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How to crochet a pirate owl!

October 23, 2012

Have I told you how awesome my customers are? I don’t mean to brag but… I’m pretty sure that my customers are the sweetest and most creative crocheters around!

Just this week, Adriana was featured on Martingale’s blog for crocheting all 18 critters from Crocheted Softies!

And today’s Tip Tuesday post? Brought to you by the super-creative mind of Casey from Plus 3 Crochet! Love!

So, there. That proves it. My customers rock. Thank you guys, for being such rock stars!

How to crochet a pirate owl

Casey took the Nelson the Owl pattern and came up with a few tweeks to turn it into an adorable Pirate Owl!

And she’s sweet enough to share how to do it! Follow these instructions, and you can have your own pirate!

Peg Leg

Instead of making two feet, you’ll want to make one foot, and one peg leg.

Instructions for Peg Leg

With black, ch 2.
Rnd 1: Sc 6 times in 2nd ch from hook. (6)
Rnd 2: Sc twice in each st. (12)
Rnds 3-4: Sc in each st. (12)
Fasten off with long tail. Stuff, and attach.

Eye Patch

To make an eye patch, you’ll make one eye circle in your usual color (shown here in white, but is orange in the original Nelson pattern) and one in black. Then, you’ll crochet a strap.

Instructions for Eye Patch Strap

With black, ch as many stitches as it takes to fit from one side of the eye circle, around the head to the other side.
Row 1: Turn, sc in 2nd ch from hook and each st across.
Rows 2-3: Ch 1, turn, sc in each st across.
Fasten off and attach to head.

Enjoy your pirate owl!

It’s that easy!

Thanks so much, Casey, for sharing how to make a pirate owl! I’ll bet some of you out there will come up with ideas for applying these tips to make some other great pirate-animals!

What is a skein? Demystifying names for yarn bundles.

October 18, 2012

Skein. Hank. Ball. Cake. You may have heard these terms thrown around by ‘yarnies’, but what do they mean?

Today, I’ll tell you! Now I’ve talked to a lot of yarn people in my time… and what folks don’t seem to admit is that there’s a little bit of wiggle room/variation in what these terms mean. Sound confusing? Yeah… it sorta is. But don’t worry about it! We’ll sort it out!

What is a hank?

A hank is a long loop of yarn that you’ll usually spot twisted into a cute bundle, like this:

Featured Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill’s Shepherd’s Wool CrazyYou can’t knit/crochet directly from a hank, you’ll need to use a ball-winder, a nostepinne or your hands to wind a cake or ball (see below) that you can work from.

Why does yarn come in hanks? Since a hank is just yarn looped around, it’s how spinners and dyers work with their yarn, and it’s a real time (read: cost) savings to sell it to the consumer that way. I’m not actually sure if it’s a time saving-issue for big-production-factories, but a hank still has a ‘classy’ feel to it, so it contributes to a yarn looking high-end. Finally, from a yarn-store perspective, hanks lie neatly on the shelf, making display easy.

What’s a skein?

Ooooh… that’s the tricky one!

Most people say that a skein is an oblong center-pull bundle, like this:

Featured Yarn: Ella Rae Classic WoolThis configuration is how you’ll find most of the yarns from ‘big yarn brands’ wound. It sits nicely on the shelf and is ready-to-use (no winding!) by the customer.

I’ve also heard that once upon a time, both ‘hank’ and ‘skein’ were used to refer to the hank-like configurations of yarn, but indicated different measurements. Oh, the controversy.

In my experience, it’s very common to hear the word ‘skein’ used to refer to ‘a unit of yarn’. For example, the book One-Skein Wonders doesn’t refer to things you can make using oblong bundles of yarn… it’s things you can make with one unit of yarn, no matter how it is wound.

In my opinion, it doesn’t really matter which one of these definitions you stick to… just as long as you acknowledge that other folks might use the word differently from you!

What is a ball?

A ball, stereotypically, refers to the sphere that results from hand-winding yarn:

Featured Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill’s Shepherd’s Wool CrazyBecause it looks like a ball!

But, alas, there’s a little wiggle room here, too. Some people use the word ‘ball’ to refer to any round-ish bundle of yarn (hanks, excluded). For example, the label of Vickie Howell’s Sheep(ish) (which is a skein, as pictured in the last entry) says “1 ball” on the label.

Why don’t we see a lot of ‘balls’ for sale? A true spherical ball is usually the result of hand-winding and isn’t typically how yarns are sold (although they seem to be more popular in Germany: Schoppell Wolle -Zauberball- and Jawoll sell yarns in balls). They roll off of shelves, and therefore, are also a tricky way of storing your stash. I would recommend storing your hanks as-is or winding them into cakes (below) for storage.

What is a cake?

A cake is what comes off of a ball-winder, a cylinder with a flat top and bottom:

Featured Yarn: Cascade Eco+These bundles are center-pull, which means that you can pull the yarn from the center for knitting/crocheting.

Some small companies are beginning to sell yarn in cakes, usually to demonstrate a long-colorway (like Freia Handpaints).

What is a donut?

I’m not sure if a donut is a technical term… but it’s something that comes up a lot in conversations with my yarn-store-owner friends. It looks like a donut:

Featured Yarn: Cascade 220 SuperwashThese are center-pull, which distinguishes them from ‘balls’ in the classic sense. Is this a relevant distinction? I don’t know. I just wanted to be thorough!

What is a cone?

A cone is a yarn that is wrapped around a conical cardboard cylinder:

Yarn is usually only sold in cones when it’s a large quantity. For example, in weaving, it’s important to have a long length of yarn (so there are no knots from joining skeins), so cones are sold with these long lengths of yarn.

What is this?

Just when we thought we had it all figured out… there’s this mystery:

It has a cardboard core, but it’s not a cone shape. It’s not really a ball…

Hmm…

What have we learned?

There’s lots of different names, and it’s confusing! Fortunately, there’s no ‘council of yarn dictators’ that will behead you if you use the wrong term.

It’s good to know that there are lots of different names kicking around, and hopefully, I’ve given you a resource if you want to learn them!

5 Surprising Reasons Your Handmade Biz isn’t Making Money

October 11, 2012

I’ve talked before about pricing and selling handmade items, but the same principles apply to handmade businesses of all varieties. Because you may have missed it, I’ll summarize some key points here.

Here’s the kicker: whether you make items for sale, sell instructions/patterns for handmade items or are a teacher of a crafting skill, there are a few common roadblocks to earning the money you deserve. Warning: they may surprise you!

Reason #1: Your prices are too low

Counter-intuitive, isn’t it?

Here’s the thing: people often their perception of quality on what they pay. Think about it: if you were given the option of having a steak dinner at a restaurant for $3, what would be your first thoughts about the dinner? The restaurant?

You’re not assuming that you’re getting a lovely meal, are you? And why not? Because your alarm bells are telling you that the price is too low for a high-quality product. Not only are you going to assume the food is crappy, but you’re probably going to walk away from the entire restaurant. Who wants to go somewhere that serves (potentially unsafe) food?

Solution: Evaluate your prices

I’m not saying that you should to raise your prices just for the sake of it. But, you should ensure that you’re charging the correct amount… and not selling yourself short.

Do a market analysis. See what others who are selling comparable products are charging. This goes for teachers, too… do a little sleuthing to discover the going rate. You don’t want to be the cheapest one, around!

Reason #2: Your customer doesn’t know why they should pay for your product

I hate to break it to you: you can’t expect your customer to know why your product is valuable. Let’s say you charge $8 for a very detailed knitting pattern, which is slightly higher than average and seems very pricey in a sea of free patterns. Does your customer know that it’s full of step-by-step photos? That purchasing the pattern comes with unlimited email help? That the pattern has been tech-edited and is error-free?

How would they know unless you tell them?

Solution: Be clear about the value of what you offer in a concrete way

Maybe you think it’s obvious that any knitting pattern worth it’s salt would have clear instructions with photos. Maybe you’ve even attempted to convey this to the customer by saying “it’s a quality pattern”. But words like ‘quality’ mean different things to different people. So it’s up to you to concretely explain why your product rocks and is worth what you’re charging.

If you make products, do you make clear the materials and workmanship that go into your pieces? If you’re a teacher, is your skill at targeting in on student’s concerns apparent? I’m not saying this is easy to do… you may need to come up with creative ways of demonstrating what you bring to the table. But it’s worth doing.

Reason #3: Your customers don’t know what you do

Oy… this is even worse than the last one!

Let’s think about dinner, again. You really want a nice steak. Are you going to go to a restaurant with a reputation for being the best steakhouse in the area? Or one that serves lots of food… and sometimes it’s steak?

I think we both know you’d choose the one with a great reputation. And you’d probably be willing to pay more, too!

Are you heading towards being a person who sews dog hats, crochets baby booties and silkscreens onsies? Is that the best place for you to be headed? What if you could be the person who sews the BEST dog hats?

Solution: Make a niche

Who am I? I’m the chick who sells the most well-written crochet stuffed animal patterns. And… they even come with amazing customer service. I’m constantly writing tips and posting videos on the blog, and I take great care to answer questions that come in via email. That’s what I do.

Why don’t I design knitting patterns? It’s not because I can’t… because I can! But, customer service is my number one priority, and I know that I couldn’t provide the level of tips, videos and tutorials for both knitting and crochet (at least, not right now). So I don’t.

Can you find a niche? Don’t worry… you can still crochet baby booties on the side. But maybe just not for your business!

Reason #4: You’re not interacting with your customers

What’s the difference between you and a big company? YOU are a person. YOU make each item (or teach each class, or write each pattern) with your own little hands. YOU are a crafter with passions and ambitions that your customers want to hear about! In fact, the average customer is willing to pay more/more likely to buy from a crafter that they feel a connection with.

How do you build this connection? Maybe by sharing photos on Facebook. Or by posting stories about your work on your blog. Or even by putting a little bit of you in your item descriptions.

Solution: Share!

I know it’s hard. We all have a limited amount of time. As a small-business owner, you’re handling shipping and accounting in addition to the actual making of your product.

So, start with one way customers can connect with you. Begin with the medium that makes you most comfortable. And begin sharing your story!

Reason #5: You’re giving away your work for free

As crafters, we love what we do. It can be easy to forget that you should be getting paid.

I’ve heard it happen so many times: teachers who are roped into teaching a group of school kids to knit. Designers who add a new size in the pattern at a customer’s request. Crafters who put too much time doing modifications of a custom design without charging for the overtime.

Stop it! How are you going to earn a fair wage if you’re giving it away for free?

Solution: Set boundaries

I’m not gonna fib. Almost everything about running a business is hard. Especially setting boundaries. But you have to do it.

(I’m half kidding: don’t actually be mean. But, I’m serious about not working for free.) Don’t hesitate to quote a price for what is being asked of you. Watch, I’ll show you how it’s done:

Customer: Stacey, I LOVE the owl in your Etsy shop! I was wondering: can I order one with horns and pigtails (my husband is a Vikings fan), and about 24″ tall (he’s a big guy!)?

me, option 1: I’m sorry, but those modifications are pretty serious, and that’s not something I’m able to do. Thanks for thinking of me, though! When you need a just-plain-cute owl, I’m your girl!

me, option 2: Ooh! Sounds like so much fun! My rate for custom work is $xx per hour, and I estimate that those modifications will take about 2 hours, plus require $xx in additional materials fees.”

See? Either way, I’m not doing work that I’m not getting paid for.

Any of these reasons give you ideas for changing how you do business?

The Truth about Knitting Needles on Airplanes

October 4, 2012

The question I see most often popping up on knitting/crochet discussion forums is:

Are knitting needles/crochet hooks allowed on airplanes?

There’s some helpful advice out there, but also a lot of advice that ranges from weird to just plain wrong. So, let’s clear it all up, shall we?

Today, I’ll talk about (and link to!) the actual travel regulations in various countries. I’ll also share helpful tips for traveling in countries without clear policies regarding knitting needles.

In this post, I’m going to say ‘knitting needles’ (for brevity), but I really mean ‘knitting needles and crochet hooks’, since I don’t know of any policies which specifically distinguish between the two types of tools.

Knitting needles on domestic flights in the USA

According to the TSA, knitting needles are permitted on domestic flights. You read it! That’s the word straight from the TSA blog.

And guess what? Many of your helpful tools are allowed, as well! Blunt-point scissors with blades less than 4″ long (think: child scissors) and tapestry needles are also permitted. What’s not allowed? Those circular thread cutters (which are erroneously rumored to be ‘airline safe’).

Click here to read the full list of prohibited items.

I’m sure you’ve heard horror stories that have you scared to bring your needles along. But it’s okay! Many of those stories occurred immediately after 2001, when the regulations were super-strict and not as clear-cut or consistent as they are today. If you’re still worried, scroll down and read my tips about how to carry your needles to attract the least attention.

Knitting needles on International flights

Perhaps I’m stating the obvious, but I’ll say it: if you’re planning an international flight, you’ll need to check the regulations in both the countries you’re visiting.

There are three types of countries:

Countries that officially state (in the flight regulations) that knitting needles are allowed. These include the US, the UK and Australia.
Countries that explicitly prohibit knitting needles on flights. (Greece and other countries in the EU fall into this category.)
Countries where the official policy states, “sharp objects are prohibited”. In these countries, the determination of what counts as ‘sharp’ is left to the security officer.

Not sure about a country’s policy? The easiest thing to do is Google “[name of country] prohibited items on flights”, and you’ll find the official website (usually) in the top 5 search results.

If you’re flying in between countries where knitting needles are permitted, but you’ve heard rumors about needles being taken away, it can’t hurt to print out the page that clearly specifies the policy, and carry it with you.

Tips for carrying knitting needles

Unfortunately, many countries fall into the third category: sharp objects aren’t allowed on board, but it’s unclear whether a knitting needle counts as ‘sharp’. In this case, you have two options:

Play it safe, and put your knitting needles in your checked luggage.
Put your needles in your carry-on luggage in a way that minimizes the possibility they will be viewed as threatening, taking the risk that they may be confiscated.

I’m not encouraging anyone to break the rules, so if knitting needles aren’t allowed, don’t bring them in your carry-on. However, keep in mind what the security agent’s job is: it’s to confiscate items that look threatening and could be used to harm others. If your knitting needles don’t look like they will harm others, then they’re less likely to get taken away. Makes sense, right?

Here are a few tips that will help your knitting needles look more ‘safe’:

Long, straight needles look scary. (I’m just being honest!) Try circular needles or double points.
Metal looks scary, too. Consider wood or plastic needles.
If you have a crochet hook or double points, put them in a pencil case with some pens and pencils. They’ll blend in.
If you have interchangeable needles, disconnect the tips from the cord. Store the tips in a pencil case (above) like you would double points.

Those are a few quick and easy tips. But that’s not all! I have two more tips that are so important that they’re too big to put in bullet points. Want to hear them?

Don’t bring anything you can’t stand to lose

Your pricey Signature needles? Leave them at home. A cashmere lace shawl (containing hundreds of dollars in yarn and hundreds of hours of work)? Don’t even think about it.

In the case where a security agent confiscates your ‘dangerous’ item, they may take the whole bundle… knitting included. You can try to negotiate for your knitting back, but there aren’t any guarantees.

Did I say ‘negotiate’? That brings me to another really important tip…

Be nice

I’m serious. I fly (domestically and internationally) really often. And since I don’t check my bags, I put lots of weird stuff in my carry on. A one-gallon lead-painted (i.e. x-rays can’t penetrate) sauerkraut crock? Yeah… I’ve done it!

The security agents aren’t trying to ruin your day. They don’t have the goal of making your flight boring and miserable. They have the very difficult job of analyzing thousands of pieces of luggage for dangerous items… by giving each piece of luggage a 5-second glance. They make mistakes.

I’ve been pulled aside often. The security agent asks about [whatever weird thing] I’m carrying. I politely and calmly explain its purpose. Remember, the agent is still judging how safe the item is.

What do you think the agent will do if you get hysterical and start yelling about how ‘it’s your right to carry on this item’? Uh… he’ll take the scary item away from you (the crazy person).

So, be nice.

There you go! Now you know the truth about traveling with knitting needles!

Do you have any travel plans or stories? Do share!

Achieve Mindfulness in 7 Easy Crochet Steps

October 2, 2012

If you’re a super-regular reader of this blog, you may know that I adore yoga. I love the physical difficulty paired with working on increasing my flexibility. But let me tell you. . . I’m not so good at the meditation & ‘quieting the mind’ part.

I’ve read about all of the great meditation research that’s going on: quieting your mind lowers blood pressure, gives you more energy and makes you smarter. But it’s hard!

So, when I read about an easy way to practice mindfulness using crochet. . . I knew I needed to share! I stumbled across the technique in Kathryn Vercillo’s Crochet Saved my Life… and guess what? Kathryn has been sweet enough to come over and share it with everyone!

Thanks, Kathryn!

Crocheting is Relaxing

A core reason that many of us crochet is because it helps us to relax. One of the reasons crochet is so relaxing is because it allows us to achieve mindfulness, the state of being in which we are fully immersed in the present moment.

This gives the mind a much-needed break from worries about the past and future, allowing the brain and body to both rejuvenate themselves.

More About Mindfulness

Mindfulness was originally an Eastern spiritual concept but has become widely used by psychologists and other professionals in the Western world. Its popularity is due to the fact that it is widely helpful for people dealing with a diverse array of situations ranging from every day stress to chronic debilitating illness.

Mindfulness just means that you let go of all of your worries, judgments and fears and focus on the fact that you are okay, right here, right now, in the present moment.

Why Practice Mindfulness?

It is not healthy for our minds to constantly chase down our thoughts about the past and future. Doing so often creates stress, worry and anxiety. This can lead to a stress response in the body that can have any number of physical symptoms including headaches, muscle pain, fatigue and high blood pressure.

The brain may also whirl wildly in what is called a “cycle of rumination”, which can be both a hallmark of and an exacerbation to mental illness including depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.

Practicing mindfulness teaches the brain and body to relax. It brings peace and helps both prevent and alleviate myriad stress-related health problems.

Seven Crochet Steps to Mindfulness

Crocheters can practice mindfulness using this easy seven-step exercise:

Select your favorite crochet hook and a really cozy easy-to-work-with yarn.
Sit comfortably in a quiet space with your work.
Begin to crochet a foundation chain, one slow loop at a time, counting each chain as you go. Do not allow yourself to think about anything except creating the chain.
Focus on the details of creating the chain. Notice how the yarn feels against your skin. Pay attention to the detailed hues of the yarn and hook. See if you can mentally be aware of each micro-movement that makes the loop.
Your mind will naturally begin to drift to thoughts of other things, like the bills that are due or a conversation you had earlier in the day. Each time that happens, frog the chain.
Take a deep breath after frogging the chain and start over with chain one.
Repeat the process until you are able to complete a full foundation chain of ten loops without having to frog it because of extraneous thoughts.

That’s it! You may only be able to get to four or five loops at first because your mind is running rampant. Be gentle with yourself and just keep practicing. As time goes on, you may be able to make longer chains of mindfulness. Do this regularly to infuse your life with the rest and relaxation that we each need and deserve.

This is a guest post by Kathryn Vercillo from the blog Crochet Concupiscence. She discusses crochet for mindfulness in her book Crochet Saved My Life. Check out my review of Crochet Saved My Life.

The Zen of Quitting

September 29, 2012

Quitter.

Ooooh… it’s such an ugly word, isn’t it? Who likes to be called a quitter? It makes you feel unworthy… like you’re just not good enough, right?

How often has the fear of being called a ‘quitter’ gotten you stuck in a rut? Is it the reason you won’t frog that knitting project that you know just isn’t going to work?

I’ve got some good news: sometimes, it’s okay to quit. I’ll tell you why…

Let me tell you a story…

I took ice-skating lessons from from 4 years old until 13 years old. Money was tight, and by the time I was 13, I was using both birthday and Christmas presents (from multiple family members) to pay for my lessons.

I was good, but I was also a realist. At the age when professional skaters begin national competition (with the assistance of private coaches), I was still learning to spin at the public rink. I didn’t have the resources to become a professional, and I was as good of a skater as I would ever need to be.

So, I stopped taking lessons.

My mom called me “a quitter”.

Ouch.

What society tells us about quitting

My mom wasn’t (at least I’d like to think) being mean. She was parroting the message that seems pervasive in our society. You’ve heard it all before:

“Quitters never win and winners never quit.” – Vince Lombardi
“Pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever.” – Lance Armstrong
“Americans never quit.” – Douglas MacArthur

These are actually good quotes. When you’re an athlete in a competition (or a soldier in war), you have a mission, and sometimes you need a pep-talk. Keep at it! Don’t quit! Not a bad message, really.

What people forget is that these quotes were never intended as lessons about how to live life!

The zen of quitting

Now that I’m an adult, I know that my mom was wrong. I wasn’t a quitter.

There, I said it. If you make a move that improves your life… no one has the right to call you a ‘quitter’!

Should you persist in rescuing cat toys from your burning house? No way! Should you spend 100 more hours knitting a shawl that’s driving you batty… and you know you’re not even going to like when it’s done? HECK NO!

Why are we talking about quitting?

Uhhh… it’s because I quit working on something this week. At first, I felt bad about it. But now, I don’t! You see, I spent a fair amount of time and energy on it, and it wasn’t working. So I stopped.

You know that today is Craft School Saturday, right? The day of the week where I share about my latest crafting adventure?

So, I had it all lined up… I was going to cut glass:

I found this fabulous tutorial on cutting glass using only basic household supplies: nail polish remover, ice water and a match. I was excited.

I gathered my supplies, and I tried for a really long time…

I tried over two separate days, and even tweeted the blog author (Jaderbomb, who’s actually a real sweetie and replied with lots of helpful comments) for assistance. I just couldn’t get it to work!

I was fretting. I didn’t have a back-up craft planned… and I kept thinking, “What are my readers going to think if I fail?”

And then it hit me. It’s okay to fail. It’s okay to quit something that isn’t working.

How do you know when it’s okay to quit?

On the topic of quitting, this is the trickiest question. Sometimes, you need to pull on your big-girl pants and persist even if you’re not happy (think: cleaning up a big mess from your dog or helping your child through their homework). Other times, persisting just means you’re wasting your time.

When you’re thinking of quitting, ask yourself these questions:

Will the result (if I persist) be valuable and worthwhile?
Will working on this process teach me valuable skills?
Can I find a part of this process that makes me happy?

If the answer is ‘yes’, these are signs it might be worth continuing.

What if you answer no? Here’s a few more questions:

When this is done, will I be reminded of the painful process?
Are there other things, equally worthwhile, that I could be doing instead?
Will I be much happier if I quit?

Answering ‘yes’ to these last three questions is a signal that you should give yourself permission to quit. Life’s too short, right?

As for my ice-skating, I liked doing it, but there weren’t many benefits from continuing my lessons. I could still visit the rink, but by quitting, I saved money and had time to work on different skills (like crocheting!).

And my glass cutting… it sounded really fun! But after a significant amount of time, I wasn’t getting anywhere. Was I really going to use these cut glasses? No. I was just doing it for fun. So, I decided to stop before I got frustrated.

Quitting isn’t bad… it can be healthy.

Is there anything you should quit?

Tell me… can you make your life better by quitting something that’s making you unhappy?

Add a sweater to (almost) any crocheted animal!

September 25, 2012

Sweet teddy bear that looks like he's wearing a crocheted sweater - tutorial explains how to make this pattern adaptation

Today, I’m sharing a tip that Mariana (from Chile!) came up with while taking my Amigurumi Woodland Animals Class on Craftsy. Is it a pattern for a crocheted sweater?

Nope… it’s way more clever than that! It’s a way of making your animal look like he’s wearing a sweater, by following the pattern and just adding in some color changes!

There’s a tutorial here show how to make clean color changes with single crochet.

Isn’t this guy adorable?

To get this look, you just need to make a few simple modifications to the Teddy the Bear pattern.

Pick a contrasting color of yarn (in the same thickness as your main ‘bear’ color) to be the crocheted sweater. The yardage will be about 40% of the total main color yardage specified in the pattern.
Crochet the body using your sweater color.
For the arms, crochet the first 6 rounds in the main color (as in the pattern), but then switch to your sweater color for the remaining rounds.
Sew a few buttons down the front of the body before stuffing it.

You can add a crocheted sweater to a whole variety of animal patterns! Instead of using the body color for the first six rounds of the arms, just use your best judgement to decide where the hands end and the crocheted sweater begins.

Now you’ve got a cute teddy bear wearing a cozy crocheted sweater!

Isn’t this a fabulous idea? And isn’t it great how you can modify a pattern, and come up with something that looks totally different?

If you want a pattern with the color-changes already included, try Byron the Bear.

Byron Bear - a cute teddy bear wearing a crocheted sweater

Instead of a crocheted sweater, how about a hoodie? Try the Finley the Frog pattern.

Finley the Frog - a cute crocheted frog wearing a cozy hoodie

Thank you so much, Mariana, for sharing your adorable bear and technique with us all!

Where does silk come from?

September 23, 2012

From a silkworm, of course! Well, we call them silkworms, but they’re actually caterpillars…

About Silk

Let’s step back a little bit. Have you met my friend, silk?

Silk is an astonishing fiber that has many dazzling features. Silk:

Is super-smooth and shiny. This is because it’s a protein that is extruded by the silk worm (just like a spider makes a web), meaning the outside is perfectly smooth and reflective.
Keeps you warm when it’s cold, and cool when it’s warm! This is because silk is both absorbent (taking up sweat when it’s hot) and has low conductivity (which keeps warm air close when it’s cool).
Soaks up dye fabulously. It’s the same absorbent quality already mentioned that makes silk like a sponge… meaning you can end up with incredibly rich shades of color.
Is very strong. The protein structure of silk gives the fiber one of the highest tensile strengths (i.e. it takes a lot of pulling lengthwise to make it break!) of any natural fiber. It’s even used in surgical sutures!

Amazing, right?

About Mr. Silkworm and his cocoon

As I said earlier, the silkworm is actually a caterpillar. And what do we all know about caterpillars? They build cocoons and then emerge as butterflies (or moths)!

Silkworms make their cocoons by extruding (I don’t know why we call it ‘spinning’… they don’t have a spindle in there!) a long thread that has all of the coveted properties I told you about in the last section. Ever seen a silkworm cocoon? They’re white ovals about 1″ long, like you see here:

Silkworms only eat leaves from the white mulberry tree.

For a while (i.e. centuries!), the food source was one of the ways that the ancients monopolized the production of silk. Even if a rogue invader smuggled away some silkworms, they wouldn’t have known the secret to keeping them alive: mulberry trees!

The cocoon is made up of one continuous strand of thread. In the wild, the caterpillar would emerge from the cocoon as a moth, making a hole in the cocoon. This hole means that the thread is now in oodles of pieces, and is not ideal for further processing into silk fiber. (It’s possible to use, though. If you’ve heard of ‘peace silk’, it’s referring to silk taken from cocoons where the caterpillar has been allowed to emerge.)

In traditional silk-making, the caterpillar is killed so that the silk can be unraveled in one continuous thread. Back in the day, this meant dropping the cocoon into boiling water. I’m told that nowadays, the cocoons are irradiated, meaning an instant death for the little caterpillar.

How do we get the silk?

I’ve had the joy of visiting both a silk exhibit at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo (Sericulture, the raising of silkworms and making silk, was a traditional past time for the Empress) and a reconstructed 1812 silk mill in Greenfield Village (where the photos from today’s blog post- including the mulberry trees!- were taken). And despite being thousands of miles (and hundreds of years!) apart, the basic process for getting silk remains the same.

First, the cocoons are boiled in water (and some chemicals) to loosen the gum that holds the cocoon together. Then, the thread is carefully picked off (I have no idea how you find the end on that one!) and spun together with other threads to make a thicker thread of workable size.

Do you see the thin threads coming up out of the hot water?

In this case, the mill was making thread spun from about 4-5 silk threads. It’s a time-consuming process… no wonder silk has always been so precious!

How many worms do you need?

Each cocoon has about 1,000 yards of silk thread, but these are very thin and need to be spun together with others to become workable for weaving. It takes about 300 cocoons to produce enough silk for a tie, 1500 for a blouse and 5000 for a kimono!

Think about that when you see a silk blouse!

Resources

This is by no means a comprehensive guide to silk production! If you’d like to read more (particularly if you’re interested in the animal rights issues involved), have a google around. Here are a few of my faves:

The Knitter’s Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes
The Wikipedia Page on Silk

Save yourself a knot by working your yarn from both ends of the skein!

September 18, 2012

Has this ever happened to you: you’re crocheting along, but discover that you need to use your yarn for another piece? Do you have to cut the yarn? Not if you know this little trick! This one will work for both crocheting & knitting.

As you can see here, I’ve been crocheting with the yarn from the center of the skein of yarn. And here’s the thing that’ll help you: every ball of yarn has 2 ends!

You can use this second end of the yarn to start your new item… while leaving the existing piece in tact! To do this, you’ll want to pull out your crochet hook:

And fasten a safety pin into your loop to keep it from unraveling (if you’re knitting, you’ll want to use a stitch marker as you pull out your needle):

With your previous work secured, you can pick up the second end of the yarn and make a new piece!

Once you’ve completed your urgent 2nd project, you’re free to return back to your first project… and all without needing to cut your yarn!

How’s that for a handy trick?

This is particularly helpful if you have a slow-moving project happening on a very lovely skein of yarn!

Finishing amigurumi: keeping stuffing out of your crochet stitches

September 11, 2012

Yay! We’re almost finished crocheting our dragons! How’s yours coming along?

Today, I’ll show you two ways to keep stuffing out of those final stitches of your dragon bottom.

Use your non-dominant hand

The easiest way to keep stuffing out of your stitches for the last few rounds is to use the index finger of your non-hook-holding hand to push the stuffing out of the way of your hook as you crochet. You don’t need any extra tools, but it can make the final rounds slow-going.

Insert a piece of white felt

Another way to keep stuffing out of the way of your stitches is to cut a circle of white felt, and insert it into your work. I tuck the felt circle in at around the 3rd-to-last round. The felt will hold the stuffing on the inside, giving you a clear path to crocheting those last rounds!

Which is your fave?

It doesn’t matter which technique you choose… as long as it works for you!