Tools You Need to Start Making Amigurumi

Hey! Are you ready to start making amigurumi? I remember when I first started and I had no idea what I needed. Here’s a list of must-have tools for making amigurumi, as well as some of my other favorite items that I have found helpful!

Yarn

First things first: the yarn. Many amigurumi patterns are made using Worsted Weight Medium #4 yarn.

Some of my favorites are:

• Red Heart Super Saver
• Lion Brand Heartland
• Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice
• Joann’s Big Twist Value

I use a lot of acrylic yarn for amigurumi since it’s durable and nicely priced, but many amigurumi makers use cotton yarn. Experiment with different yarn fibers to find out which ones you prefer. Also, ignore the recommended hook size – amigurumi requires a different hook size than normal, which leads me on to……

Hooks

Part of amigurumi is making sure you’re creating a tight fabric, so using a hook several sizes smaller than is recommended for the yarn you are using helps to make that happen. For example, the worsted weight yarn that I showed above recommends a J (6mm) hook, but you would go down to either an E (3.5mm) or an F (3.75mm) size hook to make your project. Also, do yourself a favor: spring for that ergonomic hook! You’ll be making many small, tight stitches so it really helps to have a hook with some padding. The hooks pictured are Clover Amour hooks, but there are plenty on the market for every price range.

Polyfill and Polybeads

To make stuffed dolls, you’re gonna need stuffing. Polyfill is basically a bag of fluff. You’ll pull pieces off and stuff the body parts of your dolls before sewing them together. Most of the time this is what I use when making amigurumi.

On occasion, I’ll have an amigurumi that I want to add a little weight to in the bottom – usually to ensure it stands nicely without rolling all over the place (an example being for my gnome pattern). In these instances I’ll use some polybeads in the bottom of my dolls when stuffing. Polybeads are small plastic beads. Depending on the size of my doll, I’ll pour in a 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch of poly beads and stuff the rest of the way with polyfill. Polybeads are definitely an optional item but are fun to play around with – just be careful around pets and children.

Safety Eyes

Safety eyes can really help your amigurumi come to life – sometimes my favorite part is placing the eyes! You’ll place the eyes in between stitches and secure them on the inside of your work with those little white washers. They come in a ton of different sizes from 6mm to 24mm and beyond!

Stitch Markers

Trust me – these may look like they aren’t much use for anything but wow are these important! If you don’t use these already they may just become your best friend. Since you are working in the round for amigurumi, you won’t see where your row ends because you are usually working in a spiral. Imagine if you lost count or needed to frog a row – you wouldn’t know where your row begins or ends! You use these to mark the end of your row to avoid that problem.

Row Counter

This is truly one of my favorite items. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve put my piece down in the middle of a row to then come back and have no idea where I was. Sure, you can count how many rows you’ve done, but this is just so much easier, especially when working on a larger amigurumi. This digital one pops right on your finger and you can quickly hit that button with your thumb, but there are also analog counters if you prefer.

Yarn Needles

A lot of amigurumi is made in pieces that you will have to sew together. These yarn needles are what you will thread your yarn tails through and use to sew together your amigurumi. Also, if you decide to embroider with yarn, these are the things you’re looking for. There are a few types out there. I find the the bent tip yarn needle (the golden one on the right) to be helpful with most projects. The pink needle with the larger plastic circle (Knitter’s Pride Wool Needle) is good if you are making amigurumi with chunky yarn – it’s much easier to thread the thicker yarn through these.

Embroidery Needle + Thread

Used to embroider smiles, eyes, eyelashes, et cetera. For the thread, you have a variety of different options. You can use embroidery thread, craft cord, or crochet thread. I use the color black the most often, so I buy Aunt Lydia’s Fashion Size 3 Crochet Thread and find it’s perfect for embroidering amigurumi. It doesn’t split easily, it’s durable, and you get 150 yards of the stuff – I have had the same one for years and I still haven’t run out!

Scissors

A nice pair of sharp scissors is helpful for both snipping yarn ends and cutting detailed felt pieces out.

Pearl Head Pins

These come in handy for me and I always use them more than I think I will! These are not necessary but are really helpful to use to position the body parts of your amigurumi prior to sewing. This helps you to see how everything will look in the end, and to adjust some parts around to see if you might like them in a different location.

Craft Felt

Sometimes it may be little too hard or time-consuming if you were to embroider a detail on your doll, or you are simply going for a certain look for your project. There are plenty of times an amigurumi needs some finishing touches and craft felt offers you some versatility. It’s sold at craft stores in sheets like this. You can cut out pieces and either sew or glue them on to your amigurumi. You can see in the right picture all the felt pieces I use for my puppy keychain pattern to see how much felt pieces can do for your project. The possibilities are endless!

Hot Glue Gun

One day I’m going to write a ballad about how much I love my glue gun. I use mine primarily to glue felt pieces to amigurumi. However, it’s a powerful tool to have in your ami-arsenal. I’ve used it plenty of times when making gifts to help stiffen or brace a body part. Invaluable!

So there you have it, my list of tools needed for making amigurumi as well as a few of my favorite items to make your amigurumi journey even easier. Let me know what you think!

Do you have all of your tools and are ready to get started making amigurumi? Click here to check out my magic circle tutorial!