Two weeks ago I was shown a really cool scale design that had been crocheted... I suddenly, and unexpectedly, realized I wanted to know how to crochet so I could make this really cool design, but in light-weight wire. So, I realized that I suddenly, and urgently, needed to learn to crochet! (yes, i was in shock too, i absolutely didn't see this coming).
Happily the friend who is to blame ;) for this sudden urgent "realization" (she is the one who showed me the really cool scale pattern that she had crocheted using yarn) had an extra "K" hook with her, which she gave me, and a bit of extra yarn along with a very quick reminder lesson in "holding your yarn and crochet hook", "making a starter chain", and "single crochet for those sitting there with their mouths open". To be blunt her hands moved so quickly and efficiently that I was having a hard time seeing exactly what she was doing, but I'd watched my grandma when I was little (she'd taught me some finger crochet) and I got the general idea! I needed to learn some basics about crochet before I could crochet wire scales! (imagine that! ; )
On the way home I stopped and picked up some yarn... ; )
The next day I checked out a "how to" site online, which I can HAPPILY recommend as a very good tutorial site for crochet (very good for basic "what's that?" and "how to" stuff and for advanced information too!) and very convenient to watch (over-and-over) closely to pick up the stitches, Crochet Geek! [ Crochet Geek seems to be an excellent source for crochet information and the Crochet Geek videos on YouTube are wonderful! I'll likely do a few "how to" crochet blog posts, but I'm very new to this (and likely to make some unusual pieces) and Crochet Geek is *2 thumbs up*. ]
Anyway... so that day I crocheted a 24 stitch x 13 row "face cloth" blue "square" (anyone who crochets knows that, at best, the first time you crochet this standard practice piece the best you really do is approximately rectangular ; ) . I used this as an opportunity to learn the basics: chain, single crochet, half double crochet, double crochet, and triple crochet (in the interest of total disclosure, as i said earlier, i must confess that i learned some "finger crochet" eons ago from my grandma ; ) .
Some important things to keep in mind when choosing your yarn / string: washable?, dryer safe?, yardage (how long is it?), yarn weight (is it considered lace =0, super fine =1, up to super bulky =6?), size of crochet hook or knitting needle suggested, etc.; happily, this information is usually found on the back of the packaging! Many packages also have a pattern on the inside and/ or a web address with free patterns.
The next day I started on a hat! I have decided I want to make a squid / kraken (on the way to knowing enough so I can make the wire scales) so I'm making a couple projects that I want before I get to the scales! Along the way I want to explore how quickly one can start making very useful and creative things using crochet, and next I wanted to see if I could make a hat, off the top of my head ; ) , so, on this first go I didn't use any guides. The hat turned out fairly well, and fit nicely, except for a localized bump where I started making the hat too large ; ) I was distracted from my crochet practice for a few days and when I returned to my "finished" hat I decided to pull it apart and start over! This is one of the things I really like about crochet, if you don't like what you've done you can easily deconstruct it and start over!
This time I was quite happy with my finished hat!
Unfortunately I do not know enough to be able to tell you exactly how I made this (or to share how you can make one just like it), but this second build started with a chain stitch loop and 24 half double crochets into the middle of it and then the bulk of this one was rounds of half double crochet and double crochet.
I will also figure out, as I learned to read crochet patterns, how to write them so I can share what I make with others!
Now it's time to build another hat (this time using some instructions and new stitches) and start on the squid/kraken! I really want a squid that will fit on my hat (no, I'm not given to sticking things on my hats,
so there is NO real explanation for this sudden shift in behavior ; ) , and with a different yarn texture than my hat, so I think I'll start with ............
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Join us in our ongoing Quest...
... continued ...
... continued ...
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