Amigurumi patterns are written one round at a time. Every line has three parts: the round number, the stitches to work, and the count in brackets at the end.
R3: (sc 1, inc) x6 (18)
This means: round 3, repeat "one single crochet, then an increase" six times, and when you finish the round you should have 18 stitches. The number in brackets is the check. If you count 17 or 19, something went wrong in that round and it is easiest to fix it now rather than three rounds later.
The parts of a line
- R1: 6 sc in a magic ring (6) starts almost every piece. You make an adjustable loop, work six single crochet into it and pull it closed.
- (inc) x6 (12) means every stitch of the round gets an increase, so the count doubles.
- (sc 2, inc) x6 (24) means two plain stitches then an increase, six times over. Each round of this type adds six stitches.
- R7-16: sc 36 (36) means ten identical rounds with no shaping. These rounds add length without changing the width.
- (sc 1, dec) x6 (12) decreases. Each "dec" turns two stitches into one.
Why the counts follow a pattern
Six increases per round is what makes a flat circle at normal single crochet gauge. Fewer increases and the piece starts to cup; more and it ruffles. So a ball or a head grows by six stitches a round, holds steady for the middle rounds, then shrinks by six a round. The patterns on this site are checked by code so that every round works into exactly the number of stitches the round before produced.
Keeping your place
Amigurumi is worked in a continuous spiral, so there is no visible start of round. Put a stitch marker in the first stitch of every round and move it up as you go. When the pattern says "after round 10", it means after the round whose marker you have just reached.
Sizes
The finished size in the pattern header comes from the gauge in the materials line. If your stitches are looser or tighter, every part scales together, so the figure still holds together; it just comes out a little bigger or smaller.