Which stitch marker should you use for LittleOwlsHut toys?

Most LittleOwlsHut and other amigurumi projects are normally crocheted in continuous spiral rounds. Counting stitches in your head is a tricky process as you may get easily distracted by anyone or anything, be it a sudden phone call, a police car, an ambulance siren, or even an unexpected knock on the door. Therefore, I suggest that you use a stitch marker (often called a place marker or a PM for short) to keep track of each round; otherwise, it's hard to know where the round starts or finishes. You can either mark the first or the last stitch of the round. I personally prefer marking the very last stitch of each round.

Some stitch marker types and their pros and cons in my personal experience

Metallic safety pin

Pros: You will most certainly find one in your first aid box or sewing kit, it’s suitable for finer yarn projects.

Cons: The sharp edge may accidentally catch and pull some plies from the stitch. It also makes it hard to follow the symmetry of the part you are crocheting unless you leave your safety pin marker in its place and attach additional markers every few rounds.

Plastic marker

Pros: Safe to use, not catchy, comes in bright colors, so easy to find if dropped.

Cons: It is not suitable for finer Amigurumi projects, especially when you use smaller crochet hook sizes and finer yarn. It also makes it hard to follow the symmetry of the part you are crocheting unless you leave your plastic marker in its place and attach additional markers every few rounds.

A scrap of contrasting yarn marker

Pros: You may use any contrasting-coloured scrap piece of yarn or cotton you have. This type of marker is extremely useful when you want to check the center and symmetry of your toy.

Cons: It takes a bit of time and effort to remove it once the project is completed. Unless you know the approximate size of the part you are making, your thread marker may appear to be shorter than the required length, and you will need to use an additional piece of thread to finish your part.

I recommend using thread markers in all LittleOwlsHut projects, even if they are easy to make and do not require keeping an eye on the symmetry of your work. Read "How to use a scrap of yarn as a running stitch marker—3 different ways."