When it comes to creating your very own amigurumi, you get to choose just how you want it to be crocheted. There can be some advantages, and even disadvantages, to creating an amigurumi that is crocheted from top to bottom in one piece. It would basically be one piece of work from head to foot. Today I'm only going to be talking about crocheting the head and the body in one piece.
If you're making a humanoid doll, you would basically crochet the head first. Without closing it you would then continue to crochet the body. This is the way I prefer to crochet my dolls, without a neck seam. I love the way it looks and I don't have to worry much about it coming apart.
Here are the pros and cons of crocheting this way.
Pros:
• It's really easy to crochet it all in one piece.
• You won't have to sew it together or or weave in ends.
• It makes for a durable doll, better for children.
• It gives a nice and complete look.
• It saves you some yarn without all the ends or sewing together.
Cons:
• It's limiting as to what you can crochet with this technique. It only works for straight up and down designs, like humanoids.
• Body parts don't move or rotate as easily for posing.
You'll have to decide if a top down approach is something that will work for your project or if you want to do certain pieces separately based on your design.
Here are some patterns with top down crochet as an example.
Little Baby by Akina Stisu
Doll in Bear Hoodie by Tracey MacIntyre
Artistic Annie Doll at Red Heart
Gema, Kokechi by Teresa Alvarez
Brobee by craftyjapanese
I hope this info helped you some. Top-down crochet is my preferred method of crocheting, though I know it doesn't always make sense for certain projects. The next post is going to all about sewing the head to your ami!
Happy crocheting,
~Chassity O.
