Crochet an Amigurumi Doll

Once you make a few simple amigurumi projects, like bees or whales, you may be ready to take on a more advanced design, like a doll. An amigurumi doll is an especially fun project because it’s so customizable. If you know how to create the basic body shape, you can add hair, facial features, clothes, and accessories to create a one-of-a-kind figurine. A crocheted doll is perfect to give as a gift or to add to your own toy collection!

Want to try it out? In this amigurumi doll tutorial, learn how to create a custom stuffed character from start to finish.

Tools and Supplies

A ball of light pink yarn, scissors, a small crochet needle, a stitch counter, a pin cushion, a stitch marker, and a light pink amiguri doll body. — To create an amigurumi doll, you will need just a few supplies, including one color of yarn, a crochet hook, a yarn needle, and stitch markers.

To learn how to crochet a doll, you’ll need a few essential tools and supplies. Fortunately, if you’ve crocheted before, you may already have some of these things at home.

Amigurumi Doll Patterns

To ensure you create a doll with the correct proportions, make sure to find and follow a pattern. There are plenty of free amigurumi doll patterns online, or for more in-depth instruction, look for an online class that walks you through the process step by step. If you want to dress up your character, you can also find tons of free amigurumi doll crochet patterns for clothes and accessories.

Yarn

You will need just one color of worsted weight yarn to create the doll’s body. The color you choose will become the doll’s skin tone, but whether you choose a flesh tone or a more colorful hue is up to you—after all, who says your doll has to be true to life?

Crochet Hook

The label on your yarn should specify the size hook you need. Generally, however, the best crochet hooks for amigurumi are on the smaller side, between three to five millimeters.

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Stitch Marker

While optional, stitch markers are useful to indicate the beginning of a row of crochets. This is especially helpful when following amigurumi doll crochet patterns, which involve complex rows of increases and decreases.

Yarn Needle

You will need a yarn needle—a large, blunt needle with a large eye suitable for thick yarn—to attach the doll’s arms to its body.

Fiberfill

To help the doll keep its shape, you will need to stuff it. Fiberfill stuffing is available online or at any local craft store. For the best results, try a cluster-style fiberfill, which holds its shape even through machine washing and drying.

How to Crochet an Amigurumi Doll

Amiguri crochet dolls from left to rightt: light pink amiguri doll with curly red headed girl with striped dress, brown amiguri doll with blue dress, white amiguri doll with brown hair with red leggings and stripe dress, pink bunny with green dress and shoes, small white amiguri doll with curly brown hair and pink dress and shoes, light pink amiguri doll body with no decorations. — Make any of these adorable dolls—or creatures!—by following the steps below!

Step 1: Create and Join the Doll’s Legs

You will crochet your doll from the feet up. Start each foot with a magic ring, and then work in a few rows of increases and single crochets. Stuff the foot before moving on the rest of the leg, which is a simple cylinder shape—18 rows of 8 single crochets. Add stuffing to the leg every six rounds. At the end of each leg, leave a tail of yarn.

Once you’ve created both legs, join them together. Start with a few single crochets on one leg, and then add six chain stitches. Then, insert your hook into the inner part of the second leg and continue adding single crochets around the perimeter. Work your way back across the chain stitch and around the second leg to your starting point.

Amiguri crochet dolls legs. — Create two long legs, and then join them together with a row of chain stitches.

Step 2: Crochet the Torso and Head

Working from the connected set of legs, create the torso. Stitch around the perimeter of your fabric, using a series of increases and decreases to create the natural curves of a body. Add fiberfill stuffing as you go.

Next: the head. Experiment with the proportions between the body and the head to find what you like (while a smaller head will look more realistic, a bigger one better embodies the Japanese culture of kawaii, or cute). Whatever size you choose, the head will be a fairly straightforward series of increases, followed by decreases, to create a round shape. Before you close up the head, add a few cotton swabs inside the neck of the doll for structure, and then stuff the rest of it with fiberfill.

Then, embroider any facial features you want, like a nose, smile, and eyes.

Hands holding amiguri doll half finished. — After crocheting and stuffing the head, embroider any facial features you want, like a nose or smile.

Step 3: Add Arms

Each of the arms also begins with a magic ring. Then, increase slightly and then add 12 rows of 5 single crochets. You will end up with a long, cylindrical arm. Once you have crocheted both arms, attach them using yarn and a yarn needle.

Hands holding amiguri doll almost done. — Create two arms, and then sew them on to your doll with yarn and a yarn needle.

Step 4: Customize

Now is the fun part! With the foundation of your amigurumi doll complete, you can focus on customizing it. What type and color of hair will it have? What will it wear? Will it carry a purse or wear flowers in its hair? You can find a wide variety of patterns for amigurumi doll clothes and accessories with simple Google search—or experiment and make your own.

3 amiguri girl dolls: small amiguri doll with light brown curly hair and pink dress, amiguri doll with red curly hair and green dress, small amiguri doll with light brown curly hair and blue overalls. — After you complete the doll’s body, customize it with hair, clothes, and accessories.

Create Cute Characters

Once you have a solid understanding of how to crochet a doll, you can create a whole collection of cute characters. Experiment with different hair styles and textures, as well as clothes, shoes, and accessories. You’ll have so much fun, you might just feel like a kid again.

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