Saturday, July 17, 2010

Midwest Fiber & Folk Art Fair 2010

Today I went to the Midwest Fiber & Folk Art Fair at the Lake County Fairgrounds in Grayslake, IL. So much fun! I was able to spend time with some ladies from Crochet Connection, new friends from other meetup groups and ladies from Knit 1. Oh, the knowledge. Oh, the creativity! I was impressed many times with the absolute creativity and fiber genius I saw. Unfortunately, I'm not a big picture taker and looking over the ones I took, there were certain things that I wished I had taken pictures of. Like the mongo knitting needles and crochet hooks from Bagsmith Big Stitch. (Size U crochet hook!?!) All of the fiber was actually quite overwhelming. There were so many choices! Hand-spun and hand-dyed yarns are costly. I regret not having money to buy some of the great products I saw. But one day ...

my first Hairpin Lace project

This is my very first attempt at Hairpin Lace Crochet. It is a skinny fashion scarf in white with a bit of sparkle to it. Very pretty. Very cute. So fun and easy! I will certainly do another hairpin lace project.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Basic Granny Square Stitch Diagram

While preparing to teach on stitch diagrams, I was looking for the basic granny square stitch diagram but couldn't find one. This pattern is so simple that I understand the lack of need to have a diagram. Yet it is a great teaching tool. So I'm putting it here for those of you who can also make good use of it.

Other resources for crochet stitch diagrams are:
the Yarn Council of America - http://www.craftyarncouncil.com/chart_crochet.html
AND an article at dummies.com - http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-follow-a-stitch-diagram-in-crochet.html




The written pattern used for this basic granny square is ...

Chain 4, join with slip st to form a ring.
Rnd 1 (right side): Ch 3 (counts as first dc, now and throughout), 2 dc in ring, ch 2, (3dc in ring, ch 2) 3 times; join with slip st to first dc: 12 dc.
Rnd 2: Slip st in next 2 dc and in first ch-2 sp, ch 3, (2 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in same sp, ch 1, * (3 dc, ch 2 , 3 dc) in next ch-2 sp (Shell made), ch 1; repeat from * around; join with slip st to first dc: 4 Shells.
Rnd 3: Slip st in next 2 dc and in first ch-2 sp, ch 3, (2 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in same sp, ch 1, 3 dc in next ch-1 sp, ch 1, * work Shell in next Shell (ch-2 sp), ch 1, 3 dc in next ch-1 sp, ch 1; repeat from * around; join with lip st to first dc.
Rnd 4-6: Slip st in next 2 dc and in first ch-2 sp, ch 3, (2 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in same sp, ch 1, (3 dc in next ch-1 sp, ch 1) across to next Shell, * work Shell in next Shell, ch 1, (3 dc in next ch-1 sp, ch 1) across to next Shell; repeat from * around; join with slip st to first dc; at end of last rnd, do not finish off: 72 dc.
Slip st in next 2 dc and in next ch-2 sp; work Edging.

HAVE FUN!!

Friday, July 2, 2010

Now at more locations!

In addition to teaching crochet at Knit 1 (3823 N Lincoln), I will now be teaching at Nina (1655 W Division) as well! I love it!!


Check my website for the teaching schedule. Intermediate Crochet class at Knit 1 this month! I'm currently developing a Hairpin Lace Crochet workshop too.


TashiaB.com

Crochet Provisional Knitting Cast On

So, I've recently learned to knit and found this method of casting on fascinating, as it uses a crochet hook!