Mini Amigurumi Bee: A Tiny Striped Pattern

Thirteen rounds, three pieces and two colors of stripe: a mini amigurumi bee is about as small as a complete project gets. The body is a single stuffed oval that never grows beyond 18 stitches, the wings are two flat discs, and the face is two dots. It is also a friendly place to practice changing color, because each stripe is only two rounds tall.

What You Need

• Sport or fingering weight (#1-#2) cotton yarn in yellow, dark brown or black, and white
• 2.5 mm crochet hook (2.0 mm if you use the finer yarn)
• Black embroidery thread for the eyes, or two tiny beads
• A pinch of polyester fiberfill
• Locking stitch marker and a fine blunt yarn needle
• Tweezers for stuffing (optional)

In sport weight yarn the bee comes out about 1.5 in (4 cm) long, depending on yarn and tension. If small stitches are hard to see, work a first bee in worsted weight yarn with a 3.5 mm hook; the rounds are identical. The general handling of small stitches and thin yarn is covered in the mini amigurumi guide; this page sticks to the bee.

Abbreviations

• MR: magic ring
• st(s): stitch(es)
• sc: single crochet
• inc: increase (2 sc in the same stitch)
• dec: invisible decrease (sc 2 stitches together through the front loops)
• sl st: slip stitch
• Rnd: round
• FO: fasten off

Work in a continuous spiral with the right side facing out and a stitch marker in the first stitch of every round. Each piece begins with a magic ring.

How the Stripes Work

To switch colors, work the last stitch of the old color until two loops are left on the hook, then finish that stitch by pulling the new color through both loops. The next stitch is then fully in the new color. Do not cut the yarn you are leaving: the stripes are only two rounds tall, so let the resting strand hang inside the body and pick it up again when its turn comes. Leave that strand a little slack; a tight carried strand pulls the fabric into a dent.

A small step shows where each stripe begins. That is a normal side effect of working in a spiral, and on the bee you simply turn it to the underside. Ways to soften it are explained in the guide to amigurumi color changes.

Bee Pattern

Body (make 1)

Start with yellow. The magic ring end becomes the face.

1. Rnd 1: 6 sc in MR (6)
2. Rnd 2: inc x 6 (12)
3. Rnd 3: (sc 1, inc) x 6 (18)
4. Rnds 4-5: sc 18 (18)
5. Change to the dark color on the last yarn over of Rnd 5.
6. Rnds 6-7: sc 18 (18)
7. Change to yellow on the last yarn over of Rnd 7.
8. Rnds 8-9: sc 18 (18)
9. Change to the dark color on the last yarn over of Rnd 9.
10. Rnds 10-11: sc 18 (18)
11. Change to yellow on the last yarn over of Rnd 11 and cut the dark yarn, leaving a short tail inside.
12. Rnd 12: (sc 1, dec) x 6 (12)
13. Knot the loose tails together inside, add the face if you are embroidering it now, and stuff the body.
14. Rnd 13: dec x 6 (6)
15. FO, thread the tail through the front loops of the last 6 stitches and pull the hole closed.

Wings (make 2, white)

1. Rnd 1: 6 sc in MR (6)
2. Rnd 2: inc x 6 (12)
3. Sl st in the next stitch, FO and leave a long tail for sewing. Do not stuff.

Assembly and Face

1. Find the top. Turn the body so the stepped side of the stripes faces down. The opposite side is the back, where the wings go.
2. Shape the wings. Pinch one edge of each disc so it folds into a slight teardrop, and hold the pinch with one stitch of the yarn tail.
3. Sew the wings. Attach the pinched edges side by side on the first dark stripe, angled outward in a V. Stitch through the pinched edge only, so the rest of the wing stays free and lifts off the body.
4. Add the eyes. Place them between Rnds 3 and 4 of the yellow face, with 3 stitches between them. For embroidered eyes, wrap the thread twice over a single stitch, or make two French knots.
5. Finish. Run every yarn end through the stuffing and out the other side, then trim it flush so it springs back inside.

A tiny V-shaped smile one round below the eyes is optional. On a piece this small, less is usually better: two eyes on their own already read as a face. Placement ideas are in the guide to amigurumi face embroidery.

If Something Looks Off

What you see	Likely cause	Fix
Dents under the stripes	Carried strand pulled too tight	Stretch the fabric before picking the color up again
Yellow dots inside a dark stripe	Color switched one stitch late	Join the new color on the last yarn over of the stitch before
White showing between stitches	Hook too large for the yarn, or too much stuffing	Go down a hook size and stuff until firm, not stretched
Body looks like a ball, not an oval	Stuffing pushed to the middle	Roll the body between your fingers to lengthen it

Turning the Bee Into a Keychain or Mobile

Keychain

Before closing the body, cut a strand of yellow about 8 in (20 cm) long, fold it in half and knot the ends together. Pull the loop out through the fabric at the center of the back, between the two wing positions, so the knot sits inside and the stuffing holds it. Slip a split ring through the loop. A keychain gets pulled constantly, so on a mini amigurumi bee meant for keys, sew the wings with extra passes and knot every tail.

Mobile

Make several bees and hang each from a length of thread passed through the same spot on the back. Because the thread sits at the middle of the body, the bee is designed to hang level; if one tips forward, move the thread one stitch toward the heavy end. Vary the thread lengths so the bees hang at different heights. A mobile belongs well out of a baby’s reach.