Written by: Alexus Lowe
Out of the many attempts my mother made to learn one of her crafts, only one stuck: crocheting! I’ve been crocheting off and on for about six years. Now before we continue any further, for those who don’t know, Knitting and Crocheting are two DIFFERENT crafts. One using two knitting needles and the other uses a crochet hook. That is probably the biggest pet peeve of mine when it comes to crocheting.
Now, normally, I like to crochet during the summer because I have more time but I recently took a few days to try out a new project. While scrolling through Pinterest, looking for free crochet patterns to save for the summer, I found a pattern for a mini Groot toy. One of my older sisters is a huge marvel fan so when I saw this pattern, I was like I must try it out! The original pattern is meant to just be a doll amigurumi groot but the designer also made theirs into a crochet keychain since the finished project is so tiny.
The pattern itself was just a little vague, especially with the materials needed. There wasn’t any particular yarn specified in the pattern so I just used some cotton yarn I got from Walmart for less than $2. The skeins I bought were really small from the brand Peaches & Creme and were roughly 2.5 ounces (I didn’t use the entire skein). As for the rest of the materials, the creator left specifics up to your discretion– they genuinely gave you no hook size recommendations.
Image from Alexus Lowe
To do this pattern, you definitely need to have some experience working not only with a crochet hook but also working with amigurumi patterns too. The first thing you start with is the body and the head which are attached to each other. This was my first time doing an amigurumi doll with legs (normally I like to do sea creatures like octopi and squids) so I definitely struggled with the legs a bit. In the end one was just a wee bit longer than the other but I made it work and it’s not too noticeable.
Once I got past connecting the legs, the rest of the main base was relatively easy, just increasing or decreasing every round. After you finish the body/head, you attach the safety eyes, stuff the head, and begin working on the crown. Now I felt super stupid doing this the first time around considering there was no pattern to it. One minute I was single crocheting, the next I was double crocheting, and then a half double crochet and a slip stitch somewhere in the middle. In the end, the crown top of Groots head came out perfect and I’m super proud of it.
The last two parts of the pattern were a bit difficult. The patter for the arms was easy (it was like four rounds all together) but because it was so tiny in size, there were times if my hook came out of the yarn, I had to start all over again. As for the vines, it was super easy, just 50 or so chains and then looping it around the full body a few times. The leaves on the vines, on the other hand, stressed me out. I don’t know how she got her green embroidery yarn to work so well between the stitches to make the leaves look like they were coming out of his actual body. I applaud her for her amazing work and for sharing such a great pattern!
Image from Alexus Lowe
While I can’t add the Lovely Craft pattern due to copyright restrictions, I can give credits to the creator Varya K. Their Instagram handle is: @crochet_paladin 🙂 The project was super fun and I will definitely be making another one as soon as I have the time!
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