BLOG: 2009

Australia allows knitting needles in carry-on luggage!

December 26, 2009

Exciting news! The Australian government now allows knitting needles and crochet hooks in carry-on luggage, as of December 25, 2009! If you haven’t been keeping up to date, here’s a brief history. The US has allowed knitting needles and crochet hooks on the airplane for some time (although there have been some horror stories online about confiscation, they have been permitted by the TSA on domestic and international flights). However, Australia prohibited crochet hooks, knitting needles and even nail clippers from being carried on board any flight entering or leaving Australia (domestic and international). This was particularly sad for those of us taking the 14 hour flight across that little body of water called the Pacific). News came out earlier in December that the Australian government was going to revise the list of prohibited items, but early reports said that these changes wouldn’t take place until July, 2010. But, that date got moved forward!

Note, as always, that the security agents maintain the ability to confiscate items at their discretion (as is the case in the US)… but in my experience, harmless knitting needles and crochet hooks are rarely the source of wrath of security agents.

Great news for us travelers… it’s like getting an extra Christmas present!

The Yarn Barn: Lawrence, KS

December 21, 2009

store: The Yarn Barn
address: 930 Massachusetts Street Lawrence, KS 66044
website: www.yarnbarn-ks.com/
date of visit: November, 2009

Let me begin by saying that even if the Yarn Barn were in the middle of nowhere, it would be worth the drive to visit. But, it’s in Lawrence, KS, which is (in my opinion) an adorable College Town- and putting the two together make for an excellent day. The Yarn Barn’s reputation precedes it: known as a yarn, weaving and spinning store extraordinaire that also ships, bringing fiber goodies to those who really do live in the middle of nowhere. The photo at the left is a small selection of the cones that are used for weaving (they can be used for knitting & crocheting, too, but are particularly great for weaving). As you can tell, the store is quite large, and the yarns are available in a wide range of colors. The store not only sells cones for weaving, but also looms, shuttles, and all sorts of crucial weaving supplies.

As I said, the store also carries supplies for spinning. Just like with weaving, there isn’t a lonely spindle and a small basket of roving sitting in the corner (which, is the extent of many yarn stores’ spinning supplies). There’s wheels! And a selection of spindles! And dyes! And oodles of roving! I quite enjoyed walking through the roving isle- organic cotton, silk, camel, various wools… it was a fine selection, indeed.

And of course, there’s yarn. I estimate that the store had (aside from cones) yarn covering about 33% of the store landscape, so it isn’t the largest selection of yarn in the country, but they had a number of yarns that I haven’t seen in many stores… like Buffalo Gold (really fabulous stuff)! And some beautiful locally-dyed yarns. As you can also tell from the photo, there is a large selection of samples which are hung very nicely from the ceiling, so it’s easy to get an idea of what the various yarns are like.

Aside from the weaving and spinning supplies, and yarn, the Yarn Barn also had a wonderful supply of needles, notions and books. From memory, they stocked at least 4 brands of knitting needles and a wide range of books and magazines and patterns. It was a lovely store, but had a completely different vibe than the LYSs that I’m used to. I was in the store for over a half hour, and was never asked if I needed help. I didn’t think the workers were grumpy (as some reviews I’ve read claim), but it’s such a big store with so many customers that it feels a bit like Target- if you want help, you need to find someone and ask for it. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, but certainly different from your tiny yarn shop with one employee working!

I know not many of you may travel to Kansas, but if you do, the Yarn Barn is worth a stop! It’s about 20 minutes outside of Topeka, and about an hour or so from the Kansas City, MO airport.

Free knitted mini sock pattern!

December 19, 2009

Little knitted sweater and stocking ornaments/keychains are popping up all over the place… and I thought I needed to have one, too! A couple days ago, I knitted a miniature sock, and thought I’d share the pattern with all of you! Click here to download the pattern.

Miniature socks are a great project to do: they’re cute, quick, don’t take a lot of yarn, and they are a great starter to making full-sized socks. You get to practice all of the sock-making techniques (heel turning, decreasing for the gusset and toe), without the pressure of making sure it fits, or having to make a second one! Yay!

I made the sample socks using some leftover fingering weight yarn and size 2 needles, but the pattern works well for any weight yarn. It’s a wonderful way to use yarn scraps! My sock is about 3.5″ long (from cuff to toe), so you can expect a larger one if you use a worsted weight yarn.

I think it’s a fun little project, and I hope you enjoy!

Easy Cowl Tutorial

December 18, 2009

I’ve talked about dyeing yarn with Kool-aid… and now I have a finished project: an awesome cowl! Cowls seem to be everywhere this season, and I love them because they’re so versatile. As you can see in the photos above, they can be worn around the neck as a scarf, on your head like a hat, rolled up like a headband, or as a hood!

I knitted a simple stockinette cowl so that the color changes of the yarn were the main feature. It’s a fairly easy pattern that allows you to use any yarn you want! Here’s what you do if you want a simple cowl like mine:

Pick your yarn and an appropriately sized needle. I selected a fingering weight yarn, and a size 5 needle (slightly large for the yarn), to get a loose, soft fabric.
Knit a test swatch to determine your gauge (number of stitches per inch). Try to do a 4×4″ (10x10cm) swatch to get a good idea. My gauge was 6 sts/inch.
Measure your head and calculate how many stitches it will take to get around it. My head is 21″ in circumference, and I wanted a tight fitting cowl, so I aimed for a 19″ cowl circumference. If you want a looser fit, just make this number larger. To calculate, multiply the number of inches by number of stitches per inch. I needed 19×6, or 114 sts.
Cast on the number of required stitches (rounded to an even number).
Knit in a ribbing for an inch or so. I did a 1×1 rib (knit one, purl one, and repeat), but if you have a multiple of 4, you could do a 2×2 rib.
Knit in stockinette. I knit until I was close to using up the full skein, which ended up being about 12 inches… but you can keep going until you have the length you want!
Knit another inch or so of ribbing, and cast off.

That’s it! It’s a simple cowl that will show off a lovely yarn texture or color. I hope to enjoy my cowl all winter long!

La Droguerie

December 5, 2009

store: La Droguerie
address: (Paris) 9 et 11 rue du Jour 75001 PARIS
(Bordeaux) 8 place Puy-Paulin 33000 BORDEAUX
website: www.ladroguerie.com
date of visit: July & August, 2009

This summer, while I was in France, I got the chance to visit 2 different stores of La Droguerie (there are 10 stores in France, as well as one in Japan). Visiting La Droguerie was an interesting experience, not only because it was a new yarn shop for me, but also because the focus of yarn shops is slightly different in France than in America.

I have to admit, I forgot to take a photo. I visited the Bordeaux store twice, and kept telling myself, “I’ll take the photo when I visit the Paris store”. Well, I barely found the Paris store, and after all the walking, I just forgot. I have no interesting excuse. But fortunately for me, Edina at Tongue in Beak let me borrow her photo of La Droguerie in Paris. Phew, now you know what it looks like! (by the way, if you’re in Paris and want to check out other craft-y stores, Edina has found some really great ones… and she sneaked a couple pix of the inside of La Droguerie!)

Anyway, one interesting feature of yarn stores in France is that they are more likely to be a yarn company than here in America. That is, La Droguerie has its own yarns, and publishes its own patterns. Bergere de France has stores in France, as well as Phildar. These are stores that only sell the patterns and yarns from the one brand. I’ve never seen a shop like that in America. Our yarn stores are independent stores, that order yarn from various companies. These types of stores exist in France as well, but La Droguerie is not one of them. As a result, stores like La Droguerie typically carry about 20 yarns.

However, La Droguerie is much more than a ‘yarn store’ (surprising fact number 2). It’s like a craft store. They carry yarn and patterns, but also quilting fabric and lots of buttons, beads and jewelery-making supplies. It really was amazing. I purchased a really interesting bead to feature in a necklace, and it was clear that much of their business came from these non-yarn items.

Another thing about the store that was surprising for me is that you do not (I repeat, do not) pick up items off of the shelf and then go wait in line (which is the standard American shopping experience). In La Droguerie, you wait for a sales associate to assist you, and then she walks around the store with you, picking up the items for you. For example, all of the buttons/beads are arranged in little jars, and you are not permitted to open the jars (In fact, I think picking up a jar to get a close look at the contents is frowned upon). You wait for your sales assistant to come to you, and you have her pick the item out of the jar. You do all of your shopping this way, and then she rings you up at the register. The system has a few interesting repercussions. It takes (in the 3 times I went) about 20 minutes until a sales person is available to help you. Because it takes so long to procure a person, the customers take their time with the staff member, because they don’t want to forget an item and have to start over again. Therefore, it’s not your ‘stop in and get some quick yarn’ kind of place (although, nothing in France is, so that’s not really a surprise).

Another interesting observation: the French don’t seem too into needles. The knitting needles were hidden in a corner, and were mostly either wooden straights, or plastic circular needles. I think of my needles as the most important tool that I have, and I spend money to have nice ones. Not so much in France. Perhaps this is a result of the fact that La Droguerie sells mostly its own brand of product, so they have little incentive to sell needles that are from other brands. I don’t know. But, it was certainly different!

The next time you’re in France, I definitely recommend stopping by. To be honest, I’m not sure I’d trade my local yarn stores for La Droguerie, but it was a really great place to visit!

Crocheting through front, back and both loops

October 23, 2009

Have you ever wondered about the difference between crocheting through the front, back and both loops? I’ll show you the different fabrics you’ll get using these various techniques!

Working in the Round

When working in the round, you crochet without turning the piece. This means that the right side is facing you for all rounds.

The above photo shows an example of working through both loops. Doing so creates a fabric that is slightly thicker than working through one loop alone, with no notable ‘ridges’ on the work.

The fabric also contains noticeable little holes, so when this technique is used in making amigurumi, you’ll usually uses a smaller hook size than is required for the yarn so that the stuffing does not show.

The above photo shows an example of working through the back loop only. Doing so creates a thinner than working through both loops. It also creates little ‘ridges’ on the front of the work that I really like. (you’ll notice that almost all FreshStitches patterns are worked through the back loops only). This technique does not leave very noticeable holes in the fabric, meaning that amigurumi can be made without a very small hook size. You will notice that the back of the fabric looks identical to the back of the sample that is worked through both loops.

The above photo shows an example of working through the front loop only. Doing so creates a fabric of equal thickness to working through the back loop only. The front of the work looks similar to working through both loops. There are ridges created on the back of the work.

Working in Rows

When you work in rows, you’ll turn your work after every row. This means that you will see both the right and wrong sides of the stitches on alternate rows. The look is the same if you choose to work joined rounds while turning your work.

The above photo shows an example of working through both loops. Doing so creates a fabric that is slightly thicker than working through one loop alone, with no notable ‘ridges’ on the work.

The above photo shows an example of working through the back loop only. Doing this technique in rows creates a ripple effect, and a very thick fabric.

The above photo shows an example of working through the front loop only. You will notice ridges every other row in the fabric. This is the technique used in FreshStitches patterns, as the look matches most closely the look of working through the back loop in the round.

Which technique is your favorite?

Tips and Techniques for felting

September 4, 2009

One of my newest patterns is Gerry the Felted Bear! We have become quite taken with felting, so in this blog post, we’ll review all the important stuff you need to know. But trust me, it’s easy!

Selecting yarn for a felted project

All of our FreshStitches patterns are made using worsted weight yarn. You’ll notice that most of our cover models are made from Ella Rae, a 100% wool yarn. For most of our patterns, any worsted weight yarn will work – so many of our customers use acrylics (such as Red Heart classic), or their favorite yarn. But when you make a felted animal, you need to take a little more care to select a yarn because you need to pick a yarn that will felt!

It’s important to select a yarn that is made from 100% animal wool. Acrylics won’t work here! Also, select a wool that doesn’t say ‘superwash’. A wool will say ‘superwash’ if it is a wool that can be put in the washing machine. It means that the wool has gone through a special process that removes the fiber that makes it felt – you don’t want to use that for a felted animal!

Here’s an easy way to check if your yarn will felt – if it says ‘100% wool’, and the label says ‘hand wash with cold water only’, then there is a good chance that it will felt!

Different brands felt differently, so you may want to do a test swatch. Also, different colors felt differently. For example, white yarn sometimes doesn’t felt very well: the bleaching process occasionally removes the felting ability of the fiber. That said, many whites do felt, so try a test to find out if yours does!

Okay, so you’ve picked your yarn, and you went ahead and crocheted your amigurumi. Now it’s time to felt! The three crucial ingredients to the felting process are: heat, water and agitation. Here, we’ll talk about three ways to achieve a great felting job.

felting in the washing machine

You’ve probably heard stories of someone putting a hand-knit sweater in the washing machine, and it comes out super-tiny… that’s because it felted! No surprise, then, that the washing machine is the easiest way to felt a stuffed animal. It doesn’t matter if you have a top- or front-loading washing machine: both will work. (You’ll read lots of places where it’s claimed that front-loading washing machines don’t work – but I live in an apartment, and my laundromat only has front loaders, and I’ve never had a problem). If you have a European super-energy efficient washing machine, then you may want to use another method, because super-energy efficient often means that there isn’t enough water to get the felting to work.

So, you have a washing machine. Toss your crochet in, put a tiny bit of detergent in (like, 1 tablespoon), turn the machine to the hottest setting, and let it go! With stuffed animals, you want the yarn to felt as much as possible, so there is no worry about over-felting. If the piece doesn’t felt as much as you’d like, just throw it in for another cycle.

felting in the dryer

If you don’t have a washing machine that will work, you may want to use the dryer. The dryer is hot and spins stuff around, so it’ll felt the yarn just fine!

Soak your crocheted pieces in water, and toss them into the machine. If the pieces are too dry, the dryer will dry them, without completely felting them… so wet is good! Same as above, if the piece doesn’t felt as much as you’d like, just re-wet the pieces, and throw them in for another cycle.

felting by hand

Finally, you can felt by hand. I’m not going to fib – it’s tiring. I have often attempted to felt by hand, and then I get tired and decide to throw the pieces in the washing machine instead! But, if you’re energetic, give it a try.

Fill a tub with hot water- as hot as you can stand. You may want to put on some rubber gloves if it allows you to use hotter water. Toss in a little bit of soap or detergent, and scrub away! You want to agitate the fabric as much as you can – rub it together, twist it, beat it. The difficult part is sustaining the scrubbing long enough to felt the piece, and also to felt evenly around the entire piece.

Give it a try!

So, there you have it! Lots of ways to felt! After you are done felting, stuff your pieces with newspaper to allow them to dry in a nice shape. Once they’re dry, you’re ready to assemble according to the directions in the pattern.
Happy felting!

Tips for stuffing large amigurumi

August 25, 2009

This post has some great general info about stuffing amigurumi. Read on for some extra tips for getting arms and legs stuffed evenly!

You probably wouldn’t be too surprised if I told you that how you stuff your amigurumi is important. After all, you spend lots of time crocheting… you want to end up with an animal that looks great! And stuffing is crucial to obtaining a great final look.

You may be surprised, though, that stuffing large amigurumi (most FreshStitches patterns are about 8″ tall) requires slightly different techniques than stuffing tiny amigurumi. It’s true that you need to stuff your animal firmly, but there are a couple more tricks I’d like to share.

The first thing to note is you need a fair bit of stuffing for large animals! And because crochet stretches, the amount of stuffing used determines the size of the finished product. So, if you’re stuffing body parts like legs, you want them to be the same size, meaning you need to stuff them with the same amount of stuffing! Before I stuff, I set out equal amounts of stuffing for each leg (or arm, or whatever you want to be of equal size).

You want to stuff your amigurumi part with one big ball of stuffing, instead of continually putting in little bits of stuffing. If you fill the part with little balls, the finished product will look lumpy. So, try stuffing your amigurumi using one big ball of stuffing.

If, at this point, you realize that you haven’t added enough stuffing, you can add more to the center. The stuffing you added earlier will press out to the sides, keeping a smooth look, and you can add more to the center. If you have too much, just rip off what’s hanging off the top!

Now, you have two stuffed parts of equal size! Of course, these stuffing tips apply to all amigurumi parts- even if you don’t need to have pieces match in size. For large amigurumi, the key is firm, even, non-lumpy stuffing!

Here are handy links to all the posts about stuffing amigurumi. . .

Return to the main table of contents for Let’s Learn to Crochet Amigurumi.

Move on to the lessons for closing up the opening.

Happy stitching!

How to work small pieces in the round

August 21, 2009

Most amigurumi crocheters have run into a classic problem: crocheting in the round on a tiny piece is annoying! Well, I have a tip that I think will help out.

tips for crocheting a small piece in the round

What do I mean by ‘crocheting on a tiny piece’? I’m not just talking about crocheting with thread! Even if you are working with a worsted weight yarn, some pieces (like the horns on Jackie the cow) have a small circumference. This means, as you are working in the round, you have to rotate the work almost every stitch just to keep going, and it seems like there isn’t enough room for your fingers!

The solution to this problem is to fold your piece in half (as pictured above)! Let’s say you are working on a piece with 12 stitches on each round. Smoosh the piece in half, and you’ll have a piece with 6 stitches on each side.

Now, you can hold the piece (without worrying about sticking your fingers in the middle!), and crochet away… you’ll only have to turn the piece twice per round, a definite improvement!

So, next time you’re crocheting a little piece in the round, give this tip a try!

Here are handy links to all the crochet troubleshooting posts. . .

Return to the main table of contents for Let’s Learn to Crochet Amigurumi.

Happy stitching!

Crochet Hook Size Conversion Chart

January 16, 2009

Crochet hook sizes can be a bit confusing, especially if you are either new to crochet or live outside the U.S. and are trying to find the right size to follow an American pattern. I’ll explain the American crochet hook size system, and provide a conversion chart so that you can crochet with ease, no matter where you are!

American Crochet Hook Sizes

American crochet hooks go by two names: a letter and a number. For example, the crochet hook size that is most commonly used for worsted weight yarn is an ‘H’, which is sometimes called a ‘size 8’. From an international point of view, this number is incredibly confusing! Most countries identify crochet hooks by their size in millimeters (mm). A size H crochet hook is 5mm, which as you can notice, doesn’t clearly line up with the number ‘8’. However, this confusing notation isn’t a problem if you reference a conversion chart when you are ready to crochet.

Crochet Hook Conversion Chart

Click here to download my handy printable crochet hook size conversion chart. Not only does it convert between American letter/number sizes and mm – it also lists all the various yarn sizes and the many (many!) names each size can be called.

Use the chart to find the hook size called for by your pattern, and you will be able to identify the size (in mm) that you should use. This should allow you to find the hooks you need to crochet using American patterns, no matter where you are!

The chart also reveals a few other slightly confusing aspects of crochet hook sizes. 😛

You’ll notice that the difference in mm between two hook sizes is not a consistent difference. For example, the difference between a ‘B’ and a ‘C’ crochet hook is .5 mm. However, the difference between an ‘H’ and an ‘I’ crochet hook is 1.0 mm. This can make it difficult to remember all of the conversions, so be sure to check each hook size that you would like to convert. Usually, both the American size and the size in mm are written on the crochet hook package, so that’s a convenient place to check when you’re making a purchase.

Also – the very smallest crochet hooks are called steel crochet hooks and their sizing is different. They don’t include letters, and as the crochet hook gets bigger, the size number gets smaller. It’s weird, I know.

There are occasionally some differences in sizing according to various brands, but the chart includes the most common ones.

Want to learn more about crochet hooks? This post breaks down the anatomy of a hook and helps you choose which kind is right for you.

Finally – a reminder that all of this is just a guideline! The hook size called for in the pattern, on the yarn band, or in the chart is just a suggested starting place. Crochet a little swatch and adjust your hook size up or down as needed.

Here are handy links to all the posts about crochet tools and supplies.

Return to the main table of contents for Let’s Learn to Crochet Amigurumi.

Move on to the posts about yarn.

Happy stitching!

Working in the Round

Working in Rows

Selecting yarn for a felted project

felting in the washing machine

felting in the dryer

felting by hand

Give it a try!

American Crochet Hook Sizes

Crochet Hook Conversion Chart

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