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Amigurumi Advent Calendar Crochet-Along: Get Started Here!

by | All Designs, Crochet, Free Patterns, Kids & Toys

Welcome to my very first Amigurumi Advent Calendar Crochet-Along! I’m so excited to be starting on this journey as we count down to Christmas, and even happier that I’ll be sharing my journey with a whole group of crochet and amigurumi lovers. And by the end of this journey, you’ll have 25 handmade Christmas ornaments for your tree!

I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of an advent calendar where you receive a small gift every day on the countdown to Christmas. A few years ago, I made an advent with Bible verses, which I think is great for imparting a lesson along with the surprise of each day. This year, however, I grabbed the advent bull by the horns and really went all out. I’m not a plastic knick-knacks person and I didn’t want to give my kids candy (they get enough already), so I decided to make a small amigurumi for each day. They’ll love the cute little items, and each can be a keepsake for many years to come!

Amigurumi Advent Calendar Crochet-Along

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Purchase all 25 patterns as an e-book from Ravelry

Purchase all 25 patterns as an e-book from Etsy

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What to Expect

A typical advent calendar consists of 25 things that you receive each day. For this crochet-along, we’ll be making 25 small amigurumi to fill your calendar. It’s a mystery crochet-along, as one design will be released each day. We’ll start on Thursday, November 15, 2018, and end in the middle of December. Each pattern will be FREE, and available on the blog here, along with helpful tips and a video tutorial. The printable and downloadable PDFs will not be available for purchase until after the crochet-along is over, so you’ll need to access the pattern online during the crochet-along itself.

We won’t complete the full calendar by the time the Advent starts, but you’ll have enough to fill the little boxes or bags by December 1st. We’ll fill in as we go! ‘Tis the realities of a modern, busy life, I guess!

Along the way, there will be a community of crocheters to offer help and support, and maybe even a few giveaways as we go.

What You’ll Need

I used the following list of supplies for my specific yarn. Things like hooks and safety eyes and tapestry needles will depend on the weight of the yarn you use, so your best choice may be slightly different if you use different yarns.

LoveCrochet was so generous in sending me their 56 Color Pack, so I was able to use a variety of colors for my amigurumi. I used the colors listed below, and you can buy the full pack, or just the individual colors you need.

Rose Red | Pillar Red | Red Wine | Vintage Pink | Bubblegum Pink | Tea Rose | Pale Lilac | Dusty Lilac | Mandarin Orange | Blood Orange | Melon Sorbet | Daffodil Yellow | Buttercup Yellow | Mustard Yellow | Pistachio Green | Lime Green | Grass Green | Seafoam Blue | Washed Teal | Kingfisher Blue | Marine Blue | Light Caramel | Soft Fudge | Coffee Bean | Stormy Gray | Slate Gray | Misty Gray | Pure Black | Paper White | Champagne White | Vanilla Cream

Amigurumi is also a great way to use up leftover worsted weight or DK weight yarns from your stash. Cotton, acrylic and wool yarns all work, as long as they are all the same weight. I’ve used Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice, Bernat Handicrafter, and even Lion Brand Scarfie. You can make the amigurumi in any colors you have on hand.

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Brush Up on Your Skills

Now’s a great time to make sure you’ve got your amigurumi skills all up to date and ready to go! I’ll be sharing videos of each amigurumi, but I’ll be working right through, and there’s a few different techniques that are used in almost every single pattern, like the magic circle, joining in the round, and closing up amigurumi. Check out the videos below and make sure you’re comfortable with these essential techniques before the first pattern gets released!

Magic Circle (Blog post + Pictorial) | Video

Chains and Single Crochet (Blog Post)

Joining in the Round (Blog Post): (This post goes through how to change colors at the beginning of the round) | Video

Invisible Decrease (Video)

Mattress Stitch (Video)

Closing Amigurumi (Video)

Invisible Joins at the end of a round (Blog post)

I’m going to be totally honest and up front with you. Amigurumi, especially at this size, is not necessarily the easiest for the beginner crocheter. This crochet-along is for everyone and we’re here to support everyone, but if you’ve never picked up a hook before, you may find the projects to be a bit fiddly and consequently, frustrating. You’ll want to make sure you’re comfortable with basic crochet stitches like the single crochet, double crochet, single crochet increases, making chains, increases and decreases.

Here’s a few of my amigurumi projects in case you want to get a little practice before we start our CAL!

One Dog Woof amigurumi patterns

Baby Penguin

Friendly Jellyfish

Candy Corn (or Watermelon) Keychain

Boba Milk Tea

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Find Help, Join a Community, Share Your Work

After all, this is a crochet-along, and what’s a crochet along if you’re not crocheting along with someone else? Find friends, get help, and show off your creations with others who are building their advent calendars with you! Here’s multiple options to stay up to date and find a community. You’re welcome to join any and all, whatever works best for you!

Find me on Instagram: I’ll be sharing the patterns daily, so make sure you’re following me to get the latest news. Share your work by tagging me @1dogwoof and using the hashtag #AmigurumiAdventCal. Be sure to follow the hashtag to see what your fellow crocheters are up to!

Subscribe to my email list: You’ll receive an email each time a pattern is released, so you’ll never miss a single one. Email subscribers will also get an extra pattern PDF at the end of the crochet-along!

Join my Facebook group: If you’re on Facebook, join this group to really engage and chat with others who are participating in the crochet-along. This is a great place to find help, ask questions, and share your progress!

Get Help: For extra help, I highly recommend joining the Facebook group so you can get the expertise from a group of people. You can welcome to email me directly or leave a comment on the specific pattern too, but questions and answers are most helpful when shared with the community!

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I can’t wait to see what you make for your amigurumi advent calendar!

All the Amigurumi Advent Patterns

Day 1: Flan

Day 2: Persimmon

Day 3: Baby Seal

Day 4: Belly Basket

Day 5: Christmas Tree

Day 6: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Day 7: Candle

Day 8: Rocket

Day 9: Pomegranate

Day 10: Seahorse

Day 11: Lantern

Day 12: Seashell

Day 13: Igloo

Day 14: Sleigh Bell

Day 15: Peppermint Candy

Day 16: Hot Air Balloon

Day 17: Hourglass

Day 18: Croissant

Day 19: Mountain Peaks

Day 20: Backpack

Day 21: Book

Day 22: Car

Day 23: Japanese Teapot

Day 24: Waffle

Day 25: Camera

15 Comments

  1. Julie

    Joann’s has a 50% off all foam and fiber sale right now! Regular price on the 16 Oz. Fiber is $14.99, but it’s 50% off through 11/7/18! Coupon code RETRO

  2. Heather

    I can’t wait to get this started!! This is exactly the project I was hoping for this holiday.
    I was going to use my stash of Vanna’s Choice but with all the awesome colours you have above I may splurge 🙂

    Just a question – how much of each colour do you think we will need? Is one ball each sufficient?
    As I’m ordering from Canada I’d like to get everything at once instead of having to order more later!

    Thanks!!

  3. ChiWei

    Hi Heather! I used Paintbox yarns, which are only 1.70oz/93yds for each ball, and I didn’t use up any single ball. Of course I used a really wide variety of shades – I think there were 3 or 4 different shades of each color. If you were to use 1 color for all the reds and 1 blue and 1 green, you’ll need more than the 93 yds. But Vanna’s Choice is pretty generous, so I’m guessing you should be ok. Sorry, long answer!

  4. Heather

    Thanks! I just realized I wasn’t clear in my question! I did mean for the Paintbox yarns you use so I’ll get one ball each. I think having each shade would be fun and would make the project complete.

    Can’t wait to get going! Thanks so much.

  5. carla maria cremonesi

    Great Idea! I will try to participate all days, I love amigurumis. Thanks a lot. Hugs&Kisses

  6. Mercy

    If you sign up for their newsletter, you get a 15% off code (GETHOOKED) from lovecrochet.com. That’s a savings of more than $20!

  7. Amanda

    I am so excited for this. This is exactly the project I didn’t know I wanted to do!!!

  8. Clementine

    I´m looking forward to the patterns, very excited. I have my crochet needles in my hands ; )). A lot of lovely greetings from South Germany. Clementine.

  9. Emily Jones

    This is great! Thank you so much for putting this together. I am super excited!
    Question… not knowing what the patterns are, any tips for families with multiple kids? I’m not sure if making doubles of each one or splitting days… any advice appreciated. Thanks so much!

  10. Emily Jones

    Thank you so much for putting this together! Cannot wait to get started.
    Any tips for how to handle this with multiple children? Make doubles of each one? Every other day? Not quite sure how to handle so any advice is welcome! Thanks so much!

  11. Linda Kelley

    I have never done any Amigurmi or crochet alongs before !!! But I am going to give it a go with this Advent Calendar !!! I am making it for me, all my sons are grown now, and No small children !! They say when you get older you have a second child hood, ha,ha, Just wanted to tell you Thank You for do this !!!!
    Linda Kelley

  12. Linda Kelley

    I don’t know if my other post went through or not ??!! It never showed up !! I have never done any Amigurmi or crochet along before, but am going to give it a go with this Advent Calendar !!! Thank You for doing this !!!

    Linda Kelley

  13. Carmen

    I have so many other projects happening this month, but this sounds like fun. I’ve actually used up a lot of my scrap yarns – or given them to my mother for charity projects, but I have oodles of crochet thread in various colors. I’m thinking of making teeny miniatures for our Advent calendar. Thank you so much for doing this!

  14. Kristin Blundell

    Is it too late to join?

    I would love to start these…..

  15. ChiWei

    It’s never too late! The patterns will always be here!

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