Crochet Journey

It's seemed as if 2019 has just flown by; here we are at the holiday season and 2020 will soon be upon us! I so appreciate the opportunity this year to again teach crochet classes in the Portland area!  My students are a joy and have taught me so much; their progress has been my progress and it's been very gratifying. So for 2020 we have new classes coming up!  We'll be starting with tapestry crochet, followed by sweater construction, finishing techniques and Tunisian crochet to take us into spring.  The new intermediate class calendar is here ; take a look and pick a class that interests you, and come join us Mondays at 10 a.m.! We will also be continuing with our Square of the Month, and in September assembling our squares into an afghan sampler.  The fourth Monday of the month will continue to be our Crochet Clinic, where you can get help with a project, get your questions answered, and learn some crochet pointers. I am also forming a new beginning croch...

My dog, Stevie, does NOT like to wear clothes.  He will tolerate wearing a sweater under his harness when the weather is really cold because going for a walk is more important than hating his sweater.  There's no such thing as dressing him up for special occasions or even putting a bandana or bow tie on him for fun.  So he has just two sweaters, a lighter one for coldish weather, and a heavy one for when it's really cold.  He won't wear his around-the-house t-shirt or his polar fleece hoodie.  So I've not been very motivated to crochet him a sweater he likely wouldn't wear.  But Portland is a very dog-friendly city, and making dog sweaters seemed very appropriate and something the class would enjoy.  This would be our project for December, and we found a pattern in several sizes to fit a variety of dogs. As I mentioned in the previous post, however, Stevie is somewhat difficult to fit.  His chest is deep, but he is small everywhere else....

It's cold for poor doggies without much hair!  My sweater doesn't fit Stevie all that well, so he needs some sweaters of his own.  Fortunately, dog sweaters, especially for small dogs, are quick and easy to crochet, so your dog can soon have quite the winter wardrobe! The class started on their dog sweaters today.  The purpose of the class, although we are making sweaters, is actually to learn some shaping and fitting techniques, and this is an easy way to start before we begin working on shaping garments for ourselves in the coming months.  Pets are relatively easy to fit, but just as with humans, they are individuals with their own fitting issues.  In Stevie's case, he is a Chihuahua/Italian Greyhound mix, and like a greyhound has a deep chest that makes proper fitting a challenge.  To fit his chest properly, most pet store dog garments are too long for his back length, so I often have to alter them.  However, in this case, I am able to custom ...

It's the first Monday of the month, and that means a new stitch for our Square of the Month! The stitch for December is the Wheatsheaf Stitch, also known as the Mini-Arcade Stitch.  This is a terrific stitch for scarves, blankets and throws.  It's easy to learn, with a pattern based on a multiple of 5 stitches plus 2 for the base chain.  Yarn is KnitPicks Brava Worsted in a cheerful Paprika. Here's our class hard at work on their own squares.  This is our fourth Square of the Month; eight more to go to complete our 12 squares to sew/crochet together next September.  Next week we'll be starting on pet sweaters for our furry family members and friends. We're always working on something new in our Crochet Journey classes!  Come join us Mondays at 10 a.m.; see you then!

...If you crochet long enough, it's inevitable that you will eventually have some pain in your hands, wrists, shoulders, even your neck and back.  It's the same with any repetitive movement, even one as relaxing as crochet.  But by paying attention to your body and forming better ergonomic habits, you can minimize your discomfort, avoid pain and enjoy crochet for a lifetime.  First, pay attention to your posture.  Curling up on a sofa or even in bed to crochet may be cozy, but you need support for your back and your arms.  It's better to crochet in a chair with arms for support, as your arms and shoulders will tire from holding up your work on their own.  If you don't have a chair with arms, use a pillow under each elbow for support.  Relax your shoulders and avoid hunching them. Taking frequent breaks is important for resting not only your muscles, but your eyes.  Stretch your arms, grip a stress ball, turn your neck slowly, do some shoulde...

I've been seeing a lot of articles lately regarding crocheting just as fast as possible.  8-hour afghan!  6-hour baby blanket! 15-minute dishcloth!  And there are genuine prodigies who amaze and dazzle us with their natural talent for producing gorgeous crocheted projects in what seems the wink of an eye!  How do we keep up?  Or can we?  Or do we want to? I think speed-crocheting appealed to me more when I was younger, when the goal was to produce as many hats, scarves, blankets and rugs as quickly as possible.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, my main motivation in learning to crochet was to be able to provide affordable gifts for others.  Anything to speed along the process was okay with me! But these days I see crochet, like knitting and other repetitive fiber work, mainly as a way to slow down, relax and take a brief vacation from our hurried, harried lives.  The time we spend leisurely crocheting, curled up in an afghan against t...

Is it too early to crochet for Christmas?  Never!  In fact, November is rather late to start; many yarnists start holiday crochet in July, seldom later than August!  But we also began working on stockings today to gain some exposure to working sock heels.  This will stand everyone in good stead for making socks and slippers in the future.  Heels can be tricky; they involve short-row crochet, working into part of a row, making the short rows narrower and narrower, then expanding out again and attaching the edges to make a deft turn in the sock.  Once you've done it, it's easy from then on. These simple stockings can also be dressed up, adding embellishments, embroidery; they're a great canvas for Christmas creativity! We'll be working on the stocking projects for one more week; you've still got time to get on board!  Join us Mondays at 10 a.m.!

The stitch for the November "Stitch of the Month" is called the "Lemon Peel" stitch.  It is also called the "Griddle Stitch."  It's been my experience, over many years as a crocheter, that stitch names have evolved over time, but oftentimes what's old is new again.  Great stitches never really go out of style! The Lemon Peel stitch is fairly simple, just rows of alternating single and double crochet stitches, but it makes a lovely textured fabric that can be used in a myriad of ways.  It's sturdy, but with a larger hook, and thinner yarn, it can also make a fabric that is soft with a beautiful drape as well.  The yarn used in this photo is KnitPicks Brava Worsted  yarn in Dublin. What makes it a great stitch this time of year is that it's perfect for crocheting with darker yarns.  It's not so necessary to see the stitches, as one can feel where the single and double crochets should go, singles in the "hills" and doubles ...

The fourth Monday of every month is my Crochet Clinic class.  This is an unstructured class with no set lesson plan, where everyone can bring in their questions and projects they may need help with, or request a stitch or technique demonstration, and that's what we go with.  It's also a good time for students to catch up with any classes they may have missed, and is a stand-alone class for anyone just wanting some face-time with an instructor who can offer some guidance. Got a project in the closet that you just haven't been able to finish?  Stumped by a crochet pattern?  Unfamiliar with a technique you need to know for the project you've chosen?  The Crochet Clinic is the place to be!  Join us the fourth Monday of each month at 10 a.m.!

The graph and resulting C2C sample look simple, right?  Not so fast; there's a good amount of planning and attention to detail that goes into every crocheted graphic design.  With practice and skill, plus the help of software designed to produce ready-made graphs of any photo, the sky's the limit as to what images can be reproduced with yarn! There are three ways to stitch C2C, or corner-to-corner crochet:  cutting and weaving in ends when changing colors in each diagonal row (slow and tedious, but looks great when completed, and is completely reversible), cutting the ends and tying them on the back (when creating a wall hanging or pillow, where the reverse side will not be seen), or by "carrying" the yarn, crocheting over the strands of unused colors to keep them at the ready for the color changes (efficient, but there are a few "floats" or short strands of yarn that can be seen, especially on the reverse side).  None of these methods is particularl...

Today's lesson was an introduction to corner-to-corner crochet, or C2C, as it is more popularly known.  C2C involves crocheting many small boxes of 4 double crochet or 4 half-double crochet each, starting in one corner and working across in diagonal fashion.  The stitch works up fast and easy and is terrific for shawls, scarves, household decor, bath and spa accessories. The stitch itself is fairly simple, and then comes learning to make color changes and working from a chart where each block on the page corresponds to a stitch block, enabling the crocheter to create unique designs, even reproducing photos to make a wall hanging or a "graphgan."  The possibilities are endless! Yarn used in this sample is KnitPicks Dishie worsted weight in Begonia and Creme Brulee. Want to increase your crochet skills and learn new-to-you techniques like this?  Join us Mondays at 10 a.m.!

The first Monday of the month is Square of the Month day in our intermediate class.  Last month we did the Elizabeth, or "mini-bean" stitch for our square; today we started our square with the Webbed Lace stitch.  Like the Elizabeth stitch, the Webbed Lace also is good for scarves, shawls, blankets, and afghans, wherever crocheted fabric with a good drape is desired.  It also looks exactly the same on both sides and, of course, lies flat.  Being an openwork stitch, it also works up quickly and uses less yarn than solid fabric.  Other than a slightly tricky foundation row, the stitch pattern is easy to learn and relaxing to do. Yarn used in this photo is Knitpicks Brava Worsted Yarn  in Fig.  Next week we will be embarking on learning corner-to-corner crochet, or C2C, a popular and fun technique of making small diagonal squares to form a fabric on its own, but also to incorporate pictures and designs in crocheted fabric.  We'll all be th...

At this time of year, yarnists often start moving away from the bright and the pale colors of the warm months and begin projects with the deeper, darker colors of fall and then winter.  These rich, dark colors reflect the shorter, colder days to come, as we begin cocooning indoors, cozy with steaming cups of coffee and tea, crocheting to both provide warmth to others and to keep warm ourselves. But working with these darker colors presents a challenge for the eyes, so special techniques are necessary.  Working with black yarn presents the biggest challenge of all, so I usually don't recommend it to beginning crochet students. First of all, it's good to work over a white tabletop; if you don't have one, try working over white poster board, or even a white towel on your lap.  Then a good light source is needed.  Use your brightest lamp, or try using an Ottlite ; I purchased an Ottlite lamp many years ago to help with sewing, and it wasn't long before I began usin...

I learned to crochet when I was 16.  I saw an article in a sewing magazine, "Accent Your Sewing with Crochet!" and was immediately intrigued.  Christmas was coming and my babysitting money wasn't going to stretch very far toward gifts that year.  I bought a book and practiced every chance I got, and then everyone received either a hat or scarf that Christmas! For many years I saw crochet simply as a means to an end.  If a gift was needed, I had it covered.  Baby layettes, afghans, pillows, shawls, scarves, hats, spa sets, you name it, I could produce it in a hurry and was never again without a gift to give. When I entered the grown-up working world and made a bit more money, I began buying gifts instead of making them, and crochet took a back burner, and sometimes non-existent burner, in my life.  I didn't "need" crochet anymore...or so I thought. Fast forward several years and I had a year when several tragedies struck at once; illness, separatio...

Last week we learned a particular type of join-as-you-go technique, and that turned out well, but a finished piece needs some edge stability.  The most important thing about an edge, unless it's ruffled on purpose, is that it be FLAT and even.  Blocking can help a bit, but the number of stitches and knowing how not to make increases at the joins ensures a nice, flat edge, so that was our task for today.  After adding the initial stabilizing round of double crochet, spaced evenly, we added a round of single crochet for completeness.  Voila!  Nice, flat edge! If you like to crochet, you need this edge in your life!  All the technique and new stitch classes for the next several months are planned to give you the skills you need to take your stitching to the next level.  So make a point of joining us Mondays at 10 am! Next week is our monthly Crochet Clinic; have a project on hold because you're at a stuck point, having trouble understanding a patter...

Argh, don't you just hate weaving in ends?  I know I do!  Many years ago a bag filled with granny squares was hiding in the back on the top shelf of my closet, waiting for me to assemble them, and I never did.  The prospect of so many ends, row after row, section after section, was just not appealing, and the bag was finally discarded.  But if I had only known then what I know now! JAYGO, or Join-As-You-Go, is a terrific way to assemble motifs with as few ends as possible.  There are different methods for accomplishing this, but a while back I ran across a video that showed how to assemble a complete blanket/afghan/throw with only TWO ends to weave in!  I was immediately enthused, and commented on how terrific it was, and that I must teach it to my students as soon as possible!  So today was that day, and we finished assembling our nine motifs in 90 minutes.  Whee! This method produces a nice, flat join on both sides, and, once you get the...

It's the start of my fall season of crochet classes!  We began today by starting our first square of the 12 that will be assembled into a sampler afghan at the end of 12 months.  Our first stitch is the Elizabeth, or "mini-bean," stitch; this is a completely reversible stitch which is great for scarves.  It's a solid stitch and very warm for late fall and winter items.  It can also be done with lighter yarns and a larger hook to produce an open, lacy stitch to create another beautiful look.  Interested in making scarves as gifts for the holidays?  This stitch is the way to go! We are making 15" x 13" squares for our future afghan; here is how the stitch looks thus far: This yarn is Brava acrylic worsted by KnitPicks in Persimmon.  What fun using fall colors and yarns again!  Soon the days will be chilly and crisp (and rainy in Portland!) and we'll be cocooning with cups of tea, wrapped cozily, crocheting away!  Here are the colo...

The new slate of classes planned for the remainder of 2019 is listed HERE ; if you can single crochet, double crochet, increase and decrease, you've got the prerequisite skills for my intermediate classes!  We'll be exploring new techniques, as well as working together on new stitch squares each month, and I will be working with you on your own projects, helping with understanding patterns and doing demonstrations, in our monthly Crochet Clinic!  All classes are $15.00 for 90 minutes of instruction; there is no long-term commitment, pay for only those classes you choose to attend at the time of arrival.  However, class size is limited, to make sure everyone has sufficient individual attention.  Take the next step in your crochet journey and sign up today!

The word "crochet" is French for "little hook," but crochet's origins aren't necessarily French.  Nor did crochet develop as an offshoot of knitting, as in "Hey, let's just take one knitting needle and put a hook on it and go from there!"  And crochet doesn't have a terribly long history, but it's a fascinating one.  A good overview of the history of crochet is found at the Crochet Guild of America's site, but I came across this interesting article today, " History of Crochet ," at The Crochet Crowd website.  If you've ever been curious about how the craft and art of crochet began, take a look at these articles!

I call my classes "Crochet Journey" because my view is that we grow together as a class.  Crochet is not something to be learned once and completed in a few weeks; it is a lifetime journey of learning and increasing our skill and deepening our appreciation for the wonderful benefits of crochet, in the items we make for our family, friends and ourselves to the peaceful quality that comes from rhythmic creative activity.   Crochet is practical, whimsical, beautiful, rough, smooth, easy, difficult, fun, satisfying, and endlessly fascinating.  There's always something new to learn, always a new direction in which to stretch and grow and gain new skills.   Crochet is also a place to retreat when life gets to be just too much to bear sometimes.  Settling into a comfortable rhythm of stitching, experiencing the "zen" of crochet, is a beneficial meditative activity that refreshes the mind and spirit.   It is my privilege and pleasure...