Posts Tagged ‘tools’

Crochet Tutorial – Getting Started!

I’ve started working on a project that I’ve had in mind for a while now: creating thorough tutorials on every aspect of crocheting. My hope is that someone will find this useful, and that people will feel free to ask any question, no matter how silly, because in answering these questions we end up with a more exact tutorial. And that’s a good thing!

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:
blue striped crochet slippers

Everyone else, please join me under the cut:
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subtle shift

I’m a somewhat predictable person. Almost to the point of boring. I like to eat the same (or similar) thing, at the same time every day. I have cereal for breakfast, preferably something with “Frosted” in the name. I eat lunch at 11:30am. I get the same thing every time I go to a restaurant. (Anyone familiar with Big Bang Theory is picturing Dr. Sheldon Cooper right now. I like to think I have better social skills than him. I’ll let you decide that, though!)

I always get to bed at a decent hour. Always. I need 8 hours of sleep in order to function at peak efficiency. Even on the weekends, I don’t like getting too far out of my sleep routine for fear of not being fully awake on Monday morning.

So, I think you’ll join me in finding it extremely weird that for the last week or so I’ve been going to bed late.

What’s been keeping me up?

This:
lollipop blanket, halfway done

And this:
No Blue baby blanket - half done

And this:
Rainbow - half done

I didn’t think anything would be more important to me than the proper amount of sleep, but there it is. Crochet as moved up to the top of my priority list. It seems like a natural progression, but it also seems a bit weird. If that makes any sense.

This week won’t be any better, since I just acquired the following:
two double-ended circular crochet hooks

I’ll post a picture tomorrow of what I’m working on with those. ^_^

“Pen Mightier Than Sword” – Airport Security

I spent most of the day Thursday worrying about airport security. I’d read the CATSA website several times, knowing the whole time that all it would take was one security guard who was having a bad day to ruin my flight. It says that crochet hooks are allowed in your carry-on bag (under “Penetrating Objects” *snicker*) and scissors are ok as long as they aren’t pointy. I felt confident that I could get my tools on board if everything went to plan. I also remembered that in all of the flights I had taken, I’d been pulled aside for further searching on about half of them. I wasn’t pulled aside on the trip to Montreal a few years ago, so I was due. If a guard says you can’t take something, your options are pretty much argue with him or go on your trip. What a stupid system! (I was totally ranting about this for days before the trip).

We awoke ridiculously bright and early Friday morning and headed out for the airport.

There weren’t many people at Pearson at that time of day, so the line at security was non-existent. The carry-on bags go on the counter. Then our coats. Charles‘ shoes. The laptops (each in a separate tray). My knee brace (and its annoying, yet effective, metal boning).

I warned one of the guards that I had scissors in my bag, and after the brief look of panic on her face, I amended that statement to say that they were rounded scissors for kids. No problem.

I walked through the metal detector and all was fine, so I headed to the end of the counter to get our things. Charles was behind me (his shoes take a while to take off). Everything seemed fine, so I started getting our things together.

Oh, wait. Something is holding us up! Oh no! They’re not going to let my crochet hook through! I knew I should have told them it was in there! I just panicked! I’d forgotten to bring a book! Eeek!

They were searching through Charles’ coat. Wait a minute, that doesn’t make any sense…

Crochet Hook on a Plane

My stuff was fine. They didn’t like the pen Charles had in his coat pocket. Oy!