First, with a hook appropriate to the yarn you’re using, make a chain about as long as your bullion stitch will be tall (I did 5)

Then grab a smaller hook (I used a 3.25mm) and put it along side your working hook, butt-to-hook.

Make sure the smaller hook goes through the loop on your working hook – this will make a later step MUCH easier!

Yarn over a whole bunch of times (I did 10 yo)

Insert your working hook into whatever stitch you’re working into (I inserted in the furthest ch from my hook). You may need to play with the yarn overs a bit to do this. Just be careful!

Yarn over

Pull through one loop

Yarn over

Pull through all loops on hook. I found it useful to very carefully pull through the first loop, then, making sure the smaller hook is butted right up against the tip of the working hook, hold onto the herd of yarn overs with your thumb and finger of your left hand, and pull the hooks through.

Take the smaller hook out

Yarn over (this will make a sort of vertical bar that ends up getting hidden behind the bullion stitch)

Pull through. Bullion stitch made!

Now do it again! And again! I did 7 more and then joined with a slip stitch to the top of the starting chain.

And here is the back; see the vertical bars?

Work around those vertical bars if you want to add more rounds that tuck behind the bullions, or work right into the tops of the bullion stitches.

Good luck!

I’ve always liked the look of entrelac, but because I really only knew how to knit and purl in knitting, it seemed beyond my reach. Naturally, I turned to crochet.

In my searches, I came across a lot of mentions and tutorials on crocheting entrelac using Tunisian crochet. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the examples had only half of the equation: the fabric was made up of little squares, but the stitches all ran in the same direction. Even though the fabric was created by making one square at a time, the finished look was pretty much the same as if the crocheter had just changed colours mid-row a lot.

There were some examples where the stitches ran in opposite directions, though, and even though they still don’t have that “woven” look to them, I still wanted to know how to do it. I couldn’t find a tutorial anywhere!

For months I worked on this problem (though, not steadily… that would just be wacky!), and came to the conclusion that the only way to do it would be to learn how to crochet left-handed.

Seriously. I’d get my base-row of tiangles and be stuck. There didn’t seem to be a way to make the first row of squares and have the stitches go the other way.

They say you should never give up, but I did. It seemed that the only way I was going to be able to make myself an entrelac scarf (or blanket, or hat…) was to learn how to knit entrelac.

I found this entrelac tutorial and started by going to YouTube and looking up everything it mentioned that I didn’t already know how to do.

I made up this little swatch:

And that taught me the increases and decreases I needed to know.

Then I dove in!

And then again with some variegated yarn:

I’m not 100% happy with how it looks, I think I’m making a mistake when picking up stitches, but I’ve got the general feel for it now. (If you knit and haven’t tried entrelac yet because you think it’s too hard or complicated, it’s really, really not. You should try it!)

Of course, the way the universe works is, when you give up on the new way to do something and settle yourself in on just doing it the old way, suddenly the answer comes to you!

Now, I haven’t tried this technique in a Tunisian entrelac swatch yet, but I think it’s the answer to my question: how to do Tunisian crochet backwards!

(I’m putting the tutorial under the cut, because this post is long enough as it is)

I started with 10 stitches, and did 3 rows in the usual way:

Then slip-stitched across, just like when you’re binding off. This was just to get the hook to the left side of the piece:

Turn (this puts the yarn on the wrong side… I need to play with this a bit)

Now flip the piece up so that you can see the front and insert your hook into the second vertical bar (you may want to count bars the first time you try this, just to be sure. I counted 9 from the end)

Then yarn over and pull a loop through.

I found it easiest if the working yarn was above the stitch (but since you’re working upside down, it’ll be below your hook) like this:

then lay the yarn over the hook and pull the yarn through

Do that for every stitch:

then work the loops off in exactly the same way you’d normally do it

It’ll look like this from the back:

And this is it from the front:

Here is the 3 rows worked normally and 3 rows worked backwards, looking at the front:

I then slip-stitched (working into the right side of the piece, which was tricky, but worth it, I think) across to get the hook back to the right-hand side of the piece and worked 3 more rows in the normal way:

This is the back (there is a ridge of slip stitches between each change of direction, you can sort of see them)

Now, I don’t know if you noticed, but you can tell which row was worked backwards because of the way the vertical bars stack. It sticks out in this swatch, but I don’t think it will be as obvious in most applications, and I don’t think it really matters when applied to Tunisian entrelac, as the sections worked backwards will be worked at a right angle to the sections worked the normal way.

You can make a really neat looking fabric using this technique combined with short rows. More to come on that!

Start with a motif:

Make a second motif, and prepare to join on the last round:

On the corners, do a cluster of 3dc, and ch1. Remove the hook, insert it in the hole in the corner of the first motif, and then back through the working loop:

Ch1:

Finish the corner with a cluster of 3dc:

Remove the hook, insert it in the next hole in the first motif, then back in the working loop:

Pull the loop through the hole (but don’t pull the loop too much out of shape!) :

And continue as normal, doing this join in each hole along the common side.

Here’s what it looks like finished:

It’s not perfectly flat, but not as huge of a ridge as the last joining method I used.

Here’s what it looks like when you use the same colour:

I’ve made a follow-up tutorial, and was going to make it a post, but there are so very many pictures that I decided it needed it’s own page. So, click here, or scroll right to the top of this page and click on “hat”. Again, there are a LOT of pictures, so it might take some time to load.

Here’s a sample pic:

Please, please, please give me any feedback you can if you try out this tutorial. It was somewhat complicated to put together and my eyes are too blurry now to see if I missed something or messed up. I haven’t figured out how to do comments on the special pages, so feel free to comment here if you see any problems, or comment on any post here, or send me an e-mail if you have the address. Thank you so much!

For example, base chains aren’t particularly stretchy. This is a good thing if you want a nice, solid base to work with, and less so if you’re making, say, clothing.

Base chains are kind of annoying to work into; even the most advanced crocheters spend way more time working the first row into the base chain than they do working any other row in their project.

The reason this tutorial is coming up now is because base chains are at their most annoying when working with variegated yarn.

I give you this example:

This is from the pattern for my Jan. 1st motif. I made the first one the regular way, with a bunch of chains, then a dc worked into each chain. The second one was made using the method I’m about to describe.

If you look closely, you can see, very clearly, the base chain on the first example. The colours don’t match the stitches of the first row. I imagine there are some projects where this won’t matter (I can’t think of any off hand, though…), but in this one it’s quite obvious. If I’d made all of my strips that way, my motif would have looked quite odd.

I made all of my strips like the second example, and they look quite nice. Notice how the colours all match up. Purple on top of purple, dark teal on top of dark teal.

Here’s how I did it:

ch1, no-turning-chain-dc (or ch4, if you wish) :

yo, insert hook into first ch made, pull up a loop (just as you normally would to make a dc) 3 loops on hook:

yo and pull through one loop (ch made), 3 loops on hook:

Finish the dc stitch as normal; yo, pull through 2 loops, yo, pull through 2 loops. 1 loop left on hook:

Here’s the “tricky” part. yo, and insert hook in the ch you made at the bottom of the last dc. I inserted my hook under both arms of the ch to make for a pretty bottom edge:

Pull a loop through:

yo and pull a loop through the first loop on hook (ch made) :

Finish dc as normal:

Keep doing this until you get the number of dc stitches you need (did I mention this method is excellent for when you don’t feel like counting chains? It’s the base chain and first row done all at once!). Basically just start your stitch as you normally would, but once all of the loops are on the hook, do a ch-1 in the first one, then work the stitch off as normal, and work the next stitch into that ch-1 you made.

Today’s motif is from Beyond The Square again , but it’s from the circles section! (if anyone is wondering, I got this book for Christmas, and I’m just really enjoying it.) It is motif #6 found on p 43:

I’m getting better at taller stitches thanks to this book, and I thought this one turned out nicely. That circle in the middle is quite solid though… perhaps that will grow on me. I wonder what this would look like tiled… any idea how to tile decagons?

Well, it started with these:

which I figure will end up being a small blanket, 4 squares by 5 squares, maybe. Each square is roughly 8 inches.

Then I made these (because who finishes a project before going on to the next one anymore?) :

And some matching solids:

Which is actually the same colour (and dye lot!) as the dark green in the previous picture. Cameras are weird sometimes, aren’t they?

The current plan is to arrange the green ones 5×7 like this:

Where any empty spaces will be filled by solid dark green motifs.

Once I see it all laid out, I’m going to see if all of that dark green needs to be separated with some light green borders, or something. We’ll see!

Here are all of the squares arranged by doneness:

Top and bottom right, and bottom middle: finished
Top left (two piles) : need the ends woven in
Bottom left: ran out of yarn while making (and how annoying is THAT?)

Finally, here is the pattern I used!

Note: use an appropriate method to reach the right stitch height for each round. I used the no-turning-chain-dc on the dc rounds, and ch2 for hdc, and ch1 for sc. I didn’t note any of this in the pattern because it’s easier to memorize it this way. ^_^

Start with magic loop, or ch1 no-turning-chain-dc, or whatever your preferred method.

Rnd 1: 12 dc
Rnd 2: 2dc in each dc from previous round (24 dc)
Rnd 3: *2dc in one st, 1dc in next st* 12 times (36 dc)
Rnd 4: *1dc, 2dc in next st, 1dc in next st* 12 times (48 dc)
Rnd 5: *1dc, 1dc, 1dc, 1dc, 2dc in next st* 12 times (60 dc)
Change colours here if you want.
Rnd 6: *1sc in each of 10 sts, 1hdc in next 2 sts, 5dc in next st, 1 hdc in next 2 sts* 4 times (76 sts)
Rnd 7: *1hdc in each sc of previous rnd (10hdc), 1dc in each of next 4 sts, 5dc in next st, 1dc in each of next 4 sts* 4 times (92 sts)
Rnd 8: 1dc in each st, 5dc in the middle stitch of the 5dc on previous round. (108 sts)

To make it bigger, repeat Rnd 8 as many times as you want. It will add 16 sts to your count each time. If you want a bigger circle in the centre, well, you’re going to have to finesse the pattern a bit.

If any of you try this, want to let me know if there are any errors in the pattern? Thanks!

How to efficiently join hexagon motifs together.

Step 1: lay out the motifs how you want them. (Not pictured… I worked off of the pic of the last Catan blanket I made)

Step 2: Start joining the hexes together in horizontal lines. For example, start with the motif in the bottom left and join it to the one to its right. Then join the one to the right of that. And so on until you reach the end of that row. Then start in on the next row and work the same way, until you have something like this:

(I know, it’s a terrible picture, and white was a bad choice for the background, but the other option was a blue floral print. In my defense, I tried that one first, but mostly because I was too lazy to turn the blanket over… but it was worse than this pic, so…)

Step 3: Once you have your rows all laid out, start sewing them together as per the blue line:

That red line is how I’m going to join the blue water hexes. I’m doing it that way because I want to use the cream colour to join the water hexes to the others, but want to use blue yarn to join them to each other.

The red line could also represent putting a border on.

That’s all there is to it! (Ok, I lie… there’s also, “what method should I use for joining?” I’m using a whip stitch, but you could slip stitch or sc, or flat braid, or… )

We saw it the last time I made a Settlers of Catan blanket. I had “only” a month to make it, and finished it easily in a week. I estimated how much yarn I’d need and ended up with about twice as much. Ok, that last part worked in my favour given that I’m now making the blanket again.

In my last post I asked for bets on whether or not I’d finish this blanket by the time Big On Bloor rolled around, but I’m canceling that, because it just wouldn’t be fair to my new visitors who weren’t around to see the craziness the last time!

This is what I got done last night, including time spent stash diving to find the yarn:

And that’s with a splitting headache, to boot!

Anyhow, here is the goal:

3 brick – done
3 ore – 2/3 done
4 wood – 1/4 done
4 sheep – 1/4 done (not pictured)
4 grain
1 desert
18 water

A couple of notes: First, would you believe that, even though I over-bought the last time I made this, I still managed to run out of the light grey colour? Hopefully I can get another skein of that tomorrow. Second, I’m changing how I do the water. I’m doing hexes this time, because that’s how the original version of the game is set up, and frankly, I was never happy with how the water went on the last blanket.

Other changes from last time are the addition of built-in number disks. I intend on sewing the numbers in once the blanket is together. The hexes are also smaller this time. Last time I did 8 rounds of dc, this time I’m doing 6. The reason for this is that I’m adding extra hexes for the water, and also, the last blanket was necessarily HUGE, and this one needn’t be.

If you’re interested in making this blanket, here’s a rough guide to what I’m doing:

Yarn: Bernat Satin
Hook: 9mm
Double strand.
Check out this post for the exact colours I’m using.

Hex pattern:

Note: To make the number disks do the first two rounds with the border colour (I’m using “Silk”), then switch the appropriate hex colour for the rest, then back to the border colour for the round of sc.

ch 3
Rnd 1: 11 dc in 3rd ch from hook, join with a slst to the top of the ch3
Rnd 2: ch 2 (counts as a dc), dc into base of that ch, 2dc in each st, join. (24 stitches)
Rnd 3: ch 2 (counts as a dc), 2 dc into base of that ch, 1 dc in next 3 sts, *3dc in next st, 1 dc in next 3 sts* repeat until you get all the way around, join (36 stitches, 6 “3dc” groups evenly spaced).

For all following rounds: 3dc in the middle st of the 3dc group of the previous round, 1 dc in all other stitches. Each round the stitch count increases by 12.

Last round: join border colour, ch 1. 1 sc in each stitch around, 3 sc in the middle st of each 3dc group. join.

(Becky’s Law: You WILL overestimate the amount of time/materials you will need, unless you instead overestimate the size the finished project need be.)

We’ve all seen intricate things made using crochet, and most folks find the number of different crochet stitches possible to be a bit overwhelming. Chain stitch, single crochet, double crochet, half-double crochet, shell stitch, filet crochet, tunisian crochet, puff stitch, popcorn stitch… How daunting!

When taken at its most basic, though, in order to do any of those stitches, one only needs to know how to do three things: insert hook, yarn over, and pull through. What differentiates the stitches is how many times and in what order you do those three things.

To do a chain stitch, which you pretty much start every crochet project with, you only need to know two of the main three maneuvers: yarn over, pull through.

To start, make a slip knot in your yarn and put it on your hook. Hold the yarn in a manner you find suitable, and hold your hook either like a knife (my preference), or like a pencil (I find this hard on my wrist, your mileage may vary).

To do a yarn over (yo) start with the hook above the yarn:

Rotate the hook around the yarn in a counter-clockwise direction:

That’s it! You’ll do a LOT of yarn overs in your crocheting career.

The next step in a chain stitch is the pull through. Start with the yarn over, then continue like this:

Look at the loop that is on the hook already. You’ll see that it is not a circle shape, as one might expect, but a tear-drop shape. Turn your hook so that the end of the hook is lined up with the pointy part of the tear-drop:

Making sure you’ve caught the yarn in the hook, pull it through the loop on the hook:

Push the hook up so that the new loop you just made is on the shaft (the part of the hook between the hooked end and the flat thumb rest). This is important to getting a nice, even, easy-to-use chain:

And that’s it! Do that over and over again to produce a “base chain” which is the starting point of a flat piece, or to make a starting loop for crochet in the round (tutorial to come!).

Things to do with the miles of chain stitches you’re likely to produce while practicing this: wrist wrap, scarf.

Good luck!

Today I’m going to cover picking yarn and a matching hook, how to make a slip knot, and how to hold the yarn while crocheting. If you already know these things, take a look at the pretty slippers I made myself for work:

Everyone else, please join me under the cut:

So you want to learn how to crochet. The first thing you do is head to the craft store, but what do you get when you’re there? Well, a crochet hook, obviously, and some yarn. But there are dozens of hooks from which to choose, and hundreds of different types of yarn. What do you do?

My advice is to start with the yarn. Pick one that is smooth (not hairy or bumpy) and not too thick or too thin, in a colour that you like. I recommend a shade in the medium range: not too light, not too dark. You might want to pick a variegated yarn (meaning there are multiple colours in one ball). Some people find it easier to see the stitches when they appear in different colours. Seasoned crocheters sometimes like using variegated yarns because it can hold their interest longer than the single colour yarns do.

Once you have your yarn of choice, look at the label to determine which hook to get. Here is the ball band from a ball of Bernat Satin:

You can see where I’ve circled the recommended hook size. Beware: some yarns don’t tell you a hook size. Usually those yarns will tell you a knitting needle size, and I’ve found that using the same size hook works just fine.

Find your hook. Most hooks come in a package that clearly displays the hook size. If it doesn’t, you’ll want to look at the thumb rest; that’s the flat bit about an inch or so down from the hook. Here’s mine:

When I first learned to crochet I found that when using the recommended hook I ended up with stitches that were too tight. Moving up a hook size usually solved the problem. So, in this case, I would have probably gone for a 5.5mm hook. For the last little while I’ve noticed that the recommended hook size has been working just fine, which means that no matter how experienced you get, it’s important to do a swatch before you start any patterns where size matters. (More on swatches another time.)

For now, start with the recommended hook. If you’re feeling adventurous, you can certainly buy more hooks in different sizes, just to test them out. If you get as obsessed with crocheting as I am, you’ll be buying them eventually anyway. ^_-

So, you have your yarn and your hook. What now?

The first thing you need to do to make anything in crochet is to make a slip knot. (There are always exceptions.)

These instructions are for right-handed crocheters. If you are left-handed, just switch the directions and hold a mirror up to the side of your screen ^_^

Find a yarn end (preferably the one on the inside, again, more on that later) and lay the yarn out with the end of the yarn to the left:

Lift the yarn up to the right of the end and fold it over itself making a loop:

With your thumb and pointer finger, reach through that loop and grab the yarn to the right of the loop (towards the ball) and pull it through the loop:

Pull on the yarn hanging down from the loop (I needed one hand to take this picture, so imagine my other hand holding the loop at the top) :

Grab your hook and insert it in the loop you made:

and pull on the yarn leading towards the ball (known as the “working yarn”) and the loop will tighten around your hook. If it doesn’t, try pulling on the yarn tail. If that works, then you did something differently than the instructions. Take your hook out of the loop and keep pulling on the yarn tail until the slip knot comes out, and try it again. It’s important that the working yarn be the side that closes the loop.

Finally, how to hold the yarn. There are many different ways to hold the working yarn. The goal is to control the tension of the yarn as you work with it while still having fingers left over to hold your work in progress.

This is how I do it:

Starting close to the hook, and working loosely, hold your hand palm up and bring the yarn up between your ring and pinky fingers:

and bring it down over the pinky.

Wrap around the pinky then pull the yarn up between those same two fingers again:

then pull the yarn up towards your other fingers.

Bring the yarn down between your pointer and middle fingers and wrap it up and around your pointer finger:

Then hold your work in progress between your thumb and middle finger:

This will allow you to control the yarn by moving your pointer finger up and down as needed, and holding the rest of your fingers splayed apart or held close together to make the yarn come faster or slower, respectively.

Experiment with it. Some people find that simply holding the yarn in a loose fist does the job just as well.

I was hoping to at least include pictures on how to make a chain stitch, but the batteries in my camera died, so that will have to wait for another day.

Good luck, and don’t be afraid to ask questions!