Cracking the "Oval Start"

Or..."Why do some patterns start with a chain instead of a Magic Ring?"

Blog - Chain Start

Since starting this website and letting the free patterns for #mycrochetchums loose on the world, I’ve been learning a lot about what people like about ami and what they find tricky - particularly when they’re new to crocheting amigurumi. 

There’s always something new to learn in crochet and if you’re just beginning it can be SO frustrating when you’ve just cracked working the first round of a piece into a Magic Ring to suddenly come up against a start that looks something like this:

With MC chain 4.
Rnd 1: Starting in 2nd chain from hook and rotating as you go, [3 dc, 2 ch] twice. 6 sts
Rnd 2: [3 dc, 3 dc in 2 ch sp] twice. 12 sts

What the flip does it mean and WHY do you need to do it like this????
Let’s answer the “Why?”first …..it’s simply that the designer wants to create an oval rather than circular shape.

If you’re new to reading patterns the “What does it mean?” can be harder to get to grips with but fear not - I‘ve come up with a nifty little photo tutorial to talk you through those first two rounds step by step - working through it like this will help you grasp the principle and you won’t be daunted when you come across this in a pattern.

If you’d like to take a look at the photo tutorial, you can find it HERE.

The pattern excerpt in pink above is from my free amigurumi pattern for the Little Bear with a Big Heart - he’s such a cutie - and his head starts with an oval - you can find his free pattern HERE.

Blog - Little Bear, Big Heart - what a cutie!

If there’s something else about making ami that flummoxes you - send me a comment on my contact form and I’ll do my best to help! The contact form is HERE.

Lastly, if you do make one of the free amigurumi patterns in my #lockdownamichallenge I’d love to see a pic! 

Stay safe and Happy Crocheting!
Pia x 😍🧶🐻🦩🦔🐧🐸🦁🐵

By the way...if you’re having trouble with the pesky Magic Ring - there’s a photo tutorial about it HERE.