Some Why's of Knitting/Crocheting

Well, well, well, you learn something new every day.

Now I've been crocheting for about...wow...17 years. Yet, I never really looked into the why's of crocheting. Why make a gauge? Why am I supposed to use this yarn? Why can't I use another type of hook?

And the big one....WHY are there so many types of yarns and what do they mean?

Well....I'll tell you!

I did some searching and found a great article. It is mainly pointed towards knitters but it's interesting for crocheters too. It explains why the type, or weight, of yarn used matters, why your gauge matters and even how to adjust your pattern and/or needles to accommodate a different type of yarn. This is done via a chart showing the average difference between the yarns in regards to stitches.

Now, all of this still depends on if you tend to stitch loosely or tightly. I always stitch tighter so a lot of times I have to use a hook one size up to get the correct gauge.

Happy Knitting/Crocheting!!!

Old Magazines

By Kelly

A rainy, humid day and a huge stack of old crochet magazines (care of Donna) to look through. And I'm having fun looking for old patterns to scan into my computer.

It brings back childhood memories, of my mom coming home from a garage sale with a brown paper shopping bag full of books and magazines. Mind you, when I was a kid, the magazines were from the '60's and '70's. Now, they're dated from the '80's, but they still have that fragile look - yellowing pages and torn, worn covers. It's weird to think that little kids might one day be reading the magazines from today with the same awe that I read the ones from the 1960's. Maybe more, because printed magazines might go the way of vinyl records and reel to reel home movies.

Meanwhile, my stash of crochet and knitting patterns grows and grows...