Safety eyes are a common accessory for crocheting dolls, amigurumi, kawaii, and other sweet items. While we all know that safety eyes are safe, I would like to share with you the do’s and don’ts when placing them. So today a post all about safety eyes for your crochet work.

Placing safety eyes in your crochet work is a fun thing to do. It gives the doll that extra look or that sweet cupcake a cute smile. Safety eyes are safe but only if you use them correctly. But what is the correct side of the cap? And how to make sure the eyes can’t come off? Keep reading and you’ll find out today.

Safety eyes; what are those?

If you never heard about safety eyes, you will find out now! How fun is that? Safety eyes are those black or colored little ‘plastic balls’ on crochet and knit work. It gives the doll, animal, cake, or something else a pair of eyes. They are fast to place and don’t cost you any yarn. The eyes can be bought in just ‘black’ in multiple sizes. But you can also buy them with glitter, cat eyes, dog eyes, including lashes, and much more! They start at a size 2mm, very tiny up to a size 30mm for bigger animals and toys.

The eyes come with a suitable ‘cap’. That cap is placed inside the crochet or knit work before closing up. And that is exactly the point of what makes the safety eye safe or not safe.

How to place the caps

With the eyes comes a cap. If you bought a large container with different sizes, make sure you place the right size caps on the eyes. But what is the correct side to place? There are different theories on how the caps are placed. The back of the eyes are flat, but most caps aren’t. They have a half-donut-shaped look. With a bold side and a tiny flat side, in the middle a whole. The correct way to place them is this: insert the eye through the yarn and push the pin inside. You place the cap on the inside of your work with the big bold side on the flat part of the eye. Really? Really!

Most tutorials show you to place the tiny side on the back of the eye. This is incorrect!! Why? Now a child can place his/her fingers between the eye and the crochet/knit work. Even though the pin of the eye has a couple of ‘ty wrap-like’ bumps, with a lot of pressure a child can push the cap off the eye-pin. The eye can then be pulled out of the work. That is not good as a child can choke in these tiny safety eyes.

So the correct way: place the safety eye, place cap with the big bold side against the flat backside of the eye.

Extra safety? Use glue!

If you want extra safety, you can always use glue. Put a tiny bit of glue on the edge of the cap and press the cap very tight against the back of the eye. Wait a couple of minutes before continuing crocheting or knitting.