6 tips for summertime crochet...

Many mistakenly think that crocheting is strictly a cool weather hobby, so Tara and I have come up with 6 tips that will help you to continue crocheting...even when the weather is heating up.

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#1 Think smaller projects like coasters.

Tara's latest crochet pattern for the "Vintage Coffee Coasters" is an excellent example of a small project that is not only cool to work on, but it is also portable and quick to make.

Vintage Coffee Coasters by Tara Schreyer

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#2 If you have your heart set on a larger project, how about motifs?

Motifs are a small project that pack a big punch. Since motifs are made individually they have all the same benefits of a small project, cool to work on, portable and quick to make. Once the cooler weather hits you can join them together to turn them into a queen bed cover, a table cloth, a scarf, a pillow. Your only limit is your imagination.

Bed of Flowers Baby Blanket by Tara Schreyer

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#3 Choose fibers that are cooler to work with.

Summertime is the perfect time to try out some new fibers. How about cotton, linen, bamboo and hemp, all of which create breathable fabric that is cool to wear in warm weather.

Girls Cotton Tam by Kim Miller

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#4 Use your downtime to unwind.

Don't let your kids "back to back" swimming lessons leave you feeling frustrated and bored. Instead, take advantage of this time to catch up on some reading and yes...crochet!

Chevron Dishcloths by Tara Schreyer

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#5 Pass the time while travelling

Crocheting is a wonderful way to pass the time while travelling. Whether you are travelling by car or plane, the trick is to think about your situation. Is there going to be a lot of quiet time, or are you going to be chatting with family and friends? Knowing your situation will help you to decide what kind of project you want to work on. 

Crocheting while flying may take some extra planning. Airport security may be a problem so it is usually a good idea check with your airline to see what items you will be allowed to take on the plane. If bringing a metal hook is a problem, than how about a plastic or wood hook? If blunt scissors are going to be an issue then you may need to get creative. I read once that someone used the cutter on a dental floss container to cut their yarn.  

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#6 Vacation time is crochet time!

Don't forget the pool, beach and camping. With minimal planning, you will find that all 3 are great places to bring your crochet. 

Spring Bunny by Josephine Wu

Have a wonderful summer, and may your days be filled with lots of relaxing time with crochet and hook!

kim and tara.

simple tip when adding a crochet border.

The procrastinating, perfectionist in me dreads the first round of a border on any project, but I especially don't like it for a large project like an afghan or a throw! I like to know exactly where each stitch should be placed, but when you are working along the side of a throw there are no stitches to work in. Usually, the pattern simply says something like this, "work 150 dc evenly down the side". Ugggg....I hate that part!!!

So, a simple trick that I started doing is to section the side off into quarters, and mark with a stitch marker, or like item. That way if I am working 150 stitches, then I know that when I reach the quarter mark I should be at about 37 stitches, and at the half way point I should be at 75 stitches.

So much easier then reaching the end of the side row and trying to either stretch out or cram the last few stitches in. It's a simple tip, but it is amazing how much more enjoyable it makes working along the edge.

kim.

help with the simply felted slippers.

One of the most commonly asked questions regarding the crochet pattern for the Simply Felted Slippers is with regards to row 1 of the "Continuing in rows" section, so I just thought that I would take a moment to offer a more detailed explanation.

  
Before starting row 1 (of the "Continuing in rows" section) of the Simply Felted Slippers you do not turn. Depending on the size of slipper that you are making, this row is only 7 or 8 sc long. This is because the slipper is oval shaped and the extra 7 or 8 stitches are needed to bring you to the top center of the oval, which is where you want the opening of the ankle to start.

At the end of row 1 (of the "Continuing in rows" section) you first ch 1, then turn, and proceed onto row 2. For row 2 you proceed as follows: sc the very first 2 stitches together, work 1 sc in the next 30 or 32 sc (depending on the size you are making), ch 1 and turn. Row 3 is worked in the same manner as row 2, beginning with sc2tog (single crochet 2 together).

Hope this helps! If you have any additional questions please feel free to ask away in the comments section of this post, or if you prefer you can contact us at knotsewcute@gmail.com.

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If you are interested in purchasing the crochet pattern for the Simply Felted Slippers you can find the pattern here. Just so there is no confusion, you don't need to be signed up with ravelry to purchase the pattern from them. Just click on the "buy it now" button in the top right hand section of the page and follow the prompts.

Also, if you are new to felting we have a couple of felting posts for you:

what is felting?
felting tutorial.

kim.

can you felt items in a front loading washer?

I have found that items will felt in a front loading washer, but it may take a few washings. Remember that it is a combination of heat and friction that causes an item to felt, so throwing the item in the dryer will also speed up the felting process. Although these are the easiest methods for felting there are some downsides. The biggest being that with machine felting you don't have as much control over how much the item felts.

For example, I had one pair of slippers that I didn't love enough, and I just kept throwing them in the front loading washer. I probably washed them about 3 or 4 times and in between washing I didn't even so much as give them a second glance. Unfortunately, as you can see from the pictures, I found that they didn't felt evenly.

 

The machine scrunched up the fabric in such a way that wherever there was a fold, the fabric didn't felt completely.

In the end I was able to salvage the slippers by vigorously scrubbing them by hand, but tiny evidences of the wrinkles still showed.

 

Now, to eliminate this problem I will often do a combination of hand and machine felting. Also, because a front loading washer spins the fabric until it is almost dry I will always finish off with a quick hand felting. That way I am able to shape the item and allow it to dry naturally.

I would love t hear from others about their felting experiences.



Related Posts:

what is felting?
felting tutorial.
felting gone awry.
can you felt wool by boiling it?

kim.

felting gone awry.

Over the past 4 years I have done countless felting projects and although I usually get consistent results felting is always a bit of a wild card, and sometimes there are surprises! For example, I was recently working on a crochet bowl (prototype #1) for an upcoming pattern.  I made about 6 increase rounds, and 3 plain rounds holding two strands of Patons Classic Wool. I was excited to see how the felting process would transform the bowl, but I was in for a bit of a shock. My nicely shaped bowl turned out not to be bowl shaped at all, but rather it was as flat as a pancake.

Yep, that's my bowl...

...not very pretty, but I figured that this would be a good opportunity to talk about some ways to recover a felting project that has gone awry. My first thought was to needle felt on a funky design and use it as a hot pad for my pots, but I was curious as to how much I could reshape it. While it was still wet I placed the felted wool over an upside down bowl and I gently stretched the fabric into shape.

Much to my delight I was able to reshape the fabric back into a bowl and once the wool is dry it will hold it's shape.

What do you do, though, if your project is impossible to reshape into a useful object? Well, I recently came across Jan Howel, a designer that sells sewing patterns that utilize the wool from recycled sweaters. You can view her lovely creations here. I haven't tried it yet, but I plan on saving all of my felting mishaps and I look forward to transforming them into something new and wonderful!

You may also be interested in:

What is felting?

Felting tutorial.

Can you felt wool by boiling it?

kim.

how to work into the back humps of your starting chain.

A crochet technique that I've recently learned and quickly fell in love with is to work into the back humps of the starting chain.

Normally, I was working into the front of the starting chain as shown.

To work into the back hump of the starting chain simply flip the chain over and insert your hook into the back hump.

Not only does this make for a nicer finish but it also makes it easier to see your stitches later on when you are adding an edging to your crochet project.

Also, if you want to make a nice even cord simply slip stitch into each back hump of your starting chain (starting with the second chain from the hook).

As you can see from the photo below this makes for a pretty symmetrical cord that is perfect for ties and bag handles.

kim.

american standard vs. british (uk) crochet terms.

At present all of our crochet patterns have been written using American Standard crochet terms. Much to our delight we have recently noticed an increase in sales in countries that use UK crochet terms, so we have been busy researching the difference between American and British terms. We are currently looking into translating some of our patterns to UK crochet terms, but in the meantime we have developed some crochet tables charting the difference between the two.

kim & tara.

tips on how to read a crochet pattern.

  

The first time you look at a crochet pattern it can be rather confusing. It is almost like you are reading a different language, but don't despair. Once you learn a few simple abbreviations a crochet pattern is quite simple to read and to understand. For a list of common crochet abbreviations click here.

Don't feel that you need to learn all of the abbreviations at once. Just refer to the list anytime that you come across a new abbreviation that you are not familiar with. Sometimes you will come across a special abbreviation that is not on this list, but no worries, the publisher or the designer will usually have a definition somewhere in the book or on the pattern.

Comma's are used to separate each step so it is important to pay attention to them. Adding or neglecting something as small as a simple comma can alter the meaning of the pattern. Symbols and brackets are used to signal pattern repeats or to clarify special instructions. Some examples of the ways that symbols and brackets are used are as follows:

      1.   * bpdc in each of the next 3 sts, fpdc in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from * across

      2.   work [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] all in the next ch 2 space

      3.   [dc in next dc, cl in the next dc] 5 times

      4.   ch 3 (counts as first dc)

Another way that brackets are used is to indicate different sizes. For example a pattern may read, “Instructions are written for size 1 with instructions for sizes 2 and 3 in parentheses”. An example of this would be:

     With a 5.00 mm (H) crochet hook ch 10 (12, 14)

Crochet patterns are written in rows or rounds. The pattern will tell you whether or not you are working in a row or in a round and it is important to pay attention to these terms as you could be working both within the same pattern.

When you are first learning to crochet it is easy to get confused at the beginning of a row...where do you put that first stitch? A general rule of thumb is that when you are working in single crochet you work your first single crochet into the first stitch. With half double crochet, double crochet and trebles the turning chain at the beginning of the row counts as the first stitch, so unless the designer instructs you to do otherwise you would work into the next stitch. The designer will usually note somewhere in the pattern as to whether or not the turning chain counts as the first stitch. Often patterns will include a stitch count at the end of a row and sometimes this can be a clue as to where that first stitch should start. Here's an example of the stitch count at the end of the row:

     Work 1 sc in the first sc and in each sc across, ch 1, turn – 30 sc.

When following a pattern you have to put your trust in the designer. A good designer pays close attention to the small details. Also, what a designer doesn't say is often as important as what the designer says. For example, if the patterns says to turn then of course you would turn, but if the pattern doesn't say to turn then you would proceed in the direction that you were going. The trick to reading a pattern is to read slowly and to pay attention to each detail.



kim.