Seamed Socks, Part 1

Well, look what turned up in my inbox from Purl Soho -- a free pattern for seamed socks.

As you will recall, socks are definitely on my knitting bucket list, and this pattern could be a great way to learn about sock construction and sock making techniques and check it off my list, though I bet I will still want to make a proper pair nevertheless. 

I bought this beautiful sock yarn a few Metro Yarn Crawls ago, so I'm pulling it out for this project. It's a hand-painted fingering weight, 100% merino wool from Claudia and Co. in Strawberry Latte.  

I also got this inexpensive set of long double pointed needles (note:  we are an Amazon affiliate, so we'd appreciate your using our link if you decide to purchase :-) for the so far disastrous brioche learning. I made a swatch and ended up using 2.25 mm needles.  So I think I'm ready to go!

Now, what size should I make?  Mm, maybe some foot measuring is in order. Plus, you know I'm not going to make it exactly as instructed ;-).  I want little ankle-length footies because I know that's what I tend to wear around the house.

First order of business, what's m1r?  "Make 1 right", ok.  This video makes it so clear!

Ok, so come back on Tuesday to see how this little project is going...

The Slip Knot

As I said, I am starting with the basics and building from there.  And there is nothing more basic, but more frustrating until you get the hang of it, than making a slip knot.

The slip knot represents the first loop on your hook at the beginning of a project.  The intention is to create a knot that allows the loop to slide so that it can be adjusted to be not too loose and not too tight. 

After looking around for a good video that clearly demonstrates an easy way to make the slip knot, I decided to make my own!  One of my students showed me a way to make it that is so easy and understandable.  Here's my new YouTube video demonstrating the technique:

 Hope this helps you get your crochet projects started even better and faster!

Trying the Lucet

I've been seeing a lot of posts lately on Facebook about the Lucet.  According to Wikipedia, the lucet is a tool, usually made of wood or bone, that is used to create cords or braiding.  It is thought to date back to the Viking and Medieval periods.  The cording made with a lucet tends to come out square looking, and it's very strong with a slight spring to it.  I especially liked finding out that, since the cord is made with a series of loop-like knots, it won't unravel if cut.  Another plus -- the cording can be created without pre-measuring the thread or yarn.

So, while on Amazon doing some other shopping, I searched for the lucet and found this lovely one made by Lacis of Berkeley, CA.

The Amazon seller actually was The Woolery in Frankfort, KY, but beware of looking at the site, you're going to want to order a lot of stuff!  I love that we can order anything from anywhere in the country, or the world for that matter, and have it magically appear on our doorsteps.

Then off to YouTube to look for some instructional videos (the lucet did come with written instructions, which weren't bad but as they say a picture/video is worth...).  The first one I watched is by Evelyn Skae.  She just repeats the movements over and over with lovely background music.  I did have to pause, rewind and play a number of times, but I was able to make a basic cord pretty quickly.  The Stitch Diva's YouTube channel also has a number of lucet videos on it.  I didn't get a chance to really watch any of them, but did add them to my "watch later" list.

Well, now that I have my new toy and some idea of what to do with it, hopefully I will be posting some lucet cord pictures and videos of my own soon!

Herringbone Double Crochet

It's amazing how many variations of the basic stitches there are in crochet, and how a small change in the order of steps can make a stitch look so different.


I'm specifically thinking about the herringbone double crochet stitch.  By making a few slight changes in the regular double crochet stitch, you get a new stitch that creates the illusion of herringbone.


It's hard to explain in words, but here goes:

1)  yarn over and insert hook into next st (same as usual)
2)  yarn over and pull up a loop through the stitch AND THE FIRST LOOP ON YOUR HOOK.  This step is different than the regular dc; you should have 2 loops on your hook
3)  yarn over and pull up a loop through THE FIRST LOOP ON YOUR HOOK.  This step is also different than the regular dc; you still have 2 loops on your hook
4)  yarn over, and pull up a loop through the last 2 loops on your hook to finish the stitch (same as usual).

I hope this short video also is helpful to you in giving this fun variation on the regular dc stitch a try!

A Round Up of Crochet and Knitting Tutorials

I found myself aimlessly wandering around Facebook this morning but soon found that there was purpose to it after all!  Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in your current CAL or design project, but it's worth taking the time to go back to basics and learn or brush up on some basic and not so basic techniques.  I think it helps in getting the creative juices flowing again.

The first ones I came across are actually mainly knitting tutorials, but I find that knitting demonstrations make me start thinking about how to achieve a similar effect through crochet.

Juniper Moon Farm has a great round up of tutorials, including one on how to crochet an i-cord.

The Crochet Geek has an amazing collection of crochet tutorials, many of them geared towards beginners.

And this Pinterest board says it all:  Beginner Crochet Tutorials

Please visit my Many Creative Gifts YouTube channel for a growing collection of crochet tutorials too.

So, I hope these resources will help you try some new crochet stitches and techniques and brush up on some that you hadn't thought about in a while!

CAL, Part 2

I'm almost finished with my Yet Another Market Bag, and I thought I would share what I hope are some helpful tips about how to make the handles.  It's going to take a little math, but bear with me!

I had 108 stitches around the top of my bag.  When I flattened it out, I decided that I wanted the handles to span 26 stitches.  Ok, so that means that I will use up 52 stitches for both handle spans, with 56 stitches remaining for the sides in between the handles.  Since I just hate fastening off and reattaching yarn, I started my first handle where the bag trim finished off (I did 4 rounds of single crochet stitches to finish off the bag).  I chained 60, counted to the 26th stitch from where I started chaining, and did a sc in the 26th st.  Then I single crocheted in the next 28 sts (which is half of the 56 remaining stitches), chained 60 again for the other handle, counted the next 26 sts, did an sc in the 26th st, and single crochet around again another 28 sts, which brought me back to my first handle.

Then, I started to work into the first handle's chains, but instead of working into the front, back, or both loops of the chain, I flipped over the chain and worked into the ridges or bumps underneath the chain.  Here's a new video on my YouTube channel that demonstrates the technique.

Ok, so hopefully I will be posting a picture of my finished bag shortly!

Whammo! and a New CAL

I was pretty cocky, thinking to myself that I had managed to get through the entire fall and winter without catching a cold or the flu.  So, when my husband caught a bad cold a few weeks ago, I laughed and told him not to worry about hugging me and sharing a cup, etc.  Well, I bet you know where this story is going.  Yup, I've been hit, and hit hard, by the cold since last Thursday.  Am just starting to feel like myself again today and getting back in the groove. 

But, I did use the opportunity between hydrating myself and taking naps to start Crochet Tracy's new CAL -- Yet Another Market Bag by Debbie Solinsky, available on Ravelry.  To join in, go to crochethappy.com or her group on Ravelry to post pictures of your version of the bag.  Oh, and I just posted a video to our channel on YouTube about how to avoid cutting and joining yarn on each round of the mesh section if you want to keep using the same color.  Enjoy and post your pix on our Facebook page as well!

Here's a picture of my bag so far!

The Linked (Looped) Double Crochet Stitch

Welcome April!  So far, it's been colder here than it was in March, but no complaints as long as it stays sunny.  And I am definitely looking at spring as being a new beginning and yet another chance to get back on track (or at least not wobble off of it!)

Much has been going on behind the scenes.  I've got a new video posted on how to make the linked (looped) double crochet stitch.  It's a fun alternative to just doing a regular single or double crochet stitch since it looks a little like both.

Hope you'll check out my other videos on YouTube at www.youtube.com/manycreativegifts.  I'm finishing up some projects and starting my spring cleaning (which I don't think really has ended since last spring!)  But more posts on that coming soon!

The Crochet Geek

I had the pleasure of meeting the Crochet Geek Teresa Richardson while she was here in D.C. for a Google-YouTube conference on Capitol Hill.  She was on a panel with two other YouTube success stories to discuss "Making Money on YouTube."  Frankly, she's the only one on the panel who really answered the moderator's questions, even after he was a bit condescending to her (don't worry, some of us in the audience heckled him back!)  It was an odd situation though -- each of the panelists had started putting videos on YouTube as a service to a potential audience and had ended up partnering with Google to earn income, but the audience were mainly Congressional staffers who were trying to learn how to help their members reach their constituents.  There were lessons to be learned, sure, but it was a mismatch in a way.

Anyway, Ms. Richardson did a great job, and I was so glad to be there to support her and learn from her.  You know, when you see a well-made video, you first think "oh, that's easy."  Then, when you actually go to try to make one, as I've been trying recently, you realize how much is involved!  Her videos really are wonderful, and her Sock Monkey is so cute.  Please be sure to check out her YouTube channel via her blog.  And, I hope to have my own announcement soon about some videos I've got planned for my YouTube channel, so stay tuned!