Beginner's Luck

This one was made using Premier Everyday Dots in color Sleepytime. I discovered a whole bunch of skeins of this yarn in different colorways so I'll be making many of these small blankies for Project Robby.

 If you find the picture looks a little off it's because I took the picture upside down and had to turn it in Paint Shop Pro. Oops.

I used a G Bates style hook from Polymer Clay Shed. I've bought many hooks from her and she's wonderful to work with.

The size is 12 1/2". 

The pattern is the Beginner's Luck with a chain of 53 and a dc border around to finish it off. I started with one row dc and after finishing the last pattern I started the dc border so there are two rows of dc top and bottom when that is done. I've worked it different ways depending on my mood. :-)

Beginner's Luck is a very old pattern in the leaflet Knit and Crochet Afghans vol 768 Brunswick 1990. You may be able to find it at Etsy or Ebay. 

I've also seen the pattern under other names. Basically it's a row of dc, a row of V stitch, a row of inverted V stitch (decrease), and another row of dc. The multiple is 3 + 2 if you start in the 4th chain from hook or 3 + 1 if you start in the 3rd chain. You could also start with a foundation dc instead of chains.

The finished size depends on what yarn and hook you are using. The important thing is to measure your width and make sure your length is appropriate for your width. 

Here are some possible starting chains going into the 4th chain from hook. That means you will end up with 2 fewer stitches so if you're using a foundation dc keep that in mind.
20 (possibly a good one for a swatch),
38, 53 (17 V’s, 7 patterns), 59, 62, 98, 113, 122, 131, 140, 152, 161

I love this pattern and have used it probably hundreds of times through the years, making different sizes depending on need.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Which Way Filet

Yarn: Vanna's Choice Pink and leftover white (probably Hobby Lobby)

Hook: J

Pattern: Which Way Filet (Fiber Spider)

Size: 11 1/2" 

I did this little blankie in just a few hours watching the video and pausing when I needed to. Then adding the borders.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Beginner's Luck

I try to remember to put the hook with the blankie pictures but many times I forget. I thought I'd share a picture of my Laurie Whitaker hooks. I use these quite often and have most in sizes H and I.

Here is my latest blankie. I did not use the above hooks for this one.

Size is 11" x 11 1/2". The pattern is the Beginner's Luck I mentioned in a recent post. Yarn is Premier Anti-pilling Everyday Dots in color Candy.

Another Beginner's Luck. This one in color Primary. Size is 12" x 12 1/2". The difference in size is due to the dc border. 

I have more of the Dots yarn so I'll be making more of these. I have discovered that the Bates style hook works better with this one. It doesn't split as much.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Call the Midwife

Here's another Call the Midwife. I have two skeins of this color in this yarn so you may see more.

Foundation chain is 70. Hook is a G/4.0mm from my Bella Coco set..I used an F hook for the border.

Pattern is Call the Midwife (reference: Fiber Spider's video). I added a round of sc and then a round of 3dc shells, skip 1, sc in next. In corners I used 5 dc. I had to do some fudging to get it to come out so my corners would be the same. 

Yarn is Premier Anti-pilling Everyday Dots in color Candy. It's a #3 weight yarn. 273 yds per skein. I used less than one skein.

Finished size is about 15 1/2" x 16".

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Misc info and Beginner's Luck

As I was going through old blog entries to find the Beginner's Luck pieces, I ran across this. I've seen this question asked many times in various places. I don't know where I got this information from but use it as you will. 

Two strands of #1 fingering equal one strand #2 sport.
Three strands of #1 fingering equal one strand #4 worsted.
One strand of #3 DK and one strand of #1 fingering equal one strand #4 worsted.
Two strands of #2 sport equal one strand #4 worsted.
Two strands of #4 worsted equal one strand #5 bulky.

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You might remember me posting how to make 3 strands out of one so you can work with one skein instead of three. The procedure is called Navajo plying or chain plying. Here's a video demo by Donna over at Naztazia . And another by Hooked by Robin. And another by Fiber Spider. 

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Another thing I was reminded of is how to crochet WITH your tails instead of sewing them in. You can see that here at Hooked by Robin. Others have shown it too I'm sure.

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And here are two more Beginner's Luck wee blankies. See the last post for details on the pattern. Yarn and hook are the same. This is the last of the pink Basic Stitch yarn. Each blankie took one skein (185 yds). I had a tiny ball left. The white is just a bit of leftover white.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Beginner's Luck

Oombawka has this nice article on crochet stitch anatomy. Even though some of it is basic I thought it might be a useful bit of information for those new to crochet and those who might like a reminder.

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Here is the latest thing off my hook. 

Hook: H hook by Laurie Whitaker

Yarn:  The pink yarn is Lion Brand Basic Stitch anti-pilling in Baby Pink. Skeins are 3.5oz and 185 yds. I used the entire skein. The white is Paintbox Simply Aran. It was a leftover skein and I just used a bit of it.

Pattern: Beginner's Luck which is a very old pattern from way back. You may be able to find it at Etsy or Ebay. It's in the leaflet Knit and Crochet Afghans vol 768 Brunswick 1990.  For the border on this one I used a round of dc in pink and then a round of sc in white.

I've also seen the pattern under different names. Basically it's a row of dc, a row of V stitch, a row of inverted V stitch (decrease), and another row of dc. The multiple is 3 + 2 if you start in the 4th chain from hook. I used a foundation chain of 53 for this wee blankie which is 15" square.

I've used this pattern so many times, making different size projects. It's one of my favorites as once you've completed the first pattern you need not refer to the pattern again. It's mindless - to me anyway. The thing to remember is that the first V stitch goes into the first stitch after the turning chain. Otherwise your count will be off. Rows start and end with a dc or turning chain.

I've worked it different ways depending on how many colors I am using. Sometimes I use two rows of dc between patterns and sometimes one. 

Here is one from 2024 using Lion Brand Mandala Sparkle in color Draco. The chain was 98 and it is about 26".

The blue and white one below is from 2020. The size is 48″ x 64″ with a foundation chain of 160. I used Premier Everyday Snow White and Azure. I used 7 skeins of each color (about 1400 yards, 28 ozs.)

I've even used this pattern for scarves. Here's a red one from 2023. The size is 6″ x 61″ with a foundation chain of 212 with an H hook. The yarn is Paintbox Simply Aran in color Rose Red. I used two skeins.

I remember working on afghans using this pattern when I was pregnant with my son (1990). I was bedridden and a friend would pick up my daughter for preschool. I made her three children afghans with this pattern as a thank you. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Call the Midwife

Call the Midwife mini-blankies.

Yarn is Mary Maxim Starlette in color Pale Petal Pink. You need two skeins. I used an H hook as suggested on the label.

Chain is 70. I followed Fiber Spider's video. Finished size for the larger one is 20" square. I did a round of sc in pink, white, and pink again. The one below that one is smaller, about 17" x 19' so it's not square. 

Isn't it funny how the color shows up differently in each picture even though it's taken on the same sofa in the same room but on two different days? The top one was taken last night and the other one this morning.

This is such a nice pattern. It's simple once you do one repeat. You just follow what you did on that one. No need to continue following the video or a written pattern. You just have to be careful and pay attention to what you're doing.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Lucet and i-cord

My husband made me a lucet fork so I needed to learn how to use it. A lucet is used to make I-cord.

I watched two good demonstrations. The first one is by Goodknitkisses . She shows you how to create a few other items that can be used as a lucet fork - including an actual fork!

The second one is by Craig at Fiber Spider. I use a lot of his videos so had to include him here. He demonstrates how to cut your cord and fix it so it doesn't come undone.

Another one is by Coco Crochet Lee using the Furls lucet fork. This is a shorter video so you may need to pause it to give you time to follow.

Another way to make I-cord is to use a knitting mushroom. This is a fun thing to do and now and then I pick my mushroom up and play. My problem is I never know what to do with the cord when I'm done. LOL Note that the lucet uses two prongs and the knitting mushroom uses 4.

I did make a short cord with the lucet but I'm terrible at it. LOL I need more practice. If you decide to try it I would not give up but keep at it. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

paint party scarves

Paint Party scarves

Hook: I/5.5mm
Pattern: straight dc, 20 stitches across, 110 rows
Size: 7" x 62"

Last of the Paint Party yarn.

I hook by Laurie Whitaker in Peep pattern.

Ch 22, 20 dc across for 105 rows.

Finished size: 7" x 59"

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

repair job and new hooks

Way back in August 2012 I made an afghan that was given to a friend. Fast forward to 2026. A sweet wee doggy decided that afghan would make a scrumptious meal and did this to it. (No harm came to the doggy though I'm sure he was given a bit of a talking to.)

I was asked if I could fix it. Now this is not a skill I have honed, but I said I'd do my best.

Fortunately, I knew which color the ripped spot was worked in. Unfortunately, that yarn is now discontinued. Bernat Giggles Tickled Pink. I found some on Ravelry but the person never answered my query. I found one skein on Amazon but I didn't know if one skein was enough as in my blog entry on making the afghan I didn't note how much each name took nor did I note the hook size used. Bad me!

I decided rather than try to repair that spot with an off color I would just remake the name. Since I couldn't get the same color I decided to get the yarn used in one of the other rectangles - Vanna's Choice Pink - which is easily found.

I decided to try an I hook first. Bamp! It was too long.I tried an H hook and voila! It was perfect. 

Here's the process. I used an H Hook with Vanna's Choice Pink. I used almost all of one skein for the name. I put a round of sc for a border. The chain was 81. Just FYI with another skein I made two "H" squares with a chain of 21.

Here is the filet part if your name is Beth. :-)

Now on to the repair part. First the ripped bit had to be taken out.

First step... I was afraid to cut too close on this round but got it all out.

Then I went back around and removed the wee bits. Most came out pretty easily.

Now I had to figure out how to attach and with what color. Do I go with the black or with the pink? I'm thinking the black even though I do have a hard time seeing black yarn.

I decided to use a needle and black yarn and sew it on. Here's the result. What do you think? 

There are two "H" squares, one on each side. Those have now been replaced to match the middle name,  with the Vanna's Choice yarn. 

This has been an interesting job. I'm glad I was up to it! At least I think I was. It looks okay to me. I'm going to wash it and see how it comes out.

In addition to that work, today's mail brought a surprise. New Hooks by Laurie Whitaker. The owl is a replacement owl hook for one which I lost. Laurie always includes extra surprises - candy treats, stitch markers and a pretty pen. I didn't take a picture but it was all wonderful.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Paint Party scarf

Did you know that all hooks are not created equal? Manufacturers do their own thing. Case in point is the I hook. My understanding is that Boye I hooks are 5.25mm while others are 5.5mm. We also have G at 4.0 but some put it at 4.25. And then there's #7 hooks which are not even given a letter at 4.50mm. It can get confusing, 

The important point is that whatever hook you start a project with you should continue that project with the same hook. If you lose that hook well there's nothing to do but find another. If you don't know the size you can do a few stitches and see if they match up with what you've already done.

Here's another thought ... If you need to do a repair on something you made a long time ago or just want to add to an afghan such as a temperature afghan perhaps ... work a few stitches in the hook you think it might be and see if the stitches look the same size.

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I was reminded of a video I did 13 years ago demonstrating how to crochet left handed. There are much better videos out there today that show left handed crochet but this was me trying to learn it to teach someone else. Because of the trouble I'm having now with my right hand due to arthritis I thought it might be a good time to revisit this. I also have arthritis in my left hand but it's not as bad as the right. So if you're interested just for fun you can find that video here. Then check out some better ones. LOL

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Finally, here is my latest scarf. I love the colors in this yarn, It is Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn in color Paint Party. It's made in Turkey. I used an I hook. Finished size if 7" x 60". 

I worked a foundation dc of 20. In the past I shied away from the foundation stitches but now that I've had some experience with them it's really not that hard and saves so much time - not because of the counting as you have to count them too, but because of the time it take to go into chain stitches at the beginning of the process. Going into a foundation chain is slower, to me at least.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

baby blanket

Here is a small afghan. My goal was 32" but I fell short. The finished size is 30" x 31". I added two rounds of border - first a round of dc and then a round of [(sc, ch 2, sc) in same stitch, sk 1]. I'm hoping this will work for them. 

Yarn is Lion Brand Mandala Ombre in color Mantra. 

I used an I hook and chained 90. The pattern is Bev and Sherry's Baby Blanket . For future blankets I'll need to do a longer chain.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

fun shirts

Do you remember this handy tip by Hooked by Robin? She demonstrates how to crochet WITH your yarn tails. You need to leave an extra long tail but it will never come out if you use this method.

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I saw these cute crochet t-shirts at Amazon. I've seen them other places as well but these were less expensive.  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FKGS6TVM/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DXC3YPR8/ 

I am still crocheting but not a scarf. I'm working on a small blanket and will post when it's done. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

scrap scarf

I posted a link to this method before but ran across it again today. In this video Donna Wolfe of Naztazia uses Navajo Plying or chain plying.to triple yarn thickness. I used this method to make one of my scarves with a #1 weight yarn. I wrote about it here. 

As noted in that blog entry Fiber Spider, Hooked by Robin, and Briana K have also done video demonstrations of this method. I'm sure there are others out there too.

I finished a scrap scarf this morning. I used an I hook for the body and H for the black border around it. In general, I use a hook a size smaller for borders.

I used leftover balls and just dc until I ran out. I had several balls of the yellow which is I Love This yarn Buttercup. I did 6 rows in black on each end. Finished size is 6 1/2" x 64 1/2".

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Basix Mosaic Grapevine

Yarn: Premier Basix Mosaic Grapevine, 2 skeins

Hooks: I and H hooks by Laurie Whitaker 

Size: 7 1/2" x 61 1/2"

Pattern: foundation dc 22, 113 rows of dc with a round of sc for a border. I used the H hook for the border.

I used the stacked dc for this one. It is supposed to make the edges straight but I didn't find that to be so. I decided it needed a border. I had enough yarn left on the second skein so I was able to do it in the same yarn.

I made another scarf with the last skein of this yarn. I used a fdc of 20 since I had less than I used for the other scarf. It came out slightly smaller than the first one. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Zebra and black scarf

I was working on two scarves at the same time and I managed to actually finish both. I knew I wouldn't have enough of the Mosaic Zebra so I planned to add some I Love This Yarn black which would coordinate. The trick here is that since I didn't know how far the Zebra would go I worked it until I ran out then I added the rows of black. THEN I turned it around and added the same number of rows of black on the other end. Voila!

Finished size is 7" x 68 1/2".

Pattern: foundation dc 20, work 15 rows of the black on each end, the rest is Zebra (I think it was 92 or 94 rows). I added a single crochet border in black to pull it all together.

Hooks: I (for the body) and H (for the border - 2 sc around each dc)

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Agave bulky scarf

This #5 bulky scarf was made with an L/8.0m sonic screwdriver hook. Ther yarn is Two of Wands Hue + Me in the color Agave. I used almost 2 skeins. It is 80% acrylic and 20% wool. and was made in India. It's machine washable and dryable.

The pattern starts with a foundation dc of 15, then dc across for 90 rows. 

Finished size is 6 1/2" x 62".

I like the color of this yarn. I think I could have even gone up another hook size to give it more drape. The label recommended a K and I think that would have made it too stiff. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Heartland scarf

Here's my latest scarf.

Yarn: Lion Brand Heartland Thick and Quick #6 Super bulky, color Belle Isle. Skeins are 5 oz/124yds each. I used two skeins

Hook: L/8mm custom hook in the shape of a sonic screwdriver

Size: 6 1/2" x 61"

Pattern: foundation dc 15, dc across, work for 91 rows

The actual color of this yarn is a bit darker than pictured. I pulled a picture of the skein from LB website to get the right color.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

scarves

Here's what I've been working on. They're all straight double crochet and begin with a foundation dc. They are all between 6-7" and at least 60" long, most longer. You can see the hook used in the picture. The Premier Basix Mosaics (Sea and Zebra) are I hooks and the Mandala Impressions Lakeside (last pic) is an M hook.

I am having to pace myself with the arthritis in both hands but primarily in my right wrist and thumb.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

ILTY royal blue scarf

I Love This Yarn Royal blue scarf. 7" x 64" Made with an I/5.5mm candy cane hook by Laurie Whitaker.

Pattern:Foundation dc 22, work 120 rows in dc

Picture taken in the living room.

I made a second scarf exactly like this one and with the same hook. The lighting was different as the picture was taken in the bedroom but I promise it is the same yarn.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

another ilty red scarf

I thought this might be of interest to those who wondered what the difference is between yarn over and yarn under. Video reel by Michael Sellick of the Crochet Crowd. https://www.facebook.com/reel/931243545910543

And here's my latest scarf. A simple dc scarf. I know it looks just like the one in the last post but it is a different scarf. I promise.

Yarn is I Love This Yarn in color red.

Size is 7" x 64"

Pattern: foundation dc 22, dc for 120 rows

Hook: I/5.25mm Laurie Whitaker hook

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

ILTY red scarf

Remember yo-yos, granny dadughters and saltines? I was just looking it up today at Crochet Cabana's wordpress. The site is not updated as I ran out of space there but the info is still there.

Here is the scarf I finished tonight. It's I Love This Yarn red and made with an I/5.25mm hook.

The pattern is straight dc. I started with a foundation dc of 20 and worked 120 rows.

Finished size is 6 1/2" x 63".

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Royal blue scarf

Yarn: I Love This Yarn Royal (7oz/355yds)

Hook: I/5.25mm 

Size: 7" x 61"

Pattern: Bev's Women's Conference Scarf  ch 22.

I caught a great skein. Not a single knot or bad spot to cut out! Easy to work with.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

modern V stitch red scarf

I changed it up a bit for this one. I used Bev's V stitch scarf pattern. 

Yarn: I Love This Yarn Red (7oz/355yds)

Hook: I/5.5mm Tulip Etimo

Size: 7" x 61"

Pattern: Bev's Women's Conference Scarf  I think I chained 22. 

Happy crocheting!

Sandie

Oasis Beat scarf

Last scarf with this yarn.

I accidentally grabbed an I/5.5mm hook rather than the H I was going for but it worked out okay. The scarf is 6" x 60". The color in this picture shows up better than the others I took with the previous I Love This Yarn Oasis Beat scarves. I had enough to put a single crochet border around it.

Happy crocheting!

Sandie