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Thoughts on Grace in the Garden Sun Hat

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ScannedImageI enjoyed this project, Grace in the Garden Sun Hat (found in the new special issue of Crochet! Magazine Crochet in a Snap, currently available on newsstands); I had fun putting it together. It has a classic sun hat feel, but a not so classic crochet approach.

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photo courtesy of Annie’s

I usually always have a crochet hook close at hand, heck usually I have one holding up my hair, but that does not mean I always have yarn flowing through my fingers; this is a project that highlights that.

Originally I was looking to create this hat out of jute, I liked the natural woody color and stiff feels, but after some discussion with the editor it was decided to use household twine (as the jute has an abrasive quality, it was probably a good choice). As chaining and joining can be a bit more obvious with this material, it is worked as a continuous spiral, so it has a very clean look. I was really please with how it came out.

The scarf woven through it is just a simple silk scarf that I found at my local Kmart. As it was near the end of the summer season when I was working this up, I found it on a discount rack, and for only a couple of dollars it really dresses up the hat.

Grace in the Garden Sun Hat 2

photo courtesy of Annie’s

However the twine does lend itself to be a little flimsier in the brim, it likes to bend and fold more than the stiffer material of jute, but this can easily be corrected with some spray starch or other stiffening techniques. But sometimes the floppy looker can be charming as well.

This hat reminds me of ladies lounging poolside, wearing large sunglasses and reading magazines, like some old Hollywood movie, maybe I will have to give that a try with this hat…but I’ll let the weather warm up just a little first.

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photo courtesy of Annie’s….check out newsstands for the latest special issue!

 

Air Pockets…They make the Difference

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Rugby in the rain. We received about 8″ with this storm, completely welcomed after nearly 2 months of dry and warm weather.

ScannedImageThe other day, while standing in the long overdue rain, watching my son’s Rugby game, I was thinking about what makes my crochet hat and gloves warmer then my denim jeans. The answer is simple, but also kind of surprising; air. The more little pockets of air that are trapped next to the skin, the warmer you can stay.

The process used in twisting the yarn and creating little knots, creates little pockets that trap air. Depending on the yarn and stitch combination, different levels of warmth can be created; this is why lace can be warmer than expected. The more things are compressed and made tight and dense, does not necessarily create a warmer fabric as it can press the air out of the work.

This is true with the yarn as well. Often it is realized that wool is warmer then bamboo, this is because of the fibers that are used. Bamboo, even though it is a plant fiber, is processed and extruded in factories creating a long smooth yarn that absorbs moisture, and thus in hot weather will keep you cooler by wicking away perspiration and allowing it to be evaporated. While the animal fibers that are utilized in wool yarns, are created naturally to keep the animal warm and dry. This is done by the crimp of the fiber itself.

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2 locks of wool, notice the crimp of the fiber

Wool fibers are not like hair, they are crimped (like the fashion in hairstyles from the 1980’s), it has stretch (like elastic) and it grows in clusters (a patch grows together and can be plucked out together as one group). This nature helps to create air pockets in the yarn that is being created (depending on the process used, more or less air can be trapped).

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My single crochet ribbed hat over my denim pants

So while my woven denim might be durable it does not offer as much warmth because the amount of trapped air is limited. But that hat, made only out of single crochet ribbing and my gloves made from back loop single crochet kept me quite toasty in comparison.

Little Thing to Remember

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ScannedImageUsually for me the hardest deadlines to keep are the ones that I have set for myself. I have no problem stepping up and meeting deadlines set by others, no matter how unrealistic they might be at times, but keeping a simple deadline for myself can be a little more of a challenge. Mine get pushed back for various reasons; other peoples deadlines, kids activities, sleep, family, sometimes even just that next chapter of the book I am reading.

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Out with the kids…

Why is this? Do I not value myself as much as everything else? Or could it be that I am simply being a little too hard on myself.  In my other work lives, I was able to leave work at work; I came home and started my other life. My time was measured, I could see the productivity of my day in the hours I was at my job, but now that model is on its head.  I would love to say that I have set work hours that I dedicate to crochet, separate time scheduled for house cleaning and grocery shopping. That does work occasionally, but then life happens and they overlap and mush together more than I thought they would. I have late nights, as the late afternoons and evenings are family time (okay, they are fight about homework, fix dinner, get ready for bed times, but who is judging). Mornings are reserved for getting everyone out the door, so I have mid-morning until school lets out, plenty of time. But then I have to go into town to ship some packages, and since I drove all the way in I should stop by the grocery store, well now I have, a couple of hours before I pick up the kids….

I need to find a way to focus more on one task at a time, and quit multitasking as much, but I also need to remember that I am allowed to have free time. I often find it easy to beat myself up about what I should have gotten done, instead of looking at what I have accomplished. This is a little thing I need to remember…life is more then work.

Enjoy the Breeze Tee Thoughts

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Photo Courtesy of Annie’s

ScannedImageJust because it is cold outside doesn’t mean that spring isn’t right around the corner! My latest design,  Enjoy the Breeze Tee is found  in the Spring 2014 Issue of Crochet! Magazine.

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Photo courtesy of Annie’s

I enjoyed the way the color of the yarn worked up in the design, it is Deborah Norville Serenity Garden, in color #0005 Mountain Heather, and I admit I think the name fits it well. I can see the color of the wild flowers along the melting snow of the mountains, hinting in spring. The yarn also lends to the fabric draping really well, it is a microfiber and is cool to the touch.

There is a more subtle design going on in the shirt it has “peek-a-boo” kind of rows that are placed at expanding intervals, more closely together at the bottom and further apart at the top (none over the bust line, as I really do not feel it is flattering to “peek-a-boo” ones undergarments).

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Photo courtesy of Annie’s

In the sizing (from S-2XL) not only is the shirt wider, but it is longer in larger sizes as well (amazing how much more flattering a couple of rows can be, and comfortable). Another of my personal pet peeves is when my shirt rides up the back as I sit down.

This design is also featured as a Crochetalong at the Crochet! Magazine Ravelry Forum throughout the release of the issue. Join along and see how it came out of others.

Thoughts on the Thermal Stitch…

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ScannedImageWhen I started out to write this post, I was thinking of the cold weather I was seeing on the news, and it made me think of the thermal stitch. I have always been a little intrigued with this stitch; it makes a double layer fabric and has the resemblance to long johns, with the little indented squares. But as I started writing, I realized that there were questions about the properties of this technique that I couldn’t quite answer. So that is how I will preface this post, that it is a little beginning exploration for me with this technique.

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Insert hook from the bottom of the loop, beginning with the back loop from the row below (now facing) and the front loop of the stitch of the current row

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Yarn over and pull through 2 loops

The basic premise of this stitch is that you work single crochet stitches in the front loops of the row as well as the back loops of the row below. Working the stitch into the foundation chain can be a little daunting, so to give you an understanding of the stitch I will begin on the second row of a piece of single crochet. The rows of single crochet will be offset from one another, this creates the setback, while pulling up the lo op from a row below creates the edges to the “indented little square”.

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Yarn over and pull through remaining 2 loops to finish stitch

One of the main things to remember with this stitch is to insert the hook in the loop of the row below from the bottom, then insert it into the front loop of the next working row from the bottom.  You then yarn over and pull through both loops (you might want to pull up a longer than usual loop), yarn over again and pull through the two loops remaining on the hook to finish the stitch.  This will create a dense fabric, and if you want to have a little fun, you can alternate colors every row and get a double sided fabric (although there would be many ends to weave of leave it fringed).

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Using two colors, here is one side….

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…here is the other.

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Play swatch, showing same technique using sport weight yarn and an N size hook (in one color), look at the open effect…has some possibilities….

One of the areas I plan on playing with is large hooks with finer yarns. In the small sample I started working with I was impressed with the draping I received as well as the slight openness of the fabric (made me think of springtime). Amazing how attempting to explain a simple concept can yet lead to more questions, and hopefully better understanding…I will keep you posted.