I've mentioned a couple of times that I have a copy of my friend June's book,
The Complete Idiot's Guide To Amigurumi (provided for free by the publisher).  I've mentioned it a couple times because I'm *so* excited about it.

I read every single word ... and loved every bit of it.


Starting From Scratch

The book is designed to tell you everything you need to know to get started creating your own amigurumi - even if you've never crocheted before.  You can learn everything from the anatomy of a crochet hook to how to make an invisible decrease ... and the magic circle (below).
The instructions are clear and are accompanied by helpful photos that June took herself.

Tips And Tricks

After she's armed you with the basic crochet skills you need, she reveals the nitty gritty of designing amigurumi (or ami, for short), which is how to make shapes like flat circles, tubes, cones, and spheres.
June offers guidance about whether you want to make your ami-parts as closed shapes or open shapes depending on how you want it to look.  And then she gives you several ways to stuff, close, and assemble your ami.
Not to mention the details about using different colors and types of yarn, creating expressive eyes, making your ami poseable.  There is a whole chapter about all the ways you could make hair.  It's clear from the amount of information she's packed into this book, that she's thought about all the ways you could do something and tried them all to see what works.

Pattern Boot Camp

Once you've absorbed all that information, you can hone  your skills using the patterns she provides at the end of the book.  They are arranged in order of difficulty and incorporate many of the techniques she reveals in the book.

I made the mushroom pattern.  Easy and cute!  The colorful mushroom cap was a perfect way to use up some tiny bits of leftover yarn.  I also used her surface crochet idea to make gills under the mushroom.  I think this took me around half an hour to make.  Cake!  I brought it to work ... I've got an orange* thing happening on that filing cabinet.

Conclusion

This book delivers on it's promise of teaching you all about amigurumi and giving you the skills to start designing your own.

I kept thinking as I read it, "I wish I'd found this book as a kid."  I always thought I needed a pattern.  I think a lot of people think that way. This book would have empowered me to create my own.

This would have been the perfect gift for the 14-year-old me (or the 23-year-old me!).  Wrap this book up with a crochet hook and a couple skeins of yarn, and it would be a great gift for a creative maker.

FYI: I bought  the cool Rock Star print from my blog friend Tina Jett.