The Caron Notebook

We have a bundle of great amigurumi designs here at the Caron Design office.  They were made by a couple of really talented amigurumi designers, Mary Pueschner and Tracie Barrett.  These amigurumis are all made from Simply Soft and were part of a display Caron had at the CHA trade show back in January.  Check out the picture of the mannequin that we nick-named Ami Mimi–  she’s adorned in dozens of amigurumis.  

So, we decided to start offering these as free patterns via our blog page.  Stay tuned each week for a new ami that you can create!  To launch this off, and in keeping with the season, we are offering two adorable little creatures made by Mary Pueschner.  We added these to a simple-to-make foot thong just perfect for summer.  Make the ladybug, make the turtle, make the thong, or make all three for a  fun summer adornment!

Mini Teddy Turtle and Mini Lucy Ladybug  designed by Mary C. Pueschner

TECHNIQUE USED: Crochet 

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS:Amigurumis measures approximately 1 1/4”/23mm in diameter. 

YARN – Caron International’s Simply Soft (100% Acrylic; 6oz/170g, 315yds/288m): 

For Turtle: #0004 Spring Brook; #9727 Black (B); 0004 Blueberry (C) – small amounts of each 

For Ladybug:  #9748 Rubine Red (A); #9727 Black (B); #9607 Limelight (C) – small amounts of each

CROCHET HOOK – One size US B-1 (2.25mm).

ADDITIONAL MATERIALS – Yarn needle, Fiberfill stuffing, Stitch marker 

STITCHES USED  – Chain (ch); Half double crochet (hdc); Single crochet (sc); Slip stitch (slip st)

SPECIAL TERMS

sc2tog: Single crochet 2 together—Insert hook in next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop (two loops on hook), insert hook into next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop, yarn over and draw through all three loops on hook.

NOTES – yarn used is split into 2 strands of 2 plies each. Use 2 plies of yarn throughout. Do not join rounds. Place a marker in the last stitch of round and move up as rounds progress.

TURTLE

Shell

Cut 1 yd of A and split. With A, leaving a long tail, ch 4, join with a slip st to form a ring.

Round 1: 6 sc in ring and over tail, do not join, pull tail to close center ring—6 sc. Place marker in last stitch.

Round 2: 2 sc in each st around—12 sc.

Round 3: *Sc in next st, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around—18 sc.

Round 4: *Sc in next 2 sts, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around—24 sc.

Round 5: Sc in each st around.

Round 6: *Sc in next 2 sts, sc2tog over next 2 sts; repeat from * around—18 sc. Fasten off leaving a long sewing length.

Tummy, Legs and Head

Cut 2 ft of B and split. With B, leaving a long tail, ch 4, join with a slip st to form a ring.

Round 1: 6 sc in ring and over tail, do not join, pull tail to close center ring—6 sc. Place marker in last stitch.

Round 2: 2 sc in each st around—12 sc.

Round 3: *Sc in next 2 sts, ch 4, sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next 2 ch, sc in same st in current round*; repeat from * to * once (2 legs made), ch 5, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, hdc in next 3 ch, sc in same st in current round (head made), repeat from * to * twice (2 legs made), join with a slip st in next st. Fasten off, leaving a stub for a tail.

FINISHING

Stuff body lightly. Match tops of sc in last round of tummy with corresponding sts in last round of shell and with yarn needle and sewing length, whipstitch together. With yarn needle and B, straight st eyes on head as pictured.

LADYYBUG

Body

Cut 1 yd of A and split. With A, leaving a long tail, ch 4, join with a slip st to form a ring.

Round 1: 6 sc in ring and over tail, do not join, pull tail to close center ring—6 sc. Place marker in last stitch.

Round 2: 2 sc in each st around—12 sc.

Round 3: *Sc in next st, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around—18 sc.

Round 4: *Sc in next 2 sts, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around—24 sc.

Rounds 5-6: Sc in each st around.

Round 7: *Sc in next 6 sts, sc2tog over next 2 sts; repeat from * around—21 sc. Fasten off.

Tummy, Legs and Head

Cut 2 ft of B and split. Starting at center of tummy, with B, ch 2.

Round 1: Ch 2, 7 sc in 2^nd ch from hook, do not join—7 sc. Place marker in last stitch.

Round 2: 2 sc in each st around—14 sc.

Round 3: *Sc in next st, ch 3, slip st in 2nd ch from hook, slip st in next ch, 2 sc in same st in current round*; repeat from * to * 3 times (4 legs made), sc in next st, ch 3, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, hdc in next ch, sc in same st in current round (head made), repeat from * to * 4 times (4 legs made), sc in next 5 sts, join with a sl st in next sc. Fasten off leaving a long sewing length.

FINISHING

Stuff body lightly. Match tops of sc in last round of tummy with corresponding sts in last round of body and with yarn needle and sewing length, whipstitch together. With yarn needle and B, straight st spots on back of body as pictured. With C, straight st eyes on head.

 Foot Thong

designed by Carrie Carpenter 

YARN – Caron International’s Simply Soft (100% Acrylic, 6oz/170g,315yds/288m):

Shown in #9727 Black 

HOOK – Size D-3 (3.25mm)

TO BEGIN: Cut several yards of yarn from skein and separate into 2 strands.  You should now have 2 equal lengths of yarn that are 2 strands each. 

FOOT THONG

Ch 125, tie off.

FINISHING

Cut 2 strands yarn  5” long. Hold all strands together and fold in half forming a loop at folded end. Draw loop through one end of shoelace, thread ends of strands through loop and pull to tighten and secure. Trim ends. Repeat to attach another tassel to other end of thong. 

Using yarn needle, weave in all ends.

To Wear:  Start with center of thong around underside of toe, bring both ends up across the top of foot, wrap around back side of ankle and tie in front as pictured.  Add desired ornaments (beads, buttons, ect) by using a length of yarn tying around both strands of the thong.

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