New to the craft...

[last_midnite]

Hi!
So, I was at my local B&N and looking through the craft section, and saw a *bunch* of books about making softies, etc...and I kinda want to start.  However, I wasn't really sure where to begin.  Can anyone recommend a good book for beginners?  Or tips?

X-posted, so my apologies if you get this message twice.

Comments

[kittens_delite]

If you would really like to start with a book for making amis, I would suggest either Tiny Yarn Animals by Tamie Snow or Amigurumi: Super Happy Cute Crochet by Elizabeth Doherty. Tamie is very good at creating very cute and simple animals. Her patterns are also very clearly written. Elizabeth wrote her book as if she were in the same room with you walking you through the steps of making Amis. She also has great pictures and diograms to help you fallow along with the lesson she's trying to teach with each consecutive pattern.

If you already know the basics of crochet I might suggest starting with some of the free patterns that LionBrand yarns has up on their website. This way if you get frustrated or find that this isn't the craft for you, you didn't really invest any money in buying a book. ;)

[hametsunosaturn]

My tips would be to look up all the stitches that confuse you on YouTube. You can pretty much type in "slip stitch" and get a video on how to knit or crochet a slip stitch. Most videos are really well done, where they explain two or three times, at least.

Also, theknittycat posted this just recently. It's got some guides to help. (You can also check the posts tagged beginner and beginners for more~)

I'm big on not buying things till you must. ^_^;; But as books go, for amigurumis, I bought Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli. She has pictures to illustrate each stitch, a guide and explanations on most patterns. Also, the patterns are all pretty easy to follow. So if you really want a book, that's a good one (at least, of the few I've looked at, I liked it!)

Other books, that I found in my public library are Amigurumi Animals by Annie Obaachan and Amigurumi! Super Happy Crochet Cute by Elisabeth A. Doherty. I'm not quite as keen on the patterns in those books, though. I don't think they're as cute. Amigurumi Animals,

[middayanonym0us]

Like the comments above, I started with Amigurumi! Super Happy Crochet Cute by Elisabeth Doherty. I had NEVER crocheted before and after looking through her instructions and watching a video or two on how to make the magic ring online, I was able to get into it VERY quickly. I highly recommend watching a few videos for extra help if you need it and aren't used to a lot of the terms and techniques, but other than that it really isn't that difficult. Especially since communities like this one are full of EXTREMELY helpful people that can give you tips if you get stuck on something.

[solemnwarnings]

Like hametsunosaturn, I bought Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli. I had never crocheted before, I just knew I wanted to make the cute animals. :-) I taught myself how, with a bit of my mom's help.

Plus, this may be a silly question, but what's the magic ring?

[vicrochet]

Magic Ring

It enables you to start your project without a chain or knot. It is wonderful!
There are many tutorials on how to do it
http://www.pepika.com/free-patterns/amigurumi-course.html

[soulofchris]

Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli is the one I started with and the best of all the ami books I have for beginners. Someone recommended Tamie Snow, and while I love her stuff, I don't think it's for beginners. Amigurumi World really explains and shows pictures and it's the best if you're starting.