Fossils

Ammonite

by Russell Welch

With the wind pushing the waves against the shore, you wander along,
searching amongst the pebbles. Finally, you see something. You've found an
ammonite!

© Russell Welch, 2011

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Difficulty

You will need:

3.5 mm crochet hook

Worsted yarn1
A little polyester stuffing (fibrefill)
Tapestry needle

For the yarn, a stony colour is best (if you’re going for realism!), and
something that isn’t too fluffy. Greys or sandy colours are good, and you
might want to use something with flecks of colour (Rowan Summer Tweed
would work well, just be careful not to break it when you’re curling things up
at the end).

Techniques and Abbreviations

Magic Circle (mc)2

Single Crochet (sc)
SC decrease (sc2tog)3
Stitch (st)
Basic sewing

As with all amigurumi, your rounds are worked in a spiral – don’t join rounds
or chain stitch between them. This is a good pattern for practicing
increasingly small rounds – just go as small as you can!

1
Please note, I use American terms throughout (despite being English). If you are English,
Single Crochet (SC) is Double Crochet (DC), and Worsted yarn is Double Knit yarn.

2
Magic Circle (aka Magic Ring) tutorials can be found online, or you can just Ch 2 and SC 6
into the chain furthest from the hook (although this method is more likely to leave a hole).

3
I recommend Invisible Decreases where-ever possible. Again, you can find tutorials for
this online.

© Russell Welch, 2011

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Pattern4

Basically, you are making a long, thin cone, which you will then curl up and sew
together. You will need to crochet quite tightly to stop the stuffing
showing, and will need to stuff regularly all the way through. Be careful not
to over-stuff, though, or you won’t be able to roll it up evenly.

1 MC 6
2 2 SC in each (12 ST)
3 1 SC in each (12 ST)

Weave in the tail at this point, otherwise it will be more

awkward later on!

4 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (11 ST)

5 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (10 ST)

6 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (9 ST)

7 1 SC in each (9 ST)

8 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (8 ST)

9-15 1 SC in each (8 ST) x 7

16 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (7 ST)

17-22 1 SC in each (7 ST) x 6

23 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (6 ST)

24-28 1 SC in each (6 ST) x 5

29 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (5 ST)

30-33 1 SC in each (5 ST) x 4

34 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (4 ST)

35-37 1 SC in each (4 ST) x 3

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Or, more simply: MC 6, 12, 12, 11, 10, 9, 9, 8 x 8, 7 x 7, 6 x 6, 5 x 5, 4 x 4, 3 x 3, FO

© Russell Welch, 2011

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38 SC2tog, then 1 SC in each (3 ST)

39-40 1 SC in each (3 ST) x 2 (if possible)

FO, leaving a tail about 3 times the length of your cone

Now you need to curl the ammonite up, sewing it together as you go. Start
with the smallest end of the cone (which will be the middle of the finished
ammonite), curl it over a little, and make a stitch. Then pull it tight and make
a stitch in the other side. You will alternate between stitching into the part
that’s already been curled, and the straight part (in a zig-zag; see fig. 1).

Fig 1.
An illustration of how the stitches zig-zag back and forth.
I wouldn’t do this many stitches at once, but it should give you
the idea!

Fasten off when you get to the end, then sew through the body of the
ammonite, pull the end tight, and snip it off. The end should pull back into
the body and disappear. You’re done!

Email me with questions or feedback: ravenslane@yahoo.co.uk

For more patterns, please visit my Etsy shop: http://ravenslane.etsy.com

This pattern may be printed for your own use, but may not be copied, sold or distributed.
You may not sell items made using this pattern.

© Russell Welch, 2011

© Russell Welch, 2011

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