Crochet sock making tips

Hello current and future crochet sock lovers!!! This is our first blog post kicking off a series of posts for the Sock Along which starts in two weeks time on Saturday 29th September. I’m sharing some tips that I’ve learnt while making crochet socks for myself and others and also teaching crochet sock workshops. Next week we will have a post from Fay on her Knit it Hook it Craft it Blog on Yarn Choice. 

 

 

 

 

1. START THICK Try making your first crochet socks with a thicker yarn and corresponding larger hook if you're not used to crocheting with fingering weight yarn. Lightweight yarn can be fiddly to work with and if you're new to crochet socks, having difficulty with fiddly yarn and getting your head around new techniques there might just be too much going on at once.

 

2. START SMALL If the idea of a full-sized sock is putting you off, why not start with a small sock? I designed a small sock for my students at the Houston Fiber Fest last year and this pattern is available for free during the crochet along. It won’t take as long, you only need a small amount of yarn and you will learn some of the techniques required. Then tackle a full-size sock.

3.   START TOE-UP In my opinion, it’s best to start with a toe-up sock because it’s easier to try it on as you go and make changes if you need to.

4.   JOIN A CAL The absolute best way to make crochet socks for the first time is to join a crochet along. Then you can easily ask questions if you get stuck. If you’re shy about asking, it’s more than likely someone else will ask the same question you were unsure of and you will benefit from lurking around. I made the first pair of socks that actually fitted me in a CAL. We have some very experienced crochet sock makers in Claudia’s Ravelry group thread, and we are setting up a bundle of recommended patterns. The chatter has already begun in anticipation so head over to the Sock It To Me thread and join in (or lurk).

5.   READ YOUR PATTERN Take some time to read the whole sock pattern through thoroughly before you start. You need to visualize the anatomy of your sock before you begin. When I first started teaching my open project classes one of my students asked me about the sock gusset and I realized I hadn’t a clue where or what it was. I had to quickly educate myself. Karen Whooley’s first pattern in her classic book I Can’t Believe I’m Crocheting Socks are color-coded to show cuff, leg, gusset, foot and toe. What a revelation! I recreated this sock for my workshops and it is SO helpful.

6.   CHECK YOUR GAUGE. Like crochet sweaters, crochet socks have to fit well, especially if you want them to function as socks that you wear under your shoes. Your sock will be worked in the round (usually) so work your gauge swatch in the round. If you have too many stitches you’ll go up a hook size, too few stitches, go down a hook size. Hook that swatch again and check your gauge once more.

7.   MEASURE YOUR FOOT. The width is more important than the length since most patterns ask you to repeat until a certain length for foot and leg. Choose a size that is closest to your foot measurement. If in doubt, pick the size smaller than your foot, not larger.

8.   STITCH MARKERS ARE YOUR FRIENDS Use stitch markers to mark each side when working toes and short rows and place one at the beginning of your round when working in the round. Move it up each round. Sometimes I don’t have a stitch marker to hand and I think “I’ll just wing it” but no, it’s a big mistake. When crocheting in the round if you mess up you can count the number of stitches you have in one round if you have a stitch marker in the first stitch. Likewise, if you mess up you can rip back a single round to the stitch marker and try again. Without a stitch marker you’ll probably have to start from the beginning again.

9.   AVOID SECOND SOCK SYNDROME Work your socks two at a time. In other words, hook the cuff of sock 1, then the cuff of sock 2, leg of sock 1, leg of sock 2 etc. This helps you to avoid second sock syndrome. When you’ve made one sock you’ll be really excited, thinking “hurray I made a sock” but you may well have peaked and not have the emotional energy to make sock number two. Another very real danger is you are very relaxed making sock number 1 and then less relaxed when you make sock number 2 (or vice versa) and one sock ends up larger than the other. This has happened to me. The tension of your work changes depending on how relaxed or uptight you feel. You can wind your sock yarn into two balls, weighing them so that they are of equal size. Or I often just use the same ball if it’s a center pull ball, using yarn from the outside of the ball for sock #1 and inside for sock #2. It’s a bit fiddly really. Two balls work better.

10. SACRIFICIAL SOCK The first pattern you try might not work but persevere! Try out a number of patterns with different heels, toes and cuffs to find your personal favorite. Kathryn from Crafternoon Treats in one of her recent podcasts said that your first sock is often a sacrificial one! I’d agree. My first sock didn’t stretch at all. I realized single crochet (US terms) was not the best stitch for a crochet sock and made a better choice for my next pair of socks! It’s all part of the fun!

Hope you found these tips useful! I can't wait for the Sock Along to begin!

 

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Hello March! Review of Crochet Kaleidoscope

Short February has flown by and thank goodness I can check my Instagram feed because I forgot to write a list... I've mainly been hooking a fabulous crochet blanket, joining in with the go go granny crochetalong run by super British crochet designer Rosina of the Zeens and Roger podcast. I was dithering a lot before the CAL began on my choice of project and then happy mail arrived from F+W/Interweave, a newly released crochet book for me to review Crochet Kaleidoscope by Sandra Eng who is @mobiusgirl on Instagram.

It's a book of 100 motif patterns and there are five projects at the end including a really standout blanket design which incorporates granny stitches and so qualifies for the crochetalong. The owner of the yarn store, where I teach, loved the design too so I've been hooking it as a sample for the store. Samples sell yarn!

If you don't have a motif book this would be a good one to buy. There is some fantastic color advice at the front of the book. Some people intuitively pick out colors that go together but not me I need a little assistance. It has appealing motifs aplenty in different shapes: squares, circles, hexagons, triangles and others. Each motif has written as well as charted instructions which is something I like to see. And there are several inspiring projects at the end of the book so you can see how to incorporate your favorite motifs into something more than a motif. Here is my Vintage Bauble Blanket in progress. I'm using lovely Queensland Collection United yarn which is a sport weight certified organic wool/cotton blend in the most gorgeous colors.

My #useitorloseit2018 campaign continues. I made the Lilla Bjorn Sweater in February using stash yarn taking part in another crochetalong hosted by one of my favorite designers Tatsiana Kupryianchhyk. I love this sweater and Houston Texas, like many other places, has had a colder than normal winter so I've been able to wear it often and show off.

From March 1st I'll be starting another crochetalong - the Different Designer CAL run by Fay from the Crochet Circle Podcast. Full details are in her Ravelry group but essentially you pick a pattern from a designer who is new to you. I thought I'd try some different crochet sock designers. Do join us in the group and/or use the hashtag #DesignerCAL if Instagram is your thing.

And finally...the kind publishers sent me two copies of Crochet Kaleidoscope so I'm going to offer one of them as a giveaway. Please let me know in the comments below if you'd like my second book and/or send me a message via Instagram Twitter Ravelry or Facebook - I'm Crafty Escapism everywhere! I'll run a little random generator in a week's time and pick one of you. Good luck and have a fabulous March. I'll be back with another combo blog/podcast on April the 6th.

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Stash Busting, Grannies & YouTube

The great thing about writing my blog & recording my podcast monthly rather then weekly is that I have so much content - too much in fact. Here's some of the best bits... The year has started out with me firmly focused on stash busting. This year I'm going to be even better at it than usual because I have Lynne Rowe's Use it or Lose it campaign running for the whole year. I love "-alongs" that go on for the whole year. There is less pressure of a deadline. Some of the rules are a little harsh like removing a pattern from a magazine only if you have stash for it and otherwise giving the magazine away. I just can't do it so I am modifying the rules (I'm a master at modifying to suit) and Lynne says that's OK fortunately. So I am keeping the entire magazine if it contains more than a single pattern and even for the single patterns I'm pulling out I'm kind of optimistically imagining that I have exactly the right stash yarn to suit. Once you get started it's almost addictive. I've got through all my magazines now and I'm putting them into categories in a folder - crochet patterns are sorted into garments/accessories/other and I also have other craft projects and techniques.There are more details on Lynne's blog here on how to take part and chatter in Lynne's Ravelry group. There's also the hashtag #UseItOrLoseIt2018 on Instagram. Lynne sent over a helpful image of how to handle those magazines. Give it a go. Decluttering is very liberating.

Still on the theme of shifting some of my huge yarn collection, the ultimate stash busting project has to be granny squares. And rather conveniently this week the Granny square CAL or crochetalong has kicked off. Yay! It's hosted by Rosina of the Zeens and Roger podcast. I plan to make motifs for a poncho or garment of sorts and also at least one huge granny square blanket to donate. My lovely Yak and Yarn group make products to give to local charities. There are details here on Rosina's blog, chatter in her Ravelry group and a hashtag of course #GrannyCAL18 on Instagram. I found this amazing magazine dating from 1974 while I was decluttering. This one I am keeping unless Rosina really wants it!

The most exciting thing that has happened this year so far ... I've started making instructional videos for YouTube. I am a teacher and I've thought for a long time that this is what I should be doing. I've only got one up there so far so don't get overexcited. My inspiration has been my 11 year old son aka SnakeBoy Dude who recently started his own channel.  I'm recording short clips showing how to crochet different parts of a sock - toe, foot, heel... and so on. I'm using the pattern I wrote last year for my class that I taught at the Houston Fiber Fest: The Leftover Crochet Sock. It's a small toe up sock designed to cover some of the key techniques. I think I'm into double figure subscribers now. Go me!

I hope the start of your year has been fabulous. Are you going to join me in the Use it or Lose it Campaign and/or on the Granny CAL? Do let me know what you thought of my first video too. Have a wonderful month y'all and I'll be back here on the first Friday of March. In the meantime you can find me doing my crochet thing on Instagram, Twitter, Ravelry and Facebook as Craftyescapism. 

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Back to School Sweater CAL - Celebration of Making

What an amazing few months Helen of Making at Number 14 and I have had planning and running our Back to School Sweater CAL (crochetalong) and blog hop. We'll be closing the FO (finished objects) thread on Ravelry shortly and running the random number generator for prizes. As we write there are 53 gorgeous finished objects in there and/or tagged with #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL on Instagram. Seven makers have made two garments and two speedy makers have made three in the eight week period of the CAL from September 16th to November 17th. Incredible!

We've loved hanging out in the Ravelry chatter thread, kindly hosted by the wonderful Fay of the Crochet Circle Podcast, and over 50 of us have shared our garment making experiences together. We even had a frogging party where a fair few of us, Helen and myself included, had to frog our garments to get them to fit correctly!  There have been over 400 super photos posted on Instagram with the hashtag #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL

Many participants have been making sweaters for the first time. We've had comments on how they now see themselves as garment makers as a result of taking part. We've also received lots of feedback about how useful the blog hop posts have been (details here just in case you missed it). This has made the whole crochetalong so worthwhile for us, SO much better than just making our own garments by ourselves.

We'd like to say a huge thank you to all the bloggers who wrote a blog article (or two!) for us: JoJoTwinkletoes, The Crochet Project, Sam of SingASimpleMelody , Fay of the Crochet Circle Podcast and Knit It Hook It Craft It and Marta or MrsDaftSpaniel and for all the folk who have donated prizes: Marta, The Crochet Project, Fay, Rosina from Zeens and Roger, Yael from Emyahandmade and Lisa too. A special extra thank you goes to Fay for letting us host our CAL and FO thread in her Crochet Circle Podcast group.

And a huge thank you and congratulations to all the people who have taken part and made a wonderful handmade garment of their own!!! Let us know if you'd like to do it all over again next year!!?

I'm taking a little blog break over the holidays (here in the US we have Thanksgiving next week) so I won't be blogging next week but I'll be back soon depending on how I'm getting on with my frenzied Christmas making! In the meantime you can find me over on Ravelry, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook as CraftyEscapism.

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Yarn Review - Crafting Oasis Yarn Co

This week I'm reviewing hand-dyed yarn created by my talented friend Cat. She is a very crafty young lady - I am sure you know the type, they do it all crochet, knit, spin, dye, paper craft, embroider and more.. whereas I am firmly stuck on the crochet with the occasional knit project for variety. And of course Cat is really good at all of these things, is one of the sweetest people I know and lives in Houston too.

When Cat asked if I'd review a skein of her hand-dyed yarn on my blog of course I agreed and I decided it was going to be a one-skein shawl as my second shawl for the #SeptemberShawalong organized by lovely Hannah of the Cozy Cottage Crochet Podcast. I always like to link my hooking to an -along, don't I?

I didn't specify a color but wow - when I opened the parcel I just couldn't do anything but smile - that pop of bright pink red was irresistible. And when I posted it on Instagram lots of other people loved the color too. Fortunately Cat told me this is a color she can replicate. It's called "Pinkberry" and it's fingering weight on a 100% merino platinum base.

The color is just the best. Everything else about the yarn is good too. It's super soft around my neck (and I am very sensitive). It smells good. It didn't split at all when I was working with it.

The pattern I chose was the Metro Kerchief by Yuliya Tkacheva also known as Ms Weaver. It has a fabulous track texture which is achieved with lots of slip stitches which slowed me down a little but I do love the end result. I will wear this when it's a little dull outside and I want to cheer people up.

So please do head over to Cat's shop on Etsy Crafting Oasis Yarn Co to see what she has in stock.  She told she was going to be dying some Christmas themed yarn next. How fun!

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Back to School Sweater CAL - Garment in Progress

In January I decided this was going to be the Year of the Crochet Garment - I even blogged about it - and I bought a book: Top Down Crochet Sweaters by Dora Ohrenstein and wrote a review on it. I managed to make one garment the Tunisian Entrelac Yoga Top by Elena Fedotova and finish off another the Classic Sweater by Rachel Choi but then was hopelessly distracted by CALs (crochetalongs) and preparing my class on crochet socks for the Houston Fiber Fest. Fortunately Helen, amazing crocheter and blogger at Making at Number 14 proposed that we organize a Crochet Garment CAL and the Back to Sweater Sweater CAL was born so this year has been turned out to be the Year of the Garment after all - and not just my garment which is even better!

Pattern: The pattern I chose had to be from my Dora Ohrenstein book having bought it so long ago and raved on about it. I chose the specific pattern I did, Zora, because the stitch design looked fun and I thought the vertical lace and v stitch panels would be flattering.

Yarn: I used mainly stash yarn, Rowan Pure Wool 4ply, bought from a super sale at John Lewis in Norwich in the UK visiting my sister-in-law a few summers ago. I bought it because it was in the sale, wool wasn't too scratchy and I liked the color. I didn't have quite have enough and it was discontinued but I found three extra balls from Love Knitting. 

Progress: My progress has been variable on the sweater. It took forever to get my yoke right. Gauge in the round is not the same as flat gauge. And my gauge swatch was for the v stitch pattern. My yoke had v stitch panels with eight sets of lace stitches between them. My lace stitches stretched a lot, far more than the v stitches. Plus my stitches are wide and short so that was another variable to factor into my calculations. I know I could use the golden loop method to increase the height of my stiches but I stubbornly stick with my shorter stitches. If I was seriously going to get into designing I would probably make a concerted effort to change. Here's a link to a video by Deja Joy Fixing Gauge When Height Is Incorrect AKA Golden Loop Method if you're wondering what I'm going on about. Anyway, after frogging back the yoke three times, I eventually got there.

I was not alone though! Over on Ravelry in The Crochet Circle Podcast Group we had a yoke frogging party going on for those who had chosen top down designs. But the bonus of so much frogging was that I nailed that stitch design and consequently the rest of my sweater was fast.

I slowed down again waiting for Fay's blog post on Blocking to finish it. I thought I knew everything about finishing and blocking but no, apparently not. So here she is my Zora!

Hope you enjoyed our blog post last week from Marta with Designing a Crocheted Garment. Next week, continuing on our blog hop, we will have a garment in progress blog post from Sam of Sing a Simple Melody. I can't wait! Have a great week y'all!

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The Back to School Sweater CAL is underway!

Our Back to School Sweater CAL started just one week ago... and it's just so exciting. It's probably in my top three most exciting crochet-related things that have happened to me along with getting a job at my local yarn store and teaching at the Houston Fiber Fest. I have really got to stop checking our hashtag #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL on Instagram so often. I've become quite obsessed. There are over 150 posts as I write this ... and every day there are more. And we have 50 voices in our CAL Ravelry thread in the Crochet Circle Podcast group. I've forgotten about ALL my other WIPs. It's all consuming.

I am making Zora by Dora Ohrenstein. I thought I'd get to know Dora a little better and if you read this blog or listen to my podcast version you know that I absolutely love my podcasts. I found an interview on the excellent Power Purls Podcast which took place around about the time that Dora released her book Top Down Crochet Sweaters.

Kara Gott Warner doesn't have many crochet guests on her podcast so that's an indication of how great Dora is and after listening to this I have a total fan girl crush on her and I've had to buy another one of her books called to The Crocheter's Skill-Building Workshop: Essential Techniques for Becoming a More Versatile, Adventurous Crocheter just to see if I'm adventurous enough yet. Maybe I am, maybe not! It's a technique book and I love techniques.

My Zora is not really going very well. My yoke is too wide. I'm on my third try. But I am loving it anyway despite my low level frustration and Dora's book Top Down Crochet Sweaters has a decent technique section to help. There are V stitches and lace parts with picots. It's lovely. Fortunately this week's blog post on our fabulous blog hop is on the subject of alterations. It's by Sam of Sing A Simply Melody. She is a crochet designer and tech editor (in fact she edited my leftover sock pattern). Check it out: Making Alterations.

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7 Days & Counting Until the CAL

Yay - it's seven days and counting until our Back to School Sweater CAL starts on the 16th of September.... It has been SOOO hard not to get started on my sweater. Some people have been a little bit naughty and in their enthusiasm have already started on theirs (and even finished!) Anyway, please do go over to the chatter thread in the Crochet Circle Podcast group on Ravelry to join us and you'll see which patterns and yarn choices people are making. I've guestimated we have at least forty makers... going by comments in the group and those on Instagram using our hashtag #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL (this is another way to join in if you're not a Ravelry person).

And our accompanying blog hop is underway already. I was first up, two weeks ago and my post 5 reasons to make a crochet garment is already my third most popular of all time on my blog. And I'm stunned by how many comments I've had. I love it! Jo (JoJoTwinkleToes) wrote a fabulous second post last week on Current Trends and Choosing a Style to Suit you and it really got me thinking this week about my garment making history - the successes and the huge fails. Why did some garments turn out so badly? And when they looked good, how did this happen? I've come up two theories:

1. The style has to suit your figure
Jo was right that you've got to carefully choose a style that suits you and that you've got be honest about your body shape. I'm not going make a cropped top and my upper arms need covering up. A garment that is shaped to my waist works because of my curvy figure. And I find a wider neckline balance my hips. I very carefully scrutinize all of the project photos on Ravelry to see what the garment looks like on different body shapes.
 
2. Fitted garments look better in lighter weight yarn
I've found that fitted garments made from thicker than a DK / light worsted weight yarn just don't look flattering on me. I am not going to link you to one of these horrors. However, I have had success with a heavier worsted weight yarn with my Butterfly Garden Cocoon Shrug because it wasn't loose fitting. Helen is writing about this in her blog post this week Making at number 14 so I'm looking forward to more insight on yarn choice.

Anyway I'd love to know if you have any alternative theories about making successful garments! Let me know in the comments below...

Still on the subject of the CAL, I wanted to let you know that the Crochet Project have very kindly offered CAL participants a discount until the 20th of September on the patterns in their Ravelry store. The 25% discount code backtoschool25 can be applied to individual garment patterns as well as books that contain cardigans, sweaters or tees  

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Six CALs for Fall 2017

I thought I'd do a little CAL round up this week because we have a few starting this month including my very own - the Back To School Sweater CAL!! I just LOVE a good crochetalong . Check out my post 5 Reasons to Join a CAL in my blog archives! 

1 Back To School Sweater CAL
I'm hosting this CAL (the accompanying blog hop is already underway) with Helen of Making at Number 14! It starts on the 16th of September and runs for 8 weeks until 17th of November. All the details are on my CAL page on my website here. You can chose to make any crochet garment and a few enthusiastic folk have started already!!  We're using the hashtag #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL to share our progress on Instagram and there is chatter in Fay's Crochet Circle Podcast Ravelry group here. 

2. Spotting Clouds Top CAL
Clarisabeth from the Crochet Cakes Podcast is hosting a Spotting Clouds Top CAL. This top is designed by Christina Hadderingh who designed the extremely popular Hotel of Bees Shawl so I know the pattern will be well written because I've made this shawl. It started on 21st of August and runs until 14th of October so there is still time. You could make this one for your Back to School Sweater CAL... that's a possibility!! The details and chatter are here in the Podcast Ravelry group.

3, September Shawlalong 
Hannah from the Cozy Cottage Podcast is hosting a shawl crochetalong called the September Shawlalong which runs for the months of September and October. I'll definitely be joining in with this ...  and I may well be double dipping with the next CAL on this list. But I am also very tempted by the crochet version of the Wonder Woman Wrap designed by Clarissa Browning who also designed the knit version. And I still haven't made a Blurre Shawl and I really want to.  The chatter thread for the shawalong is on Ravelry here. Hannah is also going to be running a Tunisian Crochetalong with Claudia from the Crochet Luna Podcast and I believe Claudia will be talking about this in her podcast this weekend. Another CAL to look forward to!

4. #CAKECAL
Emma from  the Potter and Bloom podcast has a shawlong (well it's actually a stolealong rather than a shawl) with a pattern that she designed herself Liula which runs through September and October. Emma's stole is a beautiful stitch pattern and uses a color changing cake of gradient yarn hence the name #cakecal. Here's the chatter thread in the Potter and Bloom Ravelry group. I just watched Emma's most recent podcast and the CAL will run for an additional two weeks to a month to give everyone a chance to buy their yarn. 

5. #HiddenTempleCAL

Rohn Strong has a crochet sock CAL running in collaboration with Happily Hooked Magazine which started just yesterday, September 1st. There is a Happily Hooked Crochet Along group on Facebook to join. The design looks lovely. I am a total sucker for crochet socks so I might have just have to join in while I wait for my CAKECAL yarn!!

6. Welcome Blanket CAL/KAL/QAL

This CAL/KAL/QAL (is a quilt along called a QAL?) is already running and the dates to get your blankets sent off by has recently been extended to November 4th. The blankets are currently being displayed at the Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago. When the show ends all of the blankets will be given to refugees and immigrants to welcome them to the US. We moved here five years ago and were made to feel very welcome in Texas so I feel that this is a good craftivism cause to participate in. Further details (and patterns) are here. I'm using one of the designs but rather than crocheting squares and joining them together I am making a tapestry crochet blanket in two colors with tassels at the sides (see the photo).

Anyway I'd love to know if you're joining in on one or more of these CALs and if there are any more CALs going on please add these in the comments for us all to see. Have a wonderful week everyone!!

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Announcing the Back to School Sweater Crochet Along

I'm hosting my very own crochetalong this autumn! Yay! I do hope you'll join in!! My friend Helen, fellow British yarn enthusiast and blogger suggested we organize a crochetalong together to spread the crochet garment love. How could I refuse!!!?? The crochetalong, or CAL for short, runs for 8 weeks from 16th September to 17th November.  We also invited some other British crochet bloggers to join us in an accompanying blog hop focusing on different aspects of crochet garment technique. These weekly blog articles start before the CAL on 26th August so we'll all be ready to go mid September!! 

Introducing our group of bloggers:
@craftyescapism - that's me, Tamara, crochet teacher and blogger at CraftyEscapism
@knitithookit - Fay from the Crochet Circle Podcast, owner of Knit It - Hook It - Craft It
@heleneccles1 - Helen, crafter and blogger at MakingAtNumber14
@jojotwinkletoes - Jo, crochet is her thing, at JojoTwinkletoes
@mrsdaftspaniel - Marta, crochet designer, blogging at MrsDaftSpaniel
@samsimplemelody - Sam, crochet designer and tech editor at SingASimpleMelody
and last but not least:
@thecrochetproj - Joanne and Kat at The Crochet Project, designers blogging at TheCrochetProject

And our Blog Hop schedule in brief is as follows:

We will use the hashtag #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL on Instagram and Fay from the Crochet Circle Podcast is hosting a thread in her Ravelry group too. The chatter has already begun so please do visit the thread! We have also shared a few patterns we have made and enjoyed in a Ravelry bundle if you're looking for a little inspiration! Prizes and discount codes on patterns will be revealed in Fay's next podcast which will be available Friday 4th August so make sure you tune into The Crochet Circle Podcast then!

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Festival of Finishing CAL

I wanted to let you know about a fabulous CAL (crochetalong) that's coming up over the summer. It's called the Festival of Finishing CAL and it's being organized by my friend Fay of the Crochet Circle Podcast. Fay has kindly provided me with the graphics to use. Thank you Fay!

I think it says it all. The CAL runs from June 2nd to August 31st and you basically get out all of those unfinished projects (it could be something other than crochet ... knitting, sewing or whatever...) and get them finished. You can also frog them. I like that idea. I'm not scared of frogging at all. Sometimes I wear something several times and decide I don't like it and make it into something else.

Of course there is sharing to be done on Instagram. I have so much fun looking at the hashtags. The hashtag is #FestivalOfFinishing and there is a going to be a CAL specific thread on Ravelry too. I am very excited about this. I have a sweater that I must finish. I am in the final stages, on the arms, but I've become hopelessly distracted by other projects... again. I started it last year. And at the beginning of the year I was telling myself this was going to be the year of the crochet garment and I am running out of time. It's just not happening!

There is also a charity element to the CAL which I love. For every FO (that's finished object) that hits the Ravelry thread or is added to the #, Fay is going to donate £1 (around $1.30) via KNIT IT – HOOK IT – CRAFT IT (that's Fay's business) to Knit for Peace up to a total of £150 (almost $200). So that's the target 150 FOs in the lists by the end of August!  £150 donated to Knit for Peace would help to deliver over 750 knitted and crocheted items to people that need them in the UK and abroad.

So we will be feeling great after finishing projects at long last and also doing a little bit for charity at the same time. Lovely!

So start looking in all of those places where you know there are unfinished projects hidden away. You've got just over a week and join us for the Festival of Finishing on Instagram by using the hashtag and/or on the Ravelry group thread from June 2nd.

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Spring Crochet Guild of America Crochetalong

I've started a new CAL (crochetalong), the gorgeous Sargassum shawl, so I thought I'd let you know in case you'd like to join in. I love CALs for many reasons (see my blog article 5 reasons to join a CAL). There are a number of techniques in the shawl which may be new to you including foundation single crochet, puff stitches, linked double crochet, chainless starting double crochet and setting beads! The last two in this list are new for me! The designer is the talented Pia Thadani of Stitches & Scraps. I have made a fair few shawls but I have three skeins of ocean colored yarn in my stash just wanting to be turned into the Sargassum shawl. Here they are freshly caked ready for swatching...

 

I would really like to win any of the three prizes. My favorite though has to be the book A Garden of Shawls by Karen Whooley. I'm a big fan of Karen and was one of her test crocheters last month for her latest fabulous sock pattern. Love crochet socks!

The first part came out this week but there is certainly time to join in with the giveaway deadline of May 22nd over six weeks away. It's running as a Craft Guild of America (CGOA) Spring 2017 CAL AND also in the CAL Central Crochet group so the ways to stay notified are: the Ravelry CGOA group, the Ravelry CAL Central group, the CGOA CAL Facebook Group and the CGOA blog.

I'll personally be adding the blog to my Feedly app to keep up and using the hashtags on Instagram and Twitter #CGOACals and #calcentralcrochet to share my progress. Do let me know if you're joining in!!

Ten Tunisian Crochet tips

In preparation for the Crochet Circle Podcast's CAL starting March 3rd I've been reading up on the technique. I was lucky enough to find FOUR Tunisian Crochet books in my public library. Houston is a huge city and our library downtown has over 90 individual titles on crochet. Wow! Although I do love a YouTube video for the specifics of a stitch I prefer to read a comprehensive overview of a technique.

 

Here are some tips I found useful as a relative newcomer to Tunisian Crochet gleaned from my reading this week. I thought you might find these useful if you're a newbie too.

1. Hook length: Your hook can hold a project width three times its length.  For wider projects select a hook with a flexible cable attached.
2. In Tunisian Crochet the front is always facing you so you don't need to turn. 
3. Count the stitches on your hook after the forward row. I know from experience that it's easy to lose a stitch! 
4. In Tunisian Simple Stitch there are the same number of stitches on your hook as on your starting chain.
5. Pull the yarn tight at the start of each forward row to prevent a loose stitch.
6. Work into the vertical AND horizontal bars of the last stitch of the forward row to stabilize the row. I wish I'd known this when I was doing my CYC swatch (see below)!
7. To prevent curl: Work into the back bump of your chain.
8. To prevent curl: Go up a hook size.
9. To prevent curl: At the beginning of your work, crochet a row of Tunisian purl stitch to redistribute the weight.
10. To prevent curl: Block your work.

Making a swatch for my second Craft Yarn Council certificate I remember really struggling with the placement of the last stitch of the forward row of my Tunisian Crochet square. I just couldn't figure it out and the swatch was frogged over and over. I was NOT enjoying myself AT ALL and didn't feel like EVER doing Tunisian Crochet again. But I changed my mind after discovering Entrelac last year. One of my current WIPs is the Tunisian Entrelac Yoga Top and I'm so looking forward to the upcoming CAL!

I had heard of Tunisan knit and purl stitch but there is a whole world of Tunisian crochet stitches and stitch patterns out there. The Honeycomb skirt by Sharon Hernes Silverman  is made in a variegated yarn and is simply stunning! Have a look at the project page on Ravelry.

Anyway, before I get carried away I will start with a simple project for the CAL which is the fantastic looking Cobbled Street Cowl. If you're interested in joining in check out the Ravelry group/thread and use #tccTunisianCAL to see the fun on Instagram!

Overlay Crochet technique

I couldn't help myself from jumping on the CAL (crochetalong) bandwagon again. This time I'm making a bag (or purse as they call it here in Texas) designed by the wonderful crochet designer Tatsiana Kupryianchyk aka Lilla Bjorn Crochet  from the Czech Republic. I'm on part five and having such fun learning another new technique - overlay crochet. 

In one of my recent book purchases Crochet Master Class (I wrote a book review here) there is a section devoted to this technique by Melody MacDuffee. She writes:

"I had always wanted to create something in the medium of crochet that looked like a mandala or stained-glass rose window. When I eventually found my way into this technique, I knew I was there."

The book describes Overlay Crochet far better than I could:

"densely textured cable crochet with color changes on every row or round...long stitches cover up horizontal rows or concentric rounds behind them...unwanted ones disappear like magic"

Tatsiana's CAL pattern is well written with very clear photos and video support. And I'm extremely impressed that this CAL has been translated into Dutch, German, Spanish, Swedish, Finnish, Danish, French and Hebrew. Following the hashtag #peacocktailbagcal I can see versions of this bag being made all over world. So cool! I find myself leaving comments "beautiful", "wonderful colors"... and wondering if the recipient can read English but Instagram helpfully has a translate function.

In my mind I can visualize overlay crochet as the perfect technique for a Christmas tree ornament. And Tatsiana has three gorgeous ornament patterns for sale. My favorite is her Starry Dream design.  Now if I can resist another CAL I might just make some as gifts.

Have a great week y'all and please do let me know if you've tried overlay crochet before or if you're feeling tempted!

 

The hunt for the Ultimate Crochet Sock begins!

One of my lovely regular workshop students, who doesn't knit, told me recently that she had always wanted to make crochet socks. Around this time I discovered the marvelous Crochet Circle Podcast which I reviewed a few weeks ago here. Fay and Lynne, the hosts of Crochet Circle, mentioned another British podcast Crafternoon Treats so I had to check that out. Binge-watching back episodes of this podcast, I found out about their sockalong which started with a free crochet sock pattern Survival Socks by Elin Stoodley so I chose this to crochet along with my student.

We had to do a bit of conversion to create an American version of the pattern.  For foot size add 2 to UK sizes to get US sizes and for UK double crochet (dc) read US single crochet (sc). I'm British and even after four years in the US still have to rely on the Craft Yarn Council's conversion chart to change mms to American sizes for hooks and needle size.  

The pattern is really well written and I appreciated the photos in the survival sock pattern A LOT! When you're a novice sock maker you may not be able to exactly visualize where a gusset goes. I've only knit cuff down socks before and crocheted slippers so I really needed the visual. I've decided I like the toe up design very much so I can try it on as I go along. 

 

My gauge swatch was a bit off height wise so I had to modify the pattern a little before starting out. My foot widens as it goes up so I had to customize the sock with increases before the heel and then decrease before getting to the cuff but that's fine. Feet come in all different shapes and sizes and I'd expect some customization. My student's sock fits her well. The photo shows where we are with the survival sock so far... We're make good progress!

I've already started on crochet sock pattern #2. The hunt for the ultimate crochet sock continues! I will update you on how I'm getting on here on the blog. And I'm tagging my hunt with #ultimatecrochetsock on Twitter or Instagram if you're on either of these. (I'm craftyescapism on both.)

And if you have any crochet sock stories to relate, I'd love to know in the comments below...

Before you go though, have a little listen to the latest episode of The Crochet Circle podcast: http://thecrochetcircle.podbean.com/e/episode-4-a-crochet-journey/. It made me laugh SO MUCH when around two minute in, Fay and Lynne started talking about my review. I wasn't ready for that! I've got to meet those ladies in person someday! They are so fun!