Free Yarn (and a story of progress)

All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Check it out! I made two, crocheted washcloths! The square one was simply an exercise in practicing double crochet. I needed to work on rhythm and tension so I did one row of double then one row of single until I got sick of working on it. Then I made a little chain loop because...well... I figured that my stitches were actually nice enough that I didn't have to throw this swatch away so it could actually BE something (like a washcloth).

Washcloth number two... my very first, successful crochet-in-the-round. It's pretty sweet. My stitches look good and there are only a couple of "holes" where I think I may have missed a pick-up. Plus, it lays flat!

Previously, I mentioned that one of the inspirations for me to learn crochet were some free Lion Brand patterns that I'd gotten in their weekly newsletter. Specifically, I really wanted to make this washcloth.

I don't know what it is about this stupid thing that's so appealing to me but, for whatever reason, it was the impetus for my new crafting adventure.

So, attempt number three (attempts 1 and 2 were chronicled in an earlier post) was supposed to be "Alex follows a pattern" and, according to Lion Brand, this is an easy pattern. "Easy" is relative when you don't know anything at all.

My first challenge was with the abbreviations in the pattern. "ch 1", "sl st", and "dc" meant, literally, nothing. So, I broke out my library books and looked up the various definitions and instructions for each abbreviation. Challenge number two was with the language of the pattern. Some of the instructions were easily identified as variations on the language of knitting patterns but some was absolute Greek. "(2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc) in each ch-1 sp around" might mean something to even the novice crocheter but, to someone who has never, ever read a pattern before, it's complete gibberish - even with the abbreviations defined.

It's in Greek - istg

I sallied forth and attempted to do the pattern with my library books as instruction but I ended up with a morass of crazy that didn't remotely look like the washcloth of my dreams.

Back up and punt. I put the pattern away and decided to try to, at least, make something round. In my mind, if I could get the "round" part mastered, the pattern would be easier. Neither of my library books had a simple round pattern in it so off to the Interwebs I went. Can I just say...thank Babyjesus for YouTube and this woman:

Bthintx1's YouTube channel may become my de facto online home. She keeps it simple and explains EVERYTHING. So, basically, I started the video, paused, did what she did, re-started the video, paused, did what she did... etc. and I ended up with that awesome round washcloth above! Amazing.

Unfortunately, the video doesn't address my inability to read the pattern. For that, I bothered my co-worker, the lovely and talented Lisa, to help me decipher it. She was, in fact, very helpful - for the first few rows. By the time I hit row 4, there was a new instruction I didn't understand. So, I'll be back at her desk this afternoon for more one-on-one guidance. Which brings me to this thought...

When I learned to knit, I took a few classes. I've decided, after this experience, that teaching oneself pattern-based crafting is really an exercise in futility and frustration. It's just better when someone (even an anonymous, online someone) can show you what you need to do.

On a final note, I'd like to talk about the yarn I'm using for these washcloths. Cassandra and I attended the Sheep In The City convention in Milwaukee last winter and found some really gorgeous yarns there. One of the more interesting yarns we saw is made from corn fiber. The company, Corny Goodness, makes yarns of pure corn fiber or a wool/corn blend in some of the most beautiful colors you've ever seen. In the booth, they had a number of items knit with this amazing, hypoallergenic, vegan, yarn - and one of the coolest was a dishcloth. There's something about the weight and texture of the yarn that makes it perfect for this use. Plus, the fiber has some weird qualities, like it's antibacterial and dries extra fast, that make it really appealing for any cloth that's going to be getting wet.

The yarn has a slight sheen that is really appealing and the colorways are incredible. My one complaint is that working with it is a bit of a chore. It's "sticky" - kind of like the way cotton feels sticky after working with wool, but 10 times mores so. And it tends to be a bit splitty, which is only really a problem because I'm still learning how to use the crochet hook properly. The skeins aren't cheap - $14 US per - but they're huge. The DK weight comes in around 100 grams or 240 yards of yarn. That's a LOT of washcloths.

So...I have two skeins of Corny Goodness DK weight in colorway Orville's Ocean Light (see above) and I'd like to give one away to you guys. If you'd like to be entered into a random drawing for this skein of yarn, simply comment below before 3pm CST Friday August 19. (Comments now closed please see here for winner.) All eligible names will be put into a hat and we'll do a random drawing to see who wins. If you enter, please remember that we need a way to contact you so, if you aren't registered with Blogspot you'll need to send us an email so we can let you know if you won.

I love giveaways!

- Alex

Hooking (and not the bad kind)

So...here's what I'm discovering about crochet:


1. It's not knitting (ha!)
2. It's really, really fast (if you're doing it right)
3. It's addictive


I'm down to two books from the library - having returned the other five. I kept Pauline Turner's Beginner's Guide to Crochet and Single Crochet for Beginners. Of the books I checked out, these two were my favorites. I prefer the patterns in the Turner book but Single Crochet for Beginners is the one that's helped me figure out where I've gone (terribly) wrong.


You may remember from my previous crochet post that I was trying to use a bamboo hook. This was the one I already had in my knitting arsenal. As a knitter, one needs the occasional crochet hook to help you pick up dropped stitches or fix errant pulls. Since I knit with bamboo needles, it only made sense to buy a bamboo crochet hook.

Every book that I read showed metal hooks - aluminum or steel (the steel ones are really small) - and I knew there had to be a reason why. So, the other day, I stopped at my local Ben Franklin on the way home. I find Ben Franklin to be a great resource for those quickie things you need on the fly - like a random crochet hook. So, I grabbed on that seemed suitably sized, not too big or too small, and I went home to try again.

My first crochet hook!

WOW! What a difference!

The bit I was struggling with when using the bamboo was picking up the stitch to start doing a single crochet. With the metal hook, picking up is a dream - the hook just slides into the stitch like butter. I found myself flying through rows in no time.

Now the bits I'm struggling with are primarily knitting habits that need to be broken. I keep trying to hold my working yarn in my right hand (I'm a thrower, not a picker) and I really want my tension to be tighter. I'm not sure if we've ever addressed this before but my local knitting friends know me as the "angry knitter" because my stitches are so tight. Gauge is a bitch in my world.  So... I find myself having to move the working yarn into my left hand a lot (it's amazing how much faster it is to pick) and I'm working hard at finding a good tension balance.

The INCORRECT way to hold the yarn

Here are my two attempts thus far:

This is my first attempt. Note how tight the stitches are. They look pretty nice, even though there are tons of mistakes in there. Also, if you'll note the sides, I'm inadvertently reducing.

Not bad. Good, tight stitches!

My second attempt is a bit better. Now my tension is almost too loose - note the big gaps in my work (granted a couple of those are mistakes) - and my stitches are really uneven. However, my "chains" at the top of each row are much cleaner and easier to pick up. Obviously, I haven't corrected the reduction problem. LOL  Although my co-worker, the lovely and talented Lisa, helped me figure out that I was skipping the first stitch on each row and that's why I was losing stitches.

Seriously wonky... you can see where I corrected the reductions

 Attempt number three is going to be to follow a pattern. That should be a laugh-riot. I'll be sure to take pictures and/or video so you all can laugh along with me.

- Alex