annieb123's Review of Amigurumi Friends

by Jade Gauthier-Boutin

Create more than 100 adorable amigurumi animals while learning skills and techniques to stitch any crochet critter you can imagine.

There’s nothing more satisfying than creating something with your hands—especially when it’s your own design and it’s cuddly and adorable. In Amigurumi Friends, popular crochet designer Jade Gauthier-Boutin shares a variety of approaches to stitching, customizing, and designing your own crochet critters.

Jade first provides detailed patterns for five basic animal poses—two standing, two sitting, and one lying down. You then choose your own crochet adventure by changing the muzzles, ears, tails, colors, and other details to create more than 100 adorable animals. With an overview of crochet techniques and amigurumi basics, even beginning crocheters will be able to stitch their chosen crochet animals. This comprehensive guide includes:

Clear instructions for the basic head and for five body shapes and poses
Twenty animal types with instructions for crocheting all five variations
Ideas for customizing the projects with different expressions, yarns, colors, and more
Inspiration and guidance to design your own amigurumi from scratch
QR codes linked to video tutorials to make creating amigurumi even easier

With so many options, the hardest part will be deciding which crochet cutie to make first. Choose from animals from all around the world . . . and beyond:

At the Zoo: Take a walk on the wild side with lions, and pandas, and zebras, oh my!
Woodland Friends: Sweet forest creatures like foxes, moose, and bears
On the Farm: Cows, donkeys, bunnies, and other lovable barnyard pals
Out of This World: Dinosaurs, dragons, and unicorns expand the amigurumi universe

Whether you’re new to crochet or amigurumi or looking for fresh ideas to make, gift, and even sell, Amigurumi Friends provides everything you need to know to stitch up your own marvelous menagerie of cuddly critters.

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Amigurumi Friends is an adorable guide to crocheting 20 base forms with variations and tutorials by Jade Gauthier-Boutin. Due out 18th June 2024 from Quarto on their Quarry imprint, it's 144 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.

The book is logically laid out and beginner accessible. The graphics are appealing and clear. The book is lavishly illustrated and the photography is very detailed and taken at close range. The book has a short introduction including the stitches used. The author/publisher have included QR codes throughout which link to supplementary content including videos showing the techniques used.

There are two main parts. The first section includes a fairly thorough intro to crochet and tools and supplies. The general tutorial for the basic shapes and common features for all the projects follow the introductory chapters. The specific tutorials are broken down into head and body variations.

The following chapters include the specific tutorials grouped thematically: zoo, woodland friends, farm animals, and fantasy/dinosaur friends to crochet. The end of the book contains some really useful tips from the author showing her own design process, and giving lots of tips for customization and embellishments.
Well done and a nice selection of patterns which are fundamentally different from one another, giving the reader a broad platform for creating alternative amigurumi and for customization.

Five stars. Well worth a read for crochet interested readers. The dolls are very cute, and most are quite small and quick to finish.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Reading updates

17 June, 2024: Started reading

17 June, 2024: Finished reading

17 June, 2024: Reviewed