Howdy AMIgxs!
Freddy’s Picks
As you know, we at Freddy Goat love pushing the boundaries of what crochet can do—whether that’s figuring out how to incorporate stitches and techniques in novel ways, rethinking construction methods, or just figuring out how to attach a jack-o’-lantern to a goat’s neck. Our patterns are meant to surprise, teach, and maybe make you laugh a little. That kind of hyperfocus on playful design takes time, so we aren’t interested in messing around with second rate tools.
In an effort to share the fruits of our experience, here is a short curated list of of some of our favorite supplies and yarn, as well as some quick affiliate links (where available) in case you want to get your hands on them. Full disclosure, if you purchase anything through our affiliate links, we get a small commission with no extra charge to you.
My all-time favorite crochet hooks... Tulip Etimo Red Crochet Hook Set
Right off the block, you need to know we aren’t Tulip affiliates. However, I would shill for them in a HEARTBEAT if they wanted me to! Their Tulip Etimo hooks are so dang good!
There are a ton of other hooks on the market, but Tulip hooks withstand amigurumi tension like no others we have used. Since ami design became my full-time job in 2021, I have gone through A LOT of crochet hooks. Because we are working at higher tensions than other types of crocheters, we tend to wreak havock on hooks in the lower price ranges. (I have broken so many Clover hooks…) Tulip Etimo hooks have been a game changer for me. Their shafts are STURDY and they are comparable in price to Clover and Prym hooks. Tulip’s ergonomic grip is comfortable and durable, and — let’s face it — that red-on-red is FIRE!
We don’t have an affiliate link for you, but Tulip Etimo hooks are not hard to find online. If you buy a set, make sure it includes some of the smaller sizes. We use 2-3mm hooks in almost all our designs, as do many other designers.
Note: Here in the US, Susan Bates hooks have been some of the most widely available, probably because of Joann stores. You can find very budget friendly Bates hooks with ergonomic grips, but I don’t personally care for the design of the head of Bates hooks.
The Tulip Etimo Red crochet hook set is just, well, pretty. Thank you, Tulip, for understanding how much nice packaging adds to the user experience:P They also have sets in navy blue, grey on gold, pink, and, more recently, lavender (omg!). Regardless of color, they are all excellent quality.
A note about small batch/small business hooks
Every day I see and lust after gorgeous thick handled resin hooks (for example, Furls hooks) and super kawaii charm handled hooks. I absolutely support buying small artisan hooks, but, to be honest, I haven’t yet found one that is small enough for amigurumi gauges or that I a can grip well at ami-tensions. So, if you want of those lovely hooks, by all mean snatch it up, but anticipate needing different hooks for your amigurumi makes.
KnitPro Crochet Hooks
If you don’t have access to Tulips, no worries. There are many other hooks in the world! If you are in the market for ami-friendly hooks, the most important features are a good ergonomic handle (in my opinion, you don’t want that handle to be super chunky) and a smooth metal head and shaft*.
If you are looking for crochet hooks, check out the KnitPro set on Lovecrafts. We haven’t used them ourselves, but look at the colooooors —>
If you are’t comfortable with the paddle shaped handle, give Clover Amour hooks a try. If you are in the USA, they are VERY easy to find.
*Yes, those are the actual terms. No, I am not just thirsty T-T
Now on to the REAL goodies — YARN!
My thoughts about yarn...
Fact: Fiber artists are yarn floozies. We collect yarn hither and yon in all weights, textures, and fibers like kids in a candy shop. However, as a new designer, one of my biggest dreams was finding a line of yarn with a huge array of colors at a reliably consistent weight and an affordabel price point. My suggestions below are all yarns we have designed with for those reasons. They are all good value for money, and many are available broadly!
The Freddy Goat OG Yarn: Paintbox Simply Aran
Stats:
100% Acrylic
100g/276m (302yds)
The first yarn we designed with was Paintbox Simply Aran. This is a medium weight acrylic yarn. Like all Paintbox lines, this yarn comes in a wide array of colors (my personal faves are Lime Green and Glorious Gold). Acrylic yarns are softer and easier to work with than cotton and this line has bold color and an nice luster. I still often start new designs in Paintbox Simply Aran to figure out shaping.
If you love this yarn, you’ll be delighted to learn you can buy it in 5 and 10-ball value packs. If you lack color confidence, they also offer pre-selected palette packs. So fun!
You can find the same colors range in a dk weight, too!
Side note: If you want to build color confidence, please check out our blog Color+Yarn! We are just getting started on tackling various concepts in color theory so you can develop your color picking muscle!
Cotton, the Fiber of Our Lives!
About 2 years ago Freddy Goat made the commitment to move onto designing with cotton yarns. Our reasons were twofold: Naturally, we wanted to get away from plastic fibers when possible, and stitches are even more gloriously, gorgeously visible with cotton yarn! (Just check out all the detail in this pic of Grimuses!)
Dishie From Knitpicks
Our first foray into designing with cotton was with Knitpicks Dishie Worsted. It is a sturdy, unmercerized, medium weight yarn that comes in a pretty good color selection. It is also surprisingly un-splitty. The resulting amis are lovely, but prone to lentiness and less soft than with acrylic. (Grimus was designed in Dishie and, though we say it ourselves, looks pretty great in that yarn!) Since then, Knitpicks has developed a new line of mercerized worsted, Vividie, that is VERY intriguing, but as of this writing doesn’t have a very big color selection. We definitely plan to keep an eye on this line!
Stats: Dishie / Vividie
100% Cotton / 100% Mercerized Cotton
100G/190yd / 100G/190yd
Grimus was designed in Dishie Worsted by Knitpicks.
Unfortunately for us, we don’t have affiliate links for either Hobbii or Knitpicks, but don’t let that stop you from checking the out if you are interested.
Hobbii Friends Cotton
We have also worked with Hobbii Friends Cotton 8/8. This is another unmercerized, medium weight yarn. It has a pretty phenomonal color selection, and even features a really nice center-pull tab (thanks, Hobbii!). On the down side, it is a bit splitty. I find myself having to size up to a 3mm hook when I would normally use a 2.75mm for a comparable weight yarn. For me, it is a toss up between Dishie and Friends Cotton 8/8, with one being a bit easier to work with and the other having a broader color range. (Tbh, as a bulk buyer, I would choose whichever brand had a better discount going on whenever I was ready to purchase!)
Friends Cotton is available in other weights, too, but I have never been very tempted to try the finer lines. If and when I do, I will report back.
Stats:
100% Cotton
50G/75m
Schachenmayr Catania
Eventually our crochet friend, Huckleberry Hollow Crochet, introduced us to Schachenmayr Catania. This was a huge leap for us, as it meant moving down to fingering/sport weight gauges and compatible hook sizes. If you haven’t worked with finer yarns and gauges, be aware that it is harder on your hands and arms.
Catania is a 100% mercerized cotton yarn (50g/125m). This perfectly scrumptious yarn comes in a huge color selection, including perhaps my all-time fave yarn color, Zimt! For quite a while we designed exclusively with Catania, but it is no longer available on Lovecrafts, so I don’t have a link for you. TOT <– Me crying.
If you can find it in your vicinity we highly HIGHLY recommend it! (The lustre. The f$%king LUSTRE!!!)
So what are we using now?!?
Yarn and Color Must-Have
Thankfully, we have found a few good substitutes for Schachenmayr Catania. Lately we have been heavily using Yarn and Colors Must-Have. It a phenomenal color selection, with exceptionally pretty yellows, oranges, and earth tones. For a minute, I was obsessive over their coppery/terracotta colors!
Although Must-Have doesn’t have quite the same lustre as Catania, it comes dang close! (Tbh, we may be forever chasing that Catania high.) On top of that, it is very affordable, which is a huge benefit as designer or maker. While we always buy 50g balls, you can also get teeny 10g balls through some suppliers. We say *MWAH* to that!
Stats:
100% Cotton
125m (137yds)/50g (1.76oz)
4 Ply
Ricorumi by Rico Design
We just started working on a large (and as yet top secret) project which is giving us the opportunity to play with Ricorumi yarns from Rico Design for the very first time. Their Ricorumi DK is another great 100% cotton yarn option. It is slightly thicker than Must-Have and Catania, clocking in at 25G/57m. While it is slightly splittier, it has a good color selection and comes in 25G balls, which might be a perk for some makers.
In my opinion, the most fun part of working with Ricorumi yarns has to be their companion lines, which include Ricorumi Neon DK (yesssss!!!!!), Ricorumi Spin Spin DK (a small batch of variegated DK cakes), Ricorumi Twinkly Twinkly DK (which has a metallic thread twisted in), and Ricorumi Nilli Nilli DK (a DK weight chenille that is surprisingly easy to work with). Although we are just started to experiment with these yarns, it is already great fun to add new textural options to the mix! Happily, you can find many of the Ricorumi lines through Lovecrafts.
Ricorumi Line Stats:
| Ricorumi DK 100% Cotton 25G/57.5m |
Neon DK 100% Acrylic 25G/57.5m |
Spin Spin 100% Cotton 50G/115m |
Nilli Nilli 100% Polyester 25g/65m |
Twinkly Twinkly 99% cotton, 1% metalized polyester 25G/51m |
Paintbox Cotton DK
Finally, we have to give an honorable mention shout out to Paintbox Yarn Cotton DK. Once again, this line has a good color selection at a great price point. It isn’t lustrous like Schachenmary Catania, but, as our friend Lana has said to me, NOT EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE SHINY.
Like it’s acrylic counterparts, you can snatch up Paintbox Cotton DK in both 5 and 10-ball value packs. And — coolest of all for makers looking to stock up — they have pre-made color palette packs and EVEN A 25-ball RAINBOW PACK!
Stats:
100% Cotton
50G/125m
Still trying to get that free shipping?
Lovecrafts used to pack all their orders in sheer organza drawstring bags. Over the years, I have collected tons of them and use them as project bags ALL THE TIME. Sadly, they are no longer free (booooo!). If you’re just looking to tip the scale to get free shipping (has this ever actually happened to a yarn lover???), they are nice to have around!
That’s it for now…
I am sure we will share more faves in the future as we play with new yarns and tools. I’d especially like to share some of the little doohickey’s we use around the studio that AREN’T sold in craft stores!
In the meantime, if you have questions about anything we have mentioned, or if you want to share your own faves, we would love to hear from you in the comments!
Written by Freddy
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