Tairn and Andarna Fourth Wing Dragon Crochet: Your Complete Guide to Making These Beloved Dragons Come to Life

If you’ve fallen head over heels for Rebecca Yarros’s Empyrean series, you’re not alone. The Fourth Wing fandom has exploded into one of the most passionate book communities in recent years, and at the center of it all are the dragons — enormous, ancient, terrifyingly intelligent creatures who bond with riders and change everything. Among them, Tairn and Andarna have captured readers’ imaginations more than almost any others. Tairn, the great black dragon with silver claws and an air of devastating authority, and Andarna, the golden surprise who breaks every rule anyone thought they knew about bonding — these two have become icons of the series.

So it makes perfect sense that dragon crochet has become one of the hottest crafting trends in the fandom. People are making Fourth Wing plushies, amigurumi dragons, and detailed crochet sculptures to display on their shelves, gift to fellow readers, or tuck beside their copies of Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. If you’re looking for guidance on how to approach a Tairn and Andarna crochet project — whether you’re hunting for a pattern, planning your own design, or just trying to understand what makes these dragons so special to recreate — this guide is for you.

Why Tairn and Andarna Are the Perfect Crochet Subject

Before diving into the craft itself, it’s worth thinking about why these two dragons in particular have inspired so much fan art and crafting. Part of it comes down to contrast. Tairn is described as massive — one of the largest dragons at Basgiath War College — with scales so dark they absorb light, silver talons, and an overwhelming presence. He carries a sense of ancient, barely contained power. Andarna, on the other hand, is small, golden, and young in a way that makes her almost impossibly endearing while still being undeniably fierce.

That visual contrast — darkness and gold, immensity and smallness, the weathered and the new — makes them a natural pairing for a crochet set. They photograph beautifully together, they tell a story just by being placed side by side, and the color work alone gives any crafter a fun challenge. There’s also the emotional weight they carry in the books. Violet’s bond with both of them is the heart of the series, and making Tairn and Andarna with your own hands is a way of honoring that connection in a tactile, personal way.

Understanding the Visual Design Before You Pick Up Your Hook

Good crochet design starts with a clear mental picture. Before you choose a pattern or start swatching, spend some time thinking about how you want your dragons to look and how large you want them to be.

Tairn’s key visual features:

Tairn is described with black or very dark scales, silver or pale claws and horns, an imposing build, and a sense of coiled, dangerous energy. He’s not decorative — he’s martial and powerful. For crochet, this translates to a color palette of deep charcoal or true black yarn with silver or pale gray accents at the claws, horns, and possibly the underside. Some crafters add a subtle iridescence by holding a thin strand of silver thread alongside their main yarn, which catches light and gives the scales that depth Rebecca Yarros describes. His wings should feel large relative to his body, and his overall silhouette benefits from being angular and strong rather than soft and rounded.

Andarna’s key visual features:

Andarna is golden — not orange, not yellow, but the warm, rich gold of late afternoon light. She’s smaller than Tairn, which in amigurumi terms means making her noticeably shorter and more compact. Her youth gives her a slightly rounder, softer quality, even as she’s fierce and stubborn. For yarn, look for a true golden yellow with warm undertones rather than anything too bright or lemony. Some crafters add touches of lighter gold or cream at the belly, which gives a lovely dimensional effect. Her wings can be slightly translucent-looking if you use a lighter weight yarn or open lacework stitches.

Scale texture:

One of the most satisfying creative decisions in a dragon crochet project is how to handle scales. There are a few approaches. The classic crocodile stitch creates beautiful, layered scales that are textured and eye-catching but require more time and a good grasp of the technique. Shell stitches worked in rows can suggest scales with less complexity. Some crafters surface-embroider scale patterns after the main body is assembled, which keeps construction simpler while still achieving the effect. For a beginner or intermediate project, surface embroidery or a simple back-loop-only texture stitch often gives the most satisfying result without overwhelming the crafter.

Choosing Your Pattern

There’s no single “official” Tairn and Andarna crochet pattern, which means you have options depending on your skill level and how closely you want to match the books’ descriptions.

Finding existing fan patterns:

Ravelry, Etsy, and various craft blogs have seen a surge in Fourth Wing-inspired patterns since the book’s release. Searching terms like “dragon amigurumi pattern,” “fantasy dragon crochet,” “Fourth Wing crochet dragon,” or “Tairn crochet pattern” will surface a range of options. Etsy in particular has a growing number of indie pattern designers who have created Empyrean-inspired dragons, sometimes sold as a pair. When evaluating a pattern, look at the designer’s project photos, read the reviews, and check that the skill level listed matches your current abilities. Many of these patterns are rated intermediate, requiring comfort with magic rings, invisible decreases, color changes, and assembly.

Adapting a generic dragon pattern:

If you can’t find a pattern that feels quite right, adapting a well-reviewed fantasy dragon amigurumi pattern is a completely valid approach. Choose a base pattern that has the structural elements you want — articulated legs, separate wing pieces, a long tail, a defined snout — and then adjust the colors and details to match Tairn or Andarna. This approach lets you work with a pattern that already has good construction notes and stitch counts while still making something uniquely yours.

Designing your own:

If you’re an experienced crafter comfortable with shaping and amigurumi construction, designing your own pattern from scratch gives you the most control. Start with a basic body shape worked in the round, then draft separate pieces for the head, four legs, tail, and wings. The key design choice is the pose — a coiled resting position reads as peaceful and decorative, while a more dynamic pose with extended wings or a rearing stance is more dramatic but significantly harder to make stand on its own. Most shelf display dragons do well in a relaxed, coiled pose.

Materials You’ll Need

Getting your materials right before you start makes the whole project smoother.

Yarn for Tairn:

The best yarn for Tairn’s body is a smooth, tightly spun worsted or DK weight yarn in true black or very dark charcoal. Avoid yarns with too much halo or fluff, since those tend to obscure stitch definition and make scale texture disappear. For the silver accents on claws, horns, and any underbelly contrast, a silver gray or light pewter yarn works well. If you want that subtle iridescence, holding a fine strand of silver embroidery thread alongside your main yarn for accent sections can be stunning without being overdone.

Yarn for Andarna:

For Andarna, look for a warm golden yellow — think the color of honey or autumn wheat rather than a school bus yellow. A DK or worsted weight in that range will give you good stitch definition. Some crafters choose a slightly variegated gold to suggest the way scales might shift color in sunlight. A lighter cream or pale gold for the belly is a nice touch that adds dimension.

Other essentials:

Beyond yarn, you’ll want a crochet hook sized appropriately for your yarn (usually 2.5mm to 4mm for amigurumi to keep stuffing from showing through), polyfil stuffing, safety eyes (black works for both dragons; some crafters use amber for Andarna), stitch markers, a yarn needle for assembly and weaving ends, and wire armature if you want poseable limbs or a dragon that can be displayed in a standing position. Optional but helpful: cardstock or stiff felt for wing structure, which prevents wings from drooping.

Step-by-Step Construction Overview

This isn’t a full written pattern — that would require specific stitch counts customized to your yarn weight and hook size — but here’s the general construction order that works well for amigurumi dragons of this type.

1. Start with the body. Work in continuous rounds using a magic ring. Increase rounds to build out to the widest point of the body, then work even rounds for length, then decrease to close. Stuff firmly as you go rather than all at once at the end.

2. Make the head separately. The head is typically worked similarly to the body but with a more elongated snout. Work the snout first, then join or transition to the wider skull section. Insert safety eyes before closing the head.

3. Legs and feet. Four legs, worked in short cylinders with slight shaping for the foot. Claws can be worked as tiny separate pieces and stitched on, or surface-embroidered after the fact. For Tairn, those silver claws are an important detail — even simple chain-stitch embroidery in silver yarn gives a satisfying effect.

4. Tail. A long tapered tube worked in the round with decreases throughout. Some patterns add a pointed or slightly flared tip. For Tairn’s tail, keeping it clean and tapered reads as powerful. For Andarna’s, a slightly more expressive curve or small flare at the tip suits her personality.

5. Wings. Wings are usually worked flat in rows, then seamed or joined. This is where you can get creative with scale texture — the crocodile stitch looks especially beautiful on wings. Add cardstock or plastic canvas inside the wing piece if you want them to hold their shape. Attach wings firmly along the back of the body, angled to suggest they could unfurl.

6. Horns and spines. Small tubes or pointed pieces worked in your accent color and stitched along the spine and head. Don’t skip these — they do a lot of work in making a crochet dragon look “finished.”

7. Assembly. Use a yarn needle and mattress stitch or whip stitch to attach all pieces. Assembly is where most amigurumi crafters spend unexpected time, so don’t rush it. The angle of the head, the placement of the legs, and the attachment point of the wings all dramatically affect the final look.

Tips for Making Them Look Like Tairn and Andarna Specifically

Generic dragon amigurumi are wonderful, but if you want Tairn and Andarna to be recognizable to other Fourth Wing fans, a few specific choices matter a lot.

Size relationship: Make Tairn noticeably larger. If Andarna’s body is around 6 inches long, Tairn’s might be 9 to 10 inches. The size difference is part of their story.

Color saturation: Tairn’s black should feel deep and rich, not faded or grayed-out. Andarna’s gold should feel warm and luminous, not flat. Swatching with different brands before committing to a full skein is worth the investment.

Eyes: Black safety eyes work for both, but Andarna benefits from slightly larger eyes relative to her head size, which gives her that characteristic younger, slightly wider-eyed quality described in the books.

Expression: Amigurumi faces are minimal, but the placement of the safety eyes and any embroidered nostril or mouth details can suggest a personality. Tairn should feel stern; Andarna should feel curious. Eyes placed slightly higher on the head, wider apart, and angled slightly upward tend to read as more alert and younger. Eyes placed more centrally and level tend to read as calmer and more authoritative.

Displaying Your Finished Dragons

Once you’ve finished Tairn and Andarna, you’ve got a gorgeous piece of fandom art on your hands. How you display them matters.

The most popular display option is posing them together on a bookshelf alongside your copies of Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. A simple wooden base or piece of slate tile underneath them gives a clean, polished look. Some crafters photograph their dragons outdoors in natural light — golden hour especially does wonderful things for Andarna’s coloring.

If you made them with wire armature, you have the option of more dynamic poses: Tairn with a wing half-extended, or Andarna in a slightly rearing stance. These are especially striking in photos but require care to keep the wire from eventually working through the yarn.

Gifting Your Crochet Dragons

If you’re making Tairn and Andarna as a gift for a fellow Fourth Wing fan, the project carries extra meaning. A handmade set of the two dragons is a genuinely personal, labor-of-love gift that no amount of money can simply purchase off a shelf. Pair them with a handwritten note quoting one of the memorable dragon moments from the series, or tuck them into a gift bag alongside a bookmark or a small print of fan art.

For gifting purposes, adding a label with the character names on the base of each dragon helps the recipient immediately know who they’re looking at — especially if they’re going to share photos on social media.

Getting Better at Dragon Crochet Over Time

If this is your first amigurumi dragon and it doesn’t come out exactly as you envisioned, don’t be discouraged. Dragon crochet is one of the more technically demanding forms of amigurumi because of the many separate pieces and the complexity of assembly. Most crafters find that their second dragon looks dramatically better than their first, and their third better still. Keep your tension swatches, take notes on what you’d change, and don’t be afraid to pull out sections and redo them.

The Fourth Wing fandom is also remarkably warm and generous. There are dedicated craft groups on Facebook, Reddit threads, and Discord servers where crochet crafters share progress photos, ask for help with tricky construction questions, and celebrate finished objects. Connecting with those communities while working on your Tairn and Andarna project means you’ll have support every step of the way.

Final Thoughts

Tairn and Andarna are more than just characters in a fantasy series — they represent loyalty, the unexpected nature of true bonds, and the kind of power that comes not from size or strength alone but from choosing your person and refusing to let go. Making them with your own hands, stitch by careful stitch, is a way of participating in that story. When you’re done, you’ll have something that no one else in the world has: a set of dragons made exactly by you, for the fandom you love.

Whether you’re a seasoned amigurumi crafter or picking up a crochet hook for the first time because of these books, Tairn and Andarna are worth every moment of the effort. So wind your yarn, sharpen your hook, and get to work. The skies of Navarre are waiting.