Crochet Bootcamp Part 3 : DC and HDC

I did two things in one video in a desperate and terribly lame attempt to pretend like I haven’t totally ignored this series for weeks. Shazam, look over there, is that a bunny? No? Oh. Jazz hands!

And a moment of suspense… will I say anything weird? Just kidding, that’s not suspenseful at all, we’d be more shocked if I didn’t. As a bonus, I have a sinus-cold-voice, just a little bit. Yes, definitely send me the classic home remedy for the common cold… cupcakes. Shhh shh shh shhhhhh…. don’t argue.

I call the ch1 and sc stitch both the chain one stitch in this video. Also, you should ch3 on the end of the dc and ch2 on the end of the hdc. This is why I blog and not vlog. It’s much easier to edit out my brainfarts. I don’t normally have to THINK so much when I crochet!

Aw, man. I should have done this a few days ago when I had pretty nailpolish. Wait, the weathered/distressed/vintage look is ‘in’, yes? Okay, I’m trendy.

So, what kinds of things can you make with your newfound knowledge?

This Swirly Twirly Scarf, for example! (free pattern/tutorial) … when the instructions say ‘skip one chain and two double crochet in each chain until the end’ what that means is skip the next space, then do a double crochet stitch in the next two spaces, and then skip the next, and then do a double crochet stitch in the next two spaces. To bind off, you just do a chain stitch at the end, and then snip your yarn and pull it through the chain-one space and pull tight. I’ll do a video of that next, it sounds kind of scary now that I’ve ended every video telling you to pull your yarn to undo.

Crochet Bootcamp Part 2 – sc

Today we have the single crochet stich, referred to in patterns as sc. Between ch and sc stitch, you actually have enough to make any basic item!  (Those are the stitches my Oma taught me, and I made items using just them for years and years!)

With just these stitches, you can make a scarf, a dishcloth (pick up ‘Handicraft cotton’ and whip yourself up some dishcloths for yourself or for gifts, el cheapo!) even a basic blanket or purse. Actually, you can even make yourself hats, whether in the round or created with two rectangles seamed or slip stitched together.

The big thing to remember when you’re making something square or rectangular (or sometimes in the round, but we’ll get into that later) is to make one chain stitch on the end of every row – in a pattern, this will read something like “sc across, ch1.” If you forget to do this, your item will slowly get smaller and smaller across as you turn around and crochet in the first space. I had some brainfarts while making this video and if I refer to the single crochet stitch as Single Chain Stich or the yarn as String, please just shake your head sadly and move along.

Once again my Safeway card and Airmiles make an appearance. They are the guest stars. Do not question it. They will show up once more, possibly, depending if that last video turned out. However, the next video I post will be about the slip stitch, and that one isn’t recorded yet.

I’ll do a little roundup soon of crochet patterns that are fairly basic and easy for beginners, and then I’ll let y’all come to a vote and I’ll end of the series by going through the pattern of choice with you. I’ll include pay patterns in my roundup, but obviously none of those will be an option for the final video. ;) (And rest assured, there will be editing on that final video, and the shell stitch video as well. I’m not going to have you sit through two hours of me crocheting a baby hat or anything.)

If you’re interested in crocheting your own scarf right now (and who wouldn’t be in spring, right? Right!) all you need to do is grab your yarn and the size of hook called for on the label. (In Bootcamp 1 I linked to a site that walks you through the label.)

Ch as many stitches as you’d like your scarf to be wide, then turn and sc across. Ch1 at the end of the row, turn, and sc across. Repeat and repeat and repeat until your scarf gets as long as you’d like it to be. Tadaa! Not only did you make that scarf yourself, you designed it yourself as well!

See, so easy.

I’ve had a request for a bigger version of the button picture. I’ll tell you what. Request denied. But mainly because it is a very grainy low-qual picture. To prove I have no fear of looking ridiculous – as if leaving my house from time to time doesn’t do that all on it’s own - I will share with you Outtake Number 11 (approximately) from the Intro video.

Crochet Bootcamp Part 1–knotting and ch stitch

Yay, a cute name! And button, button, who wants a button?! I am groaning inwardly at the fact that I’m going to generate some code for that button in a moment in case anyone feels like linking up. The things you do for love. I am quite capable but, like the spreadsheets I was coding for my husband earlier, I really hate doing it and thusly feel the need to demand praise and recognition.

<a href="http://www.onthelaundryline.com/search/label/crochet%20bootcamp"><img title="crochetbootcamp" border="0" alt="crochetbootcamp" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLQuiuRmR4aT1SEzZ0In15RRPiw2afbcSRS_dwfSxmbKnGRhOstKRdosVAwvw1XWIW-t9Q-YY757ctRLpEypmIgET94Y7aaq5aJpz2dZgd2ZS0gh_ExvO8OMvDcfpfKfqSBb6rVjmwK5s/s1600/crochetbootcamp%5B6%5D.jpg" /></a>

Copy and paste that into an html form to put this button on your site, the Crochet Bootcamp posts will be the ones that show up when you click the link. Shiny! (And yes, my chin is something to be feared and respected.)

I found a nice little post online about reading your yarn labels, so I won’t rehash but will simply direct you here. Bear in mind that I use the metric system, if you are American you’re going to have to ignore me if I use measurements like 4.5. That link, however, does not appear to be tainted by metricisms.

To start with, your best bets for yarns are a cotton or an acrylic with a satin feel. You don’t want anything with varying thickness – varying color is just fine. In my experience, cotton will be easier to work with, the satin acrylic will be easier to pull out your mistakes.

Now, I find that if I’m doing a lot of crochet (or knitting), I would rather be working with a natural yarn than an acrylic one. I find when I work with acrylic yarns, I will get almost a ‘burn’ of sorts from the yarn rubbing my hands much faster with acrylic than anything else. Now, bear in mind, I’m talking about after logging in hours and hours over the course of a few days. Don’t get alarmed or anything.

Just like sewing, you also want to watch your yarn labels for washing instructions, especially if you’re dealing with something meant for babies/children. As a general statement, it’s safer to lay crochet or knit garments flat to dry rather than put them in the dryer, but some yarns do handle dryers better than others. Wool will felt, so don’t do it unless you’re aiming for that.

I did two takes of this video. One of them had my safeway card in it, the other one I called the knot a noose and Nicole started screeching. So, Safeway card it is. Yay!

The first stitch we’re learning is the chain stitch. In a pattern, it will be noted as ch. For example, when a pattern says “ch 9” they mean to make your knot and then chain nine stitches. Reads much faster when you write it as ch 9, eh? (translation for non-Canadians: “Reads much faster when you write it as ch 9, doesn’t it?)

Intro to Crochet Bootcamp video series

First of all, I bet you $5 that I say ‘blathering idiot’ more times in this video than you have all week. Don’t forget, I do accept paypal.

Note: I now have a cutesy name. And button. Tadaa!

If you’d like to start a specific project right off with the lessons as reference, you’ll want to start off with whatever hook and yarn the project recommends. For a first project, I recommend starting something that calls for a hook no smaller than 4.5mm. You can find crochet hooks tons of places, including Wal to the Mart. Also, I recommend starting with either a cotton, a bamboo, or an acrylic with a ‘satin’ feel to it. Anything that says ‘satin’ on the label is likely to be easier to work with. Don’t start with anything textured, and don’t start with a blanket. Go for something small, something that screams ‘instant gratification’. A little baby hat can be worked up in a matter of hours, even if you have to pull half of it out three times for mistakes. Trust me on this one.