumi People and to celebrate, she is having a Virtual Book Tour. I was extremely honoured to be asked by Mei to participate in her Amigurumi People Virtual Book Tour, and of course I said yes! Mei has designed 16 adorable characters, each with their own story to share. The book, published by Tuva Publishing, is packed with lots of step-by-step photos to help you re-create each of these characters as well as information on the tools and techniques that Mei likes to use. It was very hard choosing which character to make first as they are all super cute! I ended up choosing two - Sleepy Time Sophie and Megan the Exchange Student. I absolutely love how they turned out!  Sleepy Time Sophie from Amigurumi People by Mei Li Lee I loved the colours Mei chose for her Sophie and Megan, however I decided to switch them up as well as embroider the eyes and nose. I also used blush instead of crocheted cheeks. Mei puts a lot of adorable details ...

This month has flown by so quick that I almost  didn't meet my goal of posting on my blog at least once a month. It's been a busy month of pattern testing, working on a new design, and getting ready for a CAL (crochet along) that I'm hosting with some crochet friends - an Eggciting Easter CAL starting on 1 March! You can find out more about the CAL on my Instagram  😉 In between breaks, I was looking at my amigurumi book collection. I've always loved collecting fiction books, and it's no different for crochet! I can't believe how much it's grown since I last posted about my favourite amigurumi books. You can read my earlier blog post  here . These are some books that I've added to my collection since then: Amigurumi Treasures 1 by Erinna Lee The lovely Erinna from @littleaquagirl  has designed 15 crochet projects to cherish with this sweet book. It is suitable for all crochet levels, and whichever design you choose to make, you're guaranteed to end u...

There are so many amigurumi books out there, so it can be hard to choose one to buy, especially if you're new to the craft. The best books (in my opinion) are ones that both beginners and experienced crocheters can learn something from and be challenged by, while also creating something super kawaii in the end 😍 Here are some books that I have in my collection that I'm currently obsessed with. Though I wouldn't call myself a super experienced crocheter (having started crocheting back in 2017), I have learnt a new technique from each of these books. Animal Friends of Pica Pau and Animal Friends of Pica Pau 2 by Yan Schenkel Animal Friends of Pica Pau In each book, Yan introduces crocheters to 20 cute and colourful characters. So far I've made 10 - one day I'll get around to making all of them 😁 This book taught me about the 'x-shaped' single crochet*, which results in a tighter stitch that is straighter than the regular 'v-shaped' single crochet. * ...

Nothing beats boredom than crocheting cute amigurumi while watching TV. I know I'm happier when I'm making something KAWAII (Japanese for cute)! For those new to crochet, amigurumi are small knitted or crocheted stuffed toys. If you think this word sounds Japanese, you'd be right - it's derived from two Japanese words (Google to find out more 😉). There are heaps of talented designers out there, with many of them sharing free patterns! If you're looking for new projects to start (or you're procrastinating from completing unfinished projects), here are a few of my favourite free patterns. I have many more, but if I shared them all in this post, that would be the end of my blog 😂 In no particular order... Dottie the Duck  - by Katie from @yarnsociety When I first saw this cutie pop up on my feed, I immediately picked up my hook and started crocheting! I added a little bow for extra cute-ness. Shoutaro the Sleepy Sloth - by Mei from @amigu...