Beanies, apart from being practical items for your family & friends, are also a lot of fun to make. The problem, however, is that no two heads are the same & no one pattern can cater to the differences. The following, presuming you’re working from the top of the head down, is a simple guide that I trust will be helpful with your beanie creations.
I’m often asked, “I’m a left-hander, can I learn to crochet?” The answer is, “Of course, absolutely”. A little while ago I posted some basic left-handed stitch illustrations & received such positive responses, I decided to update & include some more.
The following are a few helpful tips to make left handed crochet a little easier for you…
Firstly, you’ll be holding the hook in your left hand & yarn in the right hand & working your stitches left to right, rather than, right to left.
When learning from a right-handed crocheter, sit opposite (face to face) & follow your teacher’s movements
Following patterns can be daunting for anyone. Moreover, written instructions are mostly for the right-handed. But don’t be put you off, there are always ways around this, as most left-handers know & have dealt with in the right-handed world.
Patterns with symbol charts (written for right-handers) are meant to be read right to left, so try to remember this & start your row on the opposite side of chart
Patterns with illustrations can be reversed by reading from a mirror, or scanned & flipped horizontally in a graphic program
When making garments, keep in mind, you are working left to right so if you’re working a pattern for the front right panel of a vest (for example), you’ll actually be working the front left panel.
When you’re crocheting in the round, you will be working clockwise, rather than ante-clockwise.
Also, be on the lookout for left-handed crochet publications; checkout your local libraries & of course the internet where you’ll find loads of video tutorials
Some left-handers have even surprised themselves by finding that they’re able to crochet right-handed…
This chart shows some of the symbols you’ll see when reading patterns:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Required turning chains for particular stitches
Finish off (OF) or ending off. Cut your yarn approx: 10cm (4”) long. Then draw the cut end through the last remaining loop on the hook & pull tight. With a blunt darning weave end into your work,
In most cases you work under both loops of stitch. Some patterns ask you to work under either front or back loop of stitch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clusters:are groups of unfinished stitches where the last loop of each unfinished stitch is left on the hook & then drawn together.
Clusters can be worked over number of stitches (also used as a decrease) or in a specific st or sp (also known as Bobbles) & can be made with htr (US:hdc), tr (US:dc) or dtr (US:tr) & other high posted stitches
treble cluster(US:dc cluster),
(YO, insert hook in stitch or space as indicated by pattern & draw up a loop, YO & draw through 2 loops on hook) as many times as indicated by pattern, YO & draw through all loops on hook.
4-tr (US:dc) cluster worked into one stitch. Leaving the last loop of each stitch on the hook, work 4tr into the one stitch, YO, & draw through all 5 loops on the hook
3-dtr (US: tr) cluster worked into one stitch. Leaving the last loop of each stitch on the hook, work 3 dtr (US:tr) into the one stitch, YO, & draw through all 4 loops on the hook
4-dtr (US: tr)cluster worked over 4 stitches. Leaving the last loop of each stitch on the hook, work 1 dtr (US: tr) into each of the next 4 stitches, YO, & draw through all 5 loops on hook
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Popcorns: are groups of complete stitches worked in the same stitch or space & can also be made using htr, (US:hdc) or dtr (US:tr) & other high posted stitches
5 tr (US:dc) Popcorn:
Work 5 tr (US:dc) in st or sp as indicated by pattern, drop loop from hook, insert hook in first st of group, pick up dropped loop & draw through, 1ch to close.
Popcorns can be made to the front or back of your work
popcorn worked from front
popcorn worked from back
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Puff stitches: are a group of loops drawn through the same stitch or space. The number of loops required will be indicated by the pattern
(YO, insert hook in st or space as indicated by pattern, YO and pull up a loop even with hook) 3 or 4 times as indicated by pattern, YO and draw through all 7 or 9 loops on hook, 1 ch to close
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shell & fans: are groups of complete stitches worked in a stitch or space as indicted by the pattern & can be made using htr (US:hdc), tr (US:dc), dtr (US:tr) & other high posted stitches
5 tr (US:dc) shell
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crossed Stitches: are handy for lace work & best worked with tall stitches
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back & front post stitches:
Back post stitches are made by working around the post (stem) of a stitch & creates an indented effect Front post stitches are made by working around the post (stem) of a stitch & creates a relief effect
Back Post treble (US:dc): YO, insert hook from back around stitch as indicated by pattern & draw up a loop, (YO & draw through 2 loops) twice
Front Post treble(US:dc): YO, insert hook from front around stitch as indicated by pattern & draw up a loop, (YO & draw through 2 loops) twice
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I trust this little tutorial is helpful & gives left-handers more confidence to continue with their crochet journey…
Have you ever wondered if there was an easier way to start a crochet project other than having to make that long foundation chain?
The good news is, yes, Chainless Foundation Stitches. This method can be used anytime you need a solid row of stitches or even when you want to add stitches at the end of a row. It can accommodate, increases, decreases & different height stitches. The only time it isn’t useful is when you’re working lacey patterns that use chains & chain spaces.
So, why bother using the Chainless Foundation Stitch when a foundation chain works perfectly fine?
Firstly, instead of having to count your chains, sometimes finding you’ve mis-counted after completing your first row only to rip it out & start again; with the Chainless Foundation St, you work the chain & stitch at the same time. For example: where a pattern asks for 11 chs to equal the 10 dc (US:sc) needed for your first row, or as for trebles (tr) (US:dc), where the pattern asks for 12 ch to equal 10 sts, you will be making the exact number of sts in one go… This is such a time saver, not to mention, no more frustration when mis-counting.
Another good reason is, you can work a project from top down or bottom up, both giving you a neat, strong, yet flexible edge, whereas, the simple foundation chain can sometimes be tight & less flexible or stretchy, which can be a problem around necklines or sleeve cuffs.
Want to give it a go? Great… I’ve created 2 short Pictorial Tutorials for working the Chainless Foundation Stitches.
I trust these tutorials are helpful, easy to understand & add another crochet trick to your repertoire.
I receive many, many emails from folk needing help with their crochet; not only from frustrated beginners, but also from those who have been crocheting for a while asking, what for some are, fairly basic questions… But there is no such thing as a silly, stupid or ‘I should know this’ type of query, even after many years of crocheting there are always new things to learn.
And so, I’ve put together this Beginners’ Crochet Notebook to help those of you who want to start crocheting but don’t know where to begin. And, even though I’ve written this notebook mainly with the novice in mind, that doesn’t mean the more experience crocheter won’t find a few helpful tips as well.
~What hooks to use with which yarn.
~Which yarns are: animal, plant or synthetic.
~How to read patterns.
~What those scary, abbreviations & symbols mean…&lots more.
I’ve done my best to gathered together answers to the most frequent questions I receive, but of course, it’s impossible to have an answer for everything. There is so much more information I could have included in this Notebook; so much more the reader might find useful; but it’s such a fine line between cramming in too much & overwhelming you.
Nevertheless, I trust this tutorial is a comprehensive journey through the crochet basics for the beginner & others, & that it encourages you to venture forth with a little more confidence & understanding of this wonderful craft.
CORRECTION: I have discovered a major error in my book Textured Crochet Lace… the instructions for Edging Individual Squares was omitted when published…
My sincere apologies to everyone who has purchased the book & therefore been confused about the edging & may even have abandoned their project…
I’m mortified! How do these things happen, but they do… even after intense proof-reading & editors checking… goes to show that nothing is perfect….
Hopefully, this post will rectify this major mistake to some degree…
The instructions for edging individual squares are as follows:
Round 1: with right side facing & continuing with working colour, 1 ch, work 3 dc (US: sc) in same st [place marker in middle st, corner made], * work 29 dc (US: sc) evenly spaced to next corner st, 3 dc (US: sc) in corner st, repeat around square, join with ss in first dc (US: sc), do not finish off – 128dc (US: sc)
Round 2: continuing with working colour, 1 ch, dc (US: sc) in same st and in each st across to next corner st, * 3 dc (US: sc) in corner st, dc (US: sc) in each st across to next corner st, repeat from * around, join with ss in first dc (US: sc) , finish off – 136 dc (US: sc)
Please contact me if you have any questions… Renate
