If you have ever finished an amigurumi head, held it up to the light, and spotted a faint spiral of tiny bumps, you are not alone. Those ridges appear right where the increase rounds are — the exact spot where a head grows from 6 stitches to 12 to 18 to 24. Faces get photographed up close, so every bump matters.
Smoothing them out takes a one-stitch change you can learn in a minute. Instead of working both stitches of an increase the usual way, work the second stitch through the back loop only. That is the whole trick — and below we work two identical mini heads side by side so you can see exactly what changes.
What You'll Need
Two contrasting colours, so the difference reads clearly:
- Worsted-weight yarn (Category 4, 100% acrylic or acrylic blend) in two contrasting colours, about 20 g each. Choose light, smooth yarns — avoid fuzzy yarn for this exercise, because you want to see the stitches.
- A 3.5 mm (E-4) crochet hook — tight enough to keep stuffing from showing through.
- One stitch marker, a tapestry needle, small scissors, and a handful of polyester fiberfill for two golf-ball-sized heads.
No special tools, no new skills — if you can single crochet, you can do this today.
Where the Bump Comes From
A standard increase puts two single crochets into one stitch. Both pull on the same base and sit side by side on the fabric, each pair pushing slightly outward and stretching a tiny gap between them. One gap is invisible. Dozens of them, spiralling up a head in neat columns, form the faint ridge you can feel with a fingertip even when you can barely see it.
On the body this never matters. But the head is the face — the first thing everyone looks at, and the part in every photo. A smoother head is a better-looking amigurumi, full stop.
The Back-Loop Increase, Step by Step
Work the first stitch of the increase exactly as usual: insert the hook under both loops and complete the single crochet. For the second stitch of the same increase, insert the hook under the back loop only — the loop farthest from you — and finish the single crochet as normal.
What changes: the unworked front loop stays on the surface as a small anchor, while the bulk of the second stitch sinks slightly behind it. Instead of two full stitches jostling side by side and stretching the base stitch open, the increase point settles into the fabric. The faint spiral ridge all but disappears.
One honest note: this is a refinement, not magic. It will not rescue very loose tension — if you can see daylight through your stitches, tighten your gauge first. At normal amigurumi tension, the difference is obvious the moment you compare two heads.
The Comparison: Two Identical Heads
Same yarn, same hook, same rounds. The only difference is the increase technique. Head A uses standard increases throughout. On Head B, every increase is worked with the first stitch through both loops and the second stitch through the back loop only.
- Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring. (6)
- Round 2: inc in each st. (12)
- Round 3: [sc, inc] 6 times. (18)
- Round 4: [2 sc, inc] 6 times. (24)
- Round 5: [3 sc, inc] 6 times. (30)
- Rounds 6–10: sc in each st. (30)
- Round 11: [3 sc, inv dec] 6 times. (24)
- Round 12: [2 sc, inv dec] 6 times — stuff firmly. (18)
- Round 13: [sc, inv dec] 6 times. (12)
- Round 14: inv dec around; close. (6)
Stuff both heads to the same firmness — uneven stuffing skews the comparison. Now look at the widest part of each head (rounds 2–5). Head A shows the classic faint spiral where the increases stack; Head B reads as smooth, even fabric. Photograph them in raking side light and the difference jumps out. That is where this trick earns its keep: anywhere the camera goes close.
When to Use It — and When to Skip It
Use it on every surface photographed up close: faces and cheeks. Our No-Sew Ghost and No-Sew Black Cat have big, plain faces where smooth shaping makes the biggest difference — and it pairs beautifully with the invisible decrease on the way down for a clean finish at both ends.
Skip it where nobody will see it: under a hat or cap (the rounds beneath our Mini Witch Hat or Mini Acorn cap need no extra attention), on pieces that will be felted, or in fuzzy yarn where texture swallows stitch detail. Save the focus for the parts that earn it.
Troubleshooting
Ridge still visible? Check you are catching only the back loop on the second stitch — slide under both loops and you are back to a standard increase. Also watch for split yarn, which reads as a bump.
Head looks lopsided? That is increase placement, not the trick. When every increase lands in the same column, corners form. Stagger them: begin some rounds with the increase and others with plain stitches first, spreading the shaping evenly.
Holes at the magic ring? Unrelated to increases — pull the ring tail firmly after Round 1 and weave it through the first round before trimming.
Try It This Weekend
Pick one make and work its head twice: once your usual way, once with back-loop second stitches. Our Mini Owl or Mini Spider are perfect test pieces — small, quick, and all face. Keep the smoother head for the close-up photo. Once you have felt the difference in your own hands, you will never go back to bumpy increases on a face again.
Happy crocheting — and may your next amigurumi face be your smoothest yet.