3 July 2026
Experimenting: Reversible Amigurumi Process
Two dolls in one! We have been experimenting with topsy-turvy amigurumi — flip the skirt and a princess becomes a sunflower. Here is how the reversible doll came to life, mistakes and all.
Some projects begin with a pattern. This one began with a question from a student: "Paati, can one doll be two things?"
Meet the Reversible Sunflower Princess — our first topsy-turvy amigurumi. Hold her one way and she is a princess in a golden petal gown. Flip the skirt over her head and she becomes a blooming sunflower, brown centre and all.
How a reversible doll works
A topsy-turvy doll is really two half-dolls joined at the waist. The skirt does the magic: it is crocheted like a two-sided bell, so whichever way you flip it, it reads as a "dress" on one side and a "flower" on the other.
Our construction, in plain terms:
- Start with the princess half — head, curly bobble-stitch hair, and arms, worked in the round like any amigurumi.
- Crochet the sunflower half — a flat brown spiral for the flower centre, ringed with pointed petals worked in golden yellow.
- Join at the waist — both halves share one round, so there is no seam to weaken with flipping.
- The skirt-petal trick — each petal is crocheted separately and attached so it falls neatly as a gown one way and fans out as petals the other way.
What went wrong (and what we learnt)
Honesty corner — the first prototype had a skirt so stiff it stood up like an umbrella. We fixed it by going down a hook size for the petals but keeping a looser tension in the joining round, so the flip stays crisp without the "umbrella" effect.
Embroidered eyes won over safety eyes for this one — a flip doll gets handled roughly by little hands, and embroidery keeps it fully baby-safe.
Why we love reversible amigurumi
- It is a storytelling toy — children invent the transformation moment themselves.
- It teaches wonderful techniques: bobble stitch, petal shaping, colour changes, and working two pieces into one round.
- It is two gifts in one — which makes it a strong candidate for our store and future workshops.
The Sunflower Princess is now sitting in our studio, getting flipped several dozen times a day by every visitor. We call that a successful experiment. 🌻
Want to learn amigurumi from the very first magic ring? Join a Nool Paati batch — beginners are always welcome.
