A while ago, I purchased the Fresh Friends booklet by Ricorumi. It’s a small but very fun crochet book filled with adorable fruits and vegetables. Today I’m sharing my review of this charming Fresh Friends booklet by Rico Designs. Ready to read along?
How I Discovered Fresh Friends
A few weeks ago, I came across the Fresh Friends booklet by Rico Designs on Facebook through Annemieke Haakt. She had just crocheted the carrot and shared it on her timeline. I thought it was incredibly cute, especially the color gradient and the big smile, so I immediately asked where the pattern came from.
That’s how I found Fresh Friends by Ricorumi (aka Rico Designs). After some online searching, I found the booklet and the matching yarn cakes via Dirk & Doortje. Of course, I ordered right away. Once it arrived, I couldn’t wait to try the carrot. It really is too adorable.
About Ricorumi Yarn
You may already know the brand Rico Designs. I’ve used their yarn before for small baby items like comfort dolls and rattles. The yarn is always super soft and very pleasant to crochet with.
For the Fresh Friends patterns, Rico Designs uses the Ricorumi range. There are several variants available in many colors. The Spin Spin DK 100% cotton cake yarns are mainly used to create the fruits and vegetables in the booklet.
I personally ordered four colors from the Spin Spin collection: red, pink, green, and orange. My plan was:
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Orange for the carrot
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Green for the bell pepper
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Red for the apple
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Pink for the strawberry
Since my son has already outgrown these toys, I added a small rattle insert inside each Fresh Friend. I also embroidered the eyes instead of using safety eyes. This makes them much safer for babies and allows me to add them to my webshop as cute small gifts.
Tip: Always consider what you plan to do with your crochet project afterward. Adjust elements if needed, such as choosing embroidered eyes instead of safety eyes.
What’s Inside the Fresh Friends Booklet
I usually crochet using English patterns, so I had to switch gears a bit because this booklet is in Dutch. I looked up the Dutch stitch terms and kept them nearby while working.
The patterns mainly use basic stitches such as:
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Slip stitch
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Single crochet
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Increases and decreases
The booklet itself is quite thin, but it still includes 10 crochet friends to make:
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Lemon
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Cherry duo
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Mushroom
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Carrot
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Strawberry
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Eggplant
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Bell pepper
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Peas in a pod
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Apple
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Leek
They are all very easy to make. Even if you don’t have the exact Ricorumi yarn, you can get quite far using your own yarn in similar colors.
About half of the booklet contains funny character descriptions with large photos. The other half contains the patterns. Not every project starts on a new page, so pay close attention to where each Fresh Friend begins and ends. This can sometimes be confusing when you’re searching for a specific pattern.
Price of the Fresh Friends Book
The booklet costs €3.99. Be careful when buying online, because I’ve seen it listed for higher prices. The official price printed on the back of the booklet is €3.99.
Some webshops also offer yarn bundles together with the book, so it’s worth checking what works best for you.
Required Ricorumi Yarn
The 10 crochet friends mainly use the Ricorumi Spin Spin cakes. Additional yarns are used for leaves, cheeks, mouths, and other details.
It would have been helpful if online shops included a screenshot of the last page of the booklet, since that page lists all required materials. To save you the trouble, here is the complete yarn list with color codes:
Ricorumi DK: 045, 047, 050, 068, 052
Ricorumi Spin Spin DK: 001, 002, 003, 004, 005, 006, 007, 008, 012, 013, 015
Ricorumi Twinkly Twinkly DK: 003, 007, 008, 014
I personally only ordered the Spin Spin yarn because I already had other colors in my stash. If you want to recreate the projects exactly as shown in the booklet, it’s useful to check this list in advance.
My Honest Opinion
I think this is a very fun booklet filled with adorable characters. There are some Fresh Friends I’ll probably crochet sooner than others. For example, I’m not very drawn to the mushroom, and the peas don’t appeal to me much either — maybe because I don’t like eating them myself!
I’m also a bit unsure about the leek. I’d like to make my own version with larger leaves that can fold over.
Overall, this is a super cute crochet booklet at a great price (around €4). You can easily switch colors for most characters, which allows you to create many variations. For example:
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Make the bell pepper orange, yellow, or green
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Turn the lemon into a green lime
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Transform the cherries into two cherry tomatoes
If you think a bit outside the box, the possibilities are endless.
Final Verdict
Fresh Friends by Ricorumi is an adorable and affordable crochet booklet that offers plenty of creative possibilities. For a small price, you get a collection of cute amigurumi patterns that are quick, beginner-friendly, and perfect for gifts.
Definitely recommended if you love crocheting cute food-themed amigurumi.
