A New Favorite Yarn for Amigurumi Toys - Omega Sinfonia Cotton

One of the many benefits of working in a fiber arts store is that we get to try new things. Whenever a new yarn or tool comes in we all spend some time "ooooing" and "aaaahing" over it. One of our new Customer Service Representatives, Erika recently tried out a yarn that isn't new to the shop but was brand new to her! Omega Sinfonia Cotton has long been one of our favorite cotton yarns for rigid heddle and inkle loom weaving but Erika tried it out for one of her favorite types of projects, amigurumi toys! 

Erika has been crocheting for about 9 years now. She loves to make amigurumi animals, but often hears that other crocheters are intimidated by making something that looks so intricate! She says there is no reason to be scared of amigurumi style projects, as long as you pick a good yarn and have the right tools you'll be set up for success. 

Crochet or acrylic are the most common types of yarn used for amigurumi projects because they are hard wearing and sturdy. Erika had found a lot of cotton yarns to be splitty and frustrating to work with because they untwist as you knit with them. This was not how she felt about Omega Sinfonia Cotton! 

Erika says, "The Omega Sinfonia yarn is by far the best cotton yarn I have ever crocheted with and will be my new “go to” cotton yarn." Here's why Erika found this yarn to be so great to work with; it has a cable ply construction. Being cable plied helps it not split apart or unravel as you twist the yarn while crocheting! Omega Sinfonia Cotton is a 6 strand cable ply meaning it has three groups of 2 plies that were then plied together in the opposite direction into one yarn. This makes for a very round sturdy yarn that doesn't untwist while you crochet with it. It's also made with 100% mercerized cotton so it's going to hold up very well over time. 

Erika used the adorable bunny pattern found in the book Edward’s Menagerie by Kerry Lord as a project to put the Omega Sinfonia Cotton through its paces. Erika says, "This is a good book, but it is written in UK crochet terms so if you are in the US, you will need to convert the stitches to US terms when making her animals." She also used her favorite crochet hooks, Clover Amour, to make the bunny. We're now carrying the full set of Clover Amour Hooks, which are really fantastic if you haven't tried them yet. The handles have an ergonomic elastomer rubber grip which is very comfortable to hold for long crochet marathon sessions. 

Erika wanted to add an extra cute detail to her bunny project and opted to make a pom pom tail instead of crocheting the one in the book. She used the smallest of the two pom pom makers in the Clover Pom-Pom Maker Small Set. We think this was the perfect finishing touch on this adorable project. 

It was so fun to see a yarn that we're normally used to seeing around the shop in weaving projects (like our Rigid Heddle Texture Infusion project) get used in a different way. We have over 50 solid colors and 15 variegated colors of this yarn so you should be able to find the right color no matter what type of project you're wanting to crochet! Erika named her bunny "Willow the Woolery Bunny" and we can't wait to see if she crochets up a bunch of new friends for her! 

Have you tried crocheting with Omega Sinfonia Cotton? Do you have other amigurumi tools or books you think we should carry? Let us know on Facebook and Instagram! Tag us in your projects we'd love to see what you make!