I love Avatar: The Last Airbender. The worldbuilding, the embedded philosophy, the focus on family (especially sibling) relationships. The show is so dear to me that when I undertook my very first self-produced pattern, I decided to go big and try Appa, the lovable sky bison from the show.

Appa, made still early on in my journey, was likely the largest amigurumi I had made up to that point. I experimented a lot with shape, styles (especially his fringe), and felt. Though he may have been one of the most difficult projects I’ve undertaken, I’m so glad that I did as to this day he is one of my favorite creations.

Material Requirements
This pattern should not be dependent on yarn weight and hook size. My preferred hook for amigurumi is 3.5mm with worsted weight yarn. I always recommend that people use a fairly tight stitch when creating amigurumi to prevent stuffing from protruding out. Frankly, because of the amount of projects I make, I usually stick to budget acrylics (Red Heart Super Saver is a blessing on the wallet), but feel free to use what you feel comfortable with.

• Yarn: Beige, Light Brown, Dark Brown, Black
• Polyester Stuffing
• Scissors
• Tapestry Needle
• Felt: Light Brown, White, Dark Brown
• Felting Needle
• Fine Hair Brush

Skill Requirements
Basic Crocheting Skills:

• Chain Stitch (ch)
• Single Crochet (sc)
• Slip Stitch (sl st)
• Single Crochet Increase (inc)
• Invisible Decrease (dec)
• Magic Ring

For the most part, Appa is made by crocheting in the round. I begin most of the pieces with a magic ring, so it will be necessary to learn this technique if you are not familiar with it. Basic sewing skills will also be necessary to attach the completed pieces together.

When reading the pattern, anything located in square brackets should be repeated as per the instructions following the brackets. In the body section, for example:

2 sc, inc around

Would look like:

2 sc, inc, 2 sc, inc, 2 sc, inc, 2 sc, inc, 2 sc, inc, 2 sc, inc

I also state the total number of stitches in each row in (round brackets) at the end of each row.