When it comes to closing up holes there really is no hard rule for how it's done. There is one technique that seems to work best for me. Here is a video from youtube, but I should let you know that this is not my video.
- You can choose to go inside to outside, like shown in the video, or outside to inside. Personally, I do outside to inside for a nice seamless finish.
- Use your tapestry needle and your yarn tail to weave the end shut.
- Use the front loops only to gather up the outside layer of the work and make it close up neatly.
- Weave the end down into the ball to make the end lay flat.
I hope this little post helped you. Check back tomorrow for my pros and cons of crocheting all in one piece, or what I call top-down crochet!
Happy crocheting,
~Chassity O.
, pictured at the top, where the threads are all separated. Then there's 
, aka cotton thread, where the threads are wound just like yarn. The floss works best for embroidering faces while the pearl cotton works better for crocheting small details and straight lines.
when it comes to making ami's. Since amigurumi have to be made tightly you need smaller sized hooks. Depending on what weight yarn you're using you'll need hooks ranging from A to F. We'll talk more about which hooks work best with which yarns on day 3.
for crocheting the aforementioned pearl cotton. It's small enough to give it a nice finish with tight stitches. I have a size 6, 1.8mm hook, but a smaller hook like a 9 would probably work better. The bigger the size number the smaller the hook size is in millimeters.
are essential. Whatever you call them, just make sure that they have a blunt end so they don't split your yarn too easily, and a large eye for your yarn to pass through. I prefer metal needles over plastic ones because I tend to use my teeth to help pull the needles through tight stitches and the plastic ones just wear down fast. When they do they snag on the yarn and I hate it.
over natural fills, like cotton, because it's not only cheap but also washable and non-allergenic. With those good features, need I say more?
. They have a sharp pointy tip and a clean cut. This helps to cut ends close to the work or in tight spaces.
. I love the look of safety eyes, so if you choose to use them it's good to have them on hand. They come in an array of sizes and colors, so make sure you have what you want. We'll talk more about eyes on a later day.