Two weeks ago it was 93° here in New York City. Now it is Poncho Time!
I am not partial to big crochet projects. They can be unwieldy to work on, and become heavier and heavier as they grow. I don’t know why I thought a poncho would be a quick and easy project. Easy? Yes. Quick? Not at all!
Nevertheless, my poncho is done and in time for fall. It is warm and comfortable.
I used a medium weight 4 Caron Simply Soft yarn and a size J hook. The project started at the neckline with a chain of 76 and worked down to the hem, growing with every row. It it is Back Loop Double Crochets with an increase at each arm and a double increase mid front and mid back. It is trimmed with a scalloped border at bottom and 3 rows of single crochet added to the neck with a small notch at neck front.
Pictured: That’s me wearing the poncho described above. Color is Minty Blue, according to Caron. At my feet is my usually shy 25-pound cat Ernie.
Pictured: A thick fuzzy crocheted dusting mitt is shown swiping dust from window blinds.
Sometimes things look way better than they really are!
Several years ago, I saw a youtuber demonstrate the use of a kind of yarn I had never seen before. It was Bernat Tizzy yarn. (Apparently, this particular yarn had been recalled in 2015. Nevertheless, similar yarns are available.) This is a chunky yarn with lots of little ends hanging off the main strand. The yarn is also variegated – a fuzzy yarn that changes colors too. This funky yarn was designed to create a product with lots of texture and color. It looked like fun. I ordered a skein.
I was excited when the yarn arrived and I began to work with it right away. I had never worked with any fancy yarn before so the whole thing was new to me. I tried to create the foundation chain, ripped it, and tried a few more times. After some time, I managed to complete that foundation chain and went on to try and work a single crochet in each chain stitch. After numerous attempts, I dropped the project. All I had created was frustration.
The other day I watched another youtube video, this one using a similar crazy yarn. The youtuber had made a dusting mitt. She raved about her project. The crazy yarn made a great duster, she said. It looked cute.
So I pulled out my skein of yarn that has been tucked away for years and decided to try again. I simplified the youtuber’s pattern though, and made a dusting mitt in the round – just one piece – no sewing, no fuss. And after an hour or so, it was done.
Pictured: A single strand of funky yarn in varying shades of pink. There are small pieces of yarn coming off of the main strand for the purpose of creating a thick fuzzy knit or crochet project.
This yarn is difficult to work with and I would never spend hard-earned money on such a type of yarn as this again. However, today it worked. Because of its thickness, I was able to feel my way even though the stitches were buried beneath the fluff. If there are errors, no one will ever know! And it is a dusting mitt; if there are errors, who would care!
My dusting mitt turned out great! It picks up dust easily from tabletops to window blinds. It goes in the washer and dryer. Best of all, I got rid of some crazy yarn that, until now, was just taking up space.
How many hats will I crochet before I figure out what I really want? Answer: A lot!
I have tried a lot of patterns in the last month. I even created several hats to completion that were quickly frogged. I thought I wanted a floppy summer hat. I was wrong!
I do not think crochet and floppy summer hats go together. Each hat was much too heavy. Some of them looked cute, but the weight was too much.
So I turned my attention to newsboy hats: a simple hat with a visor. Every one I found seemed to also be more appropriate for winter, according to the yarn used and bulky stitches. So I found one pattern I liked best and modified it.
I made a simple hat using 100% cotton for its breathability and worked double crochet stitches for the hat itself to keep the hat light and airy. I added a visor brim with several rows of single crochet by first adding a braid around the base of the hat to give the hat a better fit as well as a more interesting edge. And voilà!
Pictured: The author wearing the newly crocheted newsboy hat, front view.Pictured: The author wearing the newly crocheted newsboy hat, side view.
The longhand pattern can be found under the CROCHET tab on the menu at the top of this page, or just click HERE for the pattern.
Men do it, women do it, even dedicated blind do it. So grab your hooks or your needles and let’s look at some tips to make yarn crafts more accessible, organized, and fun.
Pictured: Crocheted items include hotpad, hat with pompom, scarf, and towel holders.
Tip #1
Good lighting. A task light can be the best tool of all.
Pictured: A desk lamp with soft-light fluorescent bulb is designed for task lighting. The head can be positioned and directed as needed. This lamp is directed on a cone of red cotton yarn and a crochet hook with beginning slip knot.
Tip #2
Use chunky yarn and larger hooks and needles. Larger gauge materials are easier to work with. With some experience, common 4-ply yarn can be doubled and even tripled for some projects.
Pictured: Two skeins of red yarn. On the left is worsted weight and on the right is super chunky. The super chunky yarn is much thicker and requires a much larger crochet hook, as shown.
Tip #3
Use large print or audio pattern instructions. (Duh!)
Pictured: YouTube icon. YouTube has many crochet tutorials and patterns in audio format.
Tip #4
Consider loom knitting. Loom knitting can be easier to work with, especially for newbies, with fewer dropped stitches.
Pictured: A pink knitting loom with a pink knitted hat in progress.
Tip #5
Use paper clips as stitch markers. The colorful vinyl-coated paper clips work well with little or no snagging. The paper clips are also great as a place holder at the end of your knit/crochet session. Slip a paper clip through the last stitch, and even the cat won’t be able to unravel your work overnight while you sleep.
Pictured: Six paper clips, all vinyl coated, assorted colors.
Tip #6
Use plastic blunt-tipped needles for weaving in all those ends at project’s conclusion.
Pictured: Three blunt-tipped plastic sewing needles with large eyes for working with yarn.
Tip #7
Use a needle threader. Some needle threaders are better than others. The needle threader pictured below is my favorite. I have been using just one of them for years now. I have not needed to use any of the backup threaders.
Pictured: Three identical flat metal needle threaders. Each has a small hook on one end for threading embroidery threads and a larger hook at the opposite end for threading yarns of various types.
Tip #8
Keep a magnet in a small sewing box with your needles. This will save you from crawling on your hands and knees hunting for that dropped needle or pin. A magnet holds onto my needle threaders too.
Pictured: A small metal box with two magnets inside, one on the inside lid and one on the inside bottom. Paper clips and needle threaders are held in place by the top magnet, and sewing and embroidery needles are held in place by the bottom magnet.
Tip #9
Store project – all yarn, hooks, instructions, etc. – in a plastic bag or box. Keep a written or voice recorded record of yarn type and color, hook/needle size, and any special instructions. You might add the date in case it becomes a time capsule.
Pictured: A clear plastic zippered bag with crochet project, working yarn, crochet hook and written instructions inside. The instructions card says: Hat, Caron Simply Soft white, hook H, scrap colors #4.
Tip #10
Keep your working yarn in a container to keep the yarn balls from rolling around and onto the floor. A colander works well for multiple balls of different colors. A coffee can can be repurposed to fit the need, as can a shoe box or almost any other container.
Pictured: A colander with two skeins of yarn (one pink, one white) with yarn ends poking through colander holes from inside to outside. A crochet hook is seen with white yarn ready to be worked.
Bonus Tip
Replace your sewing straight pins with sewing clips. When you drop one without even knowing it, sewing clips are so much less painful to step on!
Pictured: Four sewing clips of various colors. Each clip is pressed open and clamps onto the fabric much like a miniature clothespin.
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