TUTORIAL: Tips for Using Fuzzy Yarn

Finding fuzzy yarns that are suitable for crocheting amigurumi turned out to be a lot harder than I initially thought, so much so that I gave up on the idea after quite a few failed attempts. My local yarn stores do carry some fuzzy eyelash yarns, but they all have fur that is way too long for crocheting and don't create the nice faux fur effect they are supposed to - they just need a more relaxed fabric and looser stitches. But even if they did, I was looking for a different look - shorter fur that would give a more vintage look.

But finally I found a yarn that worked out perfectly (when combined with another yarn, but more about it below) - Cassiopeia from Schachenmayr. They only had two colors available - orange and turquoise - but at least now I know what to look for in the future.

I decided to make a little (or actually pretty large) teddy bear, using my classic teddy bear pattern. And I must say I am quite happy with how she turned out - super soft and cuddly, with a classic look and just the right size for a teddy - about 35,5 cm (14") from head to toe, 29 cm (11 1/2") when sitting.

Crocheting with this kind of yarn was not quite as difficult as I thought it would be, but it does have its challenges. So I thought I would share what I learned with you as well.

Difficulty

The one thing making our lives difficult is the thing we want to achieve - fuzzyness - hiding stitches behind the fur and making it difficult to see what we're doing. If you are new to crochet, I would stick with regular yarns for now, unless you have a lot of patience. But if you are a seasoned crocheter, you'll have a sort of muscle memory and you'll know just where to insert your hook, even if you can't see the stitch.

Choosing the yarn

You'll want a fuzzy yarn (aka eyelash, faux fur, fun fur) that:

• has a thick core, so you'll get a nice tight fabric that doesn't let the stuffing show through*
• has fur that is shorter than about 1,5 cm (1/2")
• is a lighter color, which makes seeing the stitches a lot easier 

* If you can't find a yarn that is thick enough, you can just pick a regular yarn in the same color and crochet holding the two yarns together, which is what I did.

Crocheting

Beacuse the stitches are difficult to see, you may want to use the regular decrease method instead of the invsible decrease (which is what I always use normally ) - it just seems to be a bit easier to do. 

And be extra careful counting stitches - usually when you lose your count, you can just go back to the last decrease or increase, but using fuzzy yarn you won't be able to distinguish those - you'll probably have to start counting from the beginning of the round. Which I had to do a few times :)

Right vs wrong side

Just because of the way we crochet, the wrong side tends to be a lot fuzzier than the right side, so you may want to turn your pieces inside out. I went for the less fuzzy look and left the right side outside.

Assembling

You'll want to use regular yarn for sewing your toys together, just keep that in mind when yarn shopping for your next project.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to email me or leave a comment below, I am always happy to help.