Perfect Your Stitches: Easy Amigurumi Ball for Practice

1. Welcome! Let’s Crochet Together: Hi, I'm Olga from Olgamiromi. I'm a crochet designer and doll maker, and I've been creating little yarn dolls and outfits for them for over seven years. Welcome to this beginner friendly class where will crochet is something super simple and super cute. A soft little Emirmi ball is the perfect first step. To the world of Emi grooming. And I promise it's much easier than it looks. This class is perfect if you are just starting out, but it's also great if you already know the basics and want to impove the way your stitches look, making them more even, tidy and beautiful. We'll go step by step together. You can pause, rewind, and follow along at your own pace. No stress at all. We'll begin with the basics like how to make a major green and your very first stitches. Then we'll shape the bowl, learn a few helpful crochet tricks along the way. Finish it off with stuffing and a neat little clothes. You'll see clear close up shots of my hands as I crochet, and I'll share the little tips that really helped me when I was just getting started. So grab a simple yarn and a crochet hook any size close to what your yarn recommends, and let's get started. 2. About the Project: In this exercise, we will make a small em groom bowl and learn how to create a major green. I shapes stitches, increases, decreases, and how to finish the project by closing the stitches and hiding the ends. I will be using this thick yarn and will choose a slightly smaller hook than the one recommended on the yarn label. Here, I have a 5.5 millimeters crochet hook, but I will use a 5 millimeters hook. This will help me make the stitches tighter with no extra effort. As a stitch marker, I will use a piece of thinner urn so I can see it clearly and remove it easily when needed. I'll also need an appropriate needle for this yarn to close the project and hide the end. Have a pair of scissors on hand to cut the yarn and a bit of stuffing to fill the ball. Let's start with a major cream. 3. Let’s Start! The Magic Ring: Here I had the end of the yarn and there is the yarn ball. To make the loop, do it this way. Make sure that the end is on the left and the working yarn is on the right side. Insert the hook into the loop and grab the yarn pulling it into the loop. Now I have this little loop on my hook. Now, move the working yarn a bit. So I can yarn over and pull it through the loop on the hook. Here we have a knot and our majo crene is ready. You can tighten the knot a bit and adjust the loop on the hook. It shouldn't be too loose or too tight. Now, you can move the yarn ball to the left side if that feels more comfortable for you. You can check if your majo crene works well. If you pull the end of the yarn, the ring should close. To open it, you can pull the part near the nod to the right, holding the nod with your fingers. If it works well, you can move on to the next step. Otherwise, please practice once more. Now I adjust it a bit to make it smaller and I'll start stitching. 4. X-shaped Single Crochet Stitch: At the beginning, I will work without a stitch parker just counting the stitches. I will refer to each stitch simply as stitch to make it easier to follow, meaning a single crochet stitch using US terms or a double crochet stitch using UK terms. For the first round, I'll make six stitches into the ring at this it can feel a bit uncomfortable to work into the ring, but it will get easier with practice. If you place the hook about the yarn, you'll get X shaped stitches, which are tighter and preferable for hemi grooming. Insert the hook into the ring and grab the yarn, pulling it through the ring. Now you have two loops on the hook. Grab the yarn again and pull through both loops on the hook. That's the first stitch. The second stitch, insert the hook into the ring, grab the yarn, pull it through the ring, and you have two loops on the hook. Grab the yarn again and pull through both loops on the hook. For the third stitch, work the same way. Insert the hook into the ring. Grab the yarn, pull it through the ring. You have two loops on the hook and pull through both loops on the hook. Pay attention to the loop on your hook before making the next stitch. If it's too loose, the next stitch will be loose, too. So control the size of this loop before each stitch, tightening or loosening the working yard. It should have a bit of three space under the hook, but not too much. Now, you can clearly see and count your stitches. One, two, three. Let's make three most stitches to finish this round. Take your time and practice. Now, I have six stitches. I carefully close the ring. You can do this slowly so the stitches don't get twisted. And If the hole in the center is too loose, you can tighten the ring by pulling the three end. Here I have six stitches and I can see and count them. This loop is the slip node we made for the major green, but we won't use it. For the second round, I'll start into the first stitch on the previous round, and I will work taking both loops of the stitch. 5. Increasing to Shape the Ball: From this moment, I'll use this piece of yarn as a stitch marker. Let's see how it works. Before I start the round, I place this thin yarn like this on the work. The center part should be just near the hook with one end going to the wrong side and the other end to the right side of the work. Now that I've marked the start, I can continue working on the stitches. In this round, I will make six increases, which means I will make two stitches in each stitch from the previous round. Make sure you are using the working yard and not the starting end. It can be confusing if the end is slightly long. You might notice something is wrong if you can't adjust the loop on your hook. Now, I'm sure I had the correct yarn. I insert the hook, taking both loops. I put the working yarn and finished the stitch. Now I make another stitch into the same point. It might be a little harder to insert the hook because it already has one stitch made, but I make another stitch to finish the increase. There it is. And I repeat this in the rest of the stitches until the end of the round. You can count how many stitches you've made and see where the end is because of the stitch marker. Now I'm making the third increase. Now, I'm making the fourth increase. Try to control the loop. It should only have a bit of space under the hook. Here, I can see that I need to make two more increases to finish the round. Now I've made four increases or eight stitches already. I reach the starting point. Before starting the next round, I move the wrong side, end of my stitch marker to the right side. So both ends are now on the right side of the work. The third round works like this. One stitch and an increase, then repeat until the end of the round. I start by making the first stitch of the round. I also check and adjust the stitch marker thread. In the next stitch, I work an increase. That means I work two stitches into the same stitch. Then I repeat this part one stitch and an increase. A stitch, then an increase. Take your time and don't rush. If you need to practice making increases, you can go back and rewatch the previous video. One stitch and an increase. A stitch. Then an increase. I make the last increase on the round reaching the stitch marker. At this point, you can try moving the stitch marker thread to check that it moves easily within the stitches. It's important to be able to remove it at the end of the work. Before starting the next round, I move the marker to the wrong side, so I'll alternate the position of this end every round, and the thread goes through the body of the first stitch of every round. 6. Working Even Rounds: The next three rounds are very easy and relaxing. We will work one stitch into each stitch of the round without increasing. I take both loops of the stitch and put the yarn under the hook to pull it through the stitch. You can see how the shape starts to take volume. It will go from a simple circle to a spare. Let's keep working. I make a stitch in each stitch until the end of the round. I take both loops of the stitch and put the yarn under the hook to pull it through the stitch and then through the loops on the hook. I can see that time coming to the end of the round. Two more stitches. I move the marker to the right side and make one more straight round without increasing or decreasing. Check the stitch marker to see if it moves easily. If not, it may mean you accidentally grab this thread with the working yard. You'll need to undo some stitches to find that point. Work this round by making one stitch in each stitch of the previous round. Okay. This way of marking the start of the rounds is perfect for making lawns, straight shapes with several rounds all with the same number of stitches. That way you can easily see how many rounds you've completed without having to write them down on paper. Also, is great for beginners because if you need to undo any work, you've already marked every round. You won't have to place a plastic marker on each round, which I think is very uncomfortable. Can count the rounds easily. Just count the points where the thread goes from the wrong side to the right side and from the right side to the wrong side. Since I didn't use this thread in the very first round, I'm simply adding one to the total number of round. Move the thread to the wrong side. By the way, you can put it under or above the working yard. It doesn't matter. Just make sure it doesn't mix with the working yard. I make sure that the marking thread moves easily, and I start the next straight round without increasing or decreasing one stitch per stitch of the previous round. M. This is the last straight round, and you can see how your shape looks now. I make the last stitch and move the marker to the right side of the work. The next round will be more interesting because we will learn how to make invisible decreases. 7. Decreasing to Close the Ball: First, I make a stitch. You can hide this end inside the shape now, so it will be easier to work. Make sure the loop on the hook isn't too loose. You can make an ordinary decrease, insert the hook into the stitch, taking both loops and pull the yard. Then insert the hook into the next stitch and pull the yard. You will have three loops on the hook. Now, yarn over or yarn under the hook and pull it through all the loops on the hook. It looks like this, but there's another way to make a decrease, which I think looks more accurate. It does require a bit more practice. I take only the front loop of the stitch. Then carefully turn and move the hook a bit and take the front loop of the next stitch. Now, I grab the yarn and pull it through both front loops. I have two loops on the hook. Then I finish by pulling the yarn through both loops on the hook. You can see the difference. I repeat this until the end of the round. I make a stitch. And in the next two stitches, I make an invisible decrease. I take only the front loop of the stitch, then carefully turn and move the hook a bit this way and take the front loop of the next stitch. I have both of them together. Now, I grab the yarn and pull it through the two front loops. I have two loops on the hook. And I finish by pulling the yarn through both loops on the hook. Look, I didn't grab the yarn correctly. I only took one thread of it, so I want to undo it and make it again. I take only the front loop of the stitch. Then carefully turn and move the hook a bit and take the front loop of the next stitch. I have both of them together. Now I rub the yarn and pull it through the two front loops. I have two loops on the hook, and I finish by pulling the yarn through both loops on the hook. Now I'm happy with this decrease. In the next stitch, I make a stitch. And in the two next stitches, I make an invisible decrease. So I keep working in the same way until the end all around. The less decrease, I take only the front loop of the stage and take the front loop of the next stage, and I finish by pulling the yard through both loops on the hook. 8. Stuffing & Last Round: At this step, you can stuff the fare. I prefer to stuff my Emigrmi quite firmly. You can also use a wooden stick to push the stuffing into the bowl. Make sure your stitch marker still moves easily. I move the marker to the wrong side. This is the last round, and we will make six invisible decreases. Let's practice this. It can be a bit uncomfortable to work this round because there are fewer stitches. It's not very easy to keep it in your hand. You can insert a finger into it and use it as a support, or you can stuff it a bit more if it feels too soft and doesn't hold its shape. You can even press it a bit. You can always form it later with your hands. I take only the front loop of the stitch, then carefully turn and move the hook a bit and take the front loop of the next stitch. I have both of them together. I grab the yarn and pull it through the two front loops, and I finish the decrease, pulling the yarn through both loops on the hook. I can see that I have four stitches left, so I make two more decreases. And the last one. Now the bowl looks like this. 9. Finishing the Ball: I cut the yarn, leaving a long tail. I remove the stitch marker. Look how easy it is. I insert the end into the needle. Let's close the hole and hide the end. To close the hole, I take the front loops of the stitches from the last round. One two, three, four, five. Here, I noticed I only took one thread, so I corrected. Oh. And the last one. Now, I tighten the yarn to close the gap. Then I insert the needle into the center of the hole and take it out through one of the little gaps between the stitches at a distance from where I inserted the needle. I pull it carefully. Then for the ball with my head. When I'm happy with the shape, I make a knot close to the sufrace of the bow. Next, I insert the needle into the same point where I took it out. Take it out and carefully hide the knot inside the bol. You can adjust this little hole caused by the knot with a needle. Cut the yarn near the surface of the bowl and hide the rest of the yarn inside the shape, gently pressing and shaping it with your hand. Here it is. I hope this tutorial helps you practice your technique. 10. Final Thoughts: Hi, again, and congratulations. You've just completed your first Emi groomi project. How exciting. Let's take a moment to recap the key points you've learned in this class. The magic crime we started with the very basics, learning how to make the magic crime the foundation of most Emi groomi pieces. We learned how to crochet in a continuous round, which is key for shaping your projects, increases and decreases. These techniques help you shape your piece and create the bowl shape we worked on. Finishing, finally, we stuffed our bowl and neatly close it off, making sure it's smooth and tidy. By completing this project, you've gained all the essential skills to start crocheting more complex and groomy pieces. And remember, the more you practice, the smoother and more even your stitches will become. Now, your next step is to share your finished bowl in the project gallery. I'd love to see creations, whether it's your first try or a fun variation you've added. It's always inspiring to see how you've made the project you own, and don't forget this soft little bowl can become the start of so many fun projects. You could turn it into a little character by adding ice or use it as a stress ball or a toy. The possibilities are endless. I hope this class has inspired you to dive deeper into the world of Emmy grooming. Don't hesitate to revisit the lessons anytime and keep practicing. With every stitch, you are getting better. Thank you so much for crocheting with me. I can't wait to see your projects.