Author Archive

Crochet Pattern: Bobble Bowl

Posted in Free Crochet Patterns on February 17th, 2012 by Candace – 8 Comments
This bowl makes an interesting piece for the coffee table when you put your favorite things in it. Use it to hold candies or to show off your latest works in progress.

For extra fun, you can try crocheting it in wool and felting it for an even tighter fabric and smaller bowl.

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Understanding Crochet Shaping

Posted in Tutorials and Help on February 16th, 2012 by Candace – 7 Comments

Shaping is a very important concept in crochet, especially when it comes to wearables. Knowing how to manipulate shape comes in handy for designing and altering patterns to get the best fit. This guide is a handy reference for anyone who needs to add a little extra or take anything away.

Increasing and decreasing are common ways of adding shape to projects. Patterns such as chevrons and ripple afghans take advantage of the properties of these techniques to create points and undulating curves. Decreases make downward points, while increases create upward points.


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How to Make a Russian Join

Posted in Tutorials and Help on February 9th, 2012 by Candace – 31 Comments

Sometimes you just don’t want to use regular joining methods to add another ball of yarn to your project. That’s where the Russian Join comes in. It is practically invisible and there’s no worrying about how to work the stitches in transition from one ball to another.

Thread a yarn needle with your current color. Weave the needle through the yarn.


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Crochet Pattern: Cabled Mini Bag

Posted in Free Crochet Patterns on February 8th, 2012 by Candace – 4 Comments
While I’m a huge fan of the big tote bag that holds my yarn, patterns, notebooks, wallet, and everything else I can cram in there, sometimes the occasion calls for something smaller. This little evening bag has cables that snake their way up the front and a small flap that just covers the top without covering the cables.

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How to Crochet: Invisible Half Double Crochet Decrease

Posted in Tutorials and Help on February 2nd, 2012 by Candace – 4 Comments

Invisible decreases are decreases that look like a normal stitches. If you are used to making traditional decreases, you’ll notice that the decreases are obvious and don’t always blend in with the rest of the work. Regular decreases do their job, but when you want the decreases to be less noticeable try using an invisible decrease! There’s an invisible hdc decrease in the next picture.

What’s that you say? You can’t see it? That’s because it’s invisible! Look again.

There it is, right next to the traditional hdc2tog. This decrease follows the same idea as the invisible sc decrease.
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Crochet Pattern: Amigurumi Octopus Holder

Posted in Free Crochet Patterns on January 25th, 2012 by Candace – 7 Comments
No, it doesn’t hold your amigurumi octopus. It’s a spiral-constructed amigurumi octopus that holds your stuff.

I love doing my nails, and having something small to stuff a few manicures’ worth of cotton balls in is a lot more convenient and cute than letting them hang loose in my bag of supplies. You can stuff yours with tissues, larger beads, or anything else that will fit or you can stuff it with fiberfill and draw the hole closed for a plain old amigurumi.

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How to Crochet: Triple Treble Crochet Stitch (trtr)

Posted in Tutorials and Help on January 24th, 2012 by Candace – 8 Comments

If the double treble just isn’t enough for you or your pattern, triple treble (trtr) stitches give you even more height.

To make a a trtr: yo (yarn over) 4 times, insert hook into next st, yo, pull up a loop, (yo, pull through two loops) 5 times.

Here’s the visual breakdown. You can hover over the pictures with your cursor to see the left hand view.

To start your triple treble, yarn over four times. Your work should look like this:


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How to Crochet: Linked Double Crochet (Ldc)

Posted in Tutorials and Help on January 17th, 2012 by Candace – 18 Comments

Linked double crochets are closer together than traditional double crochet stitches. The fabric they create is more dense and stiffer.

If you’re left handed, you can hover over the pictures with your cursor to see the left hand view.

Find the lower horizontal bar of the stitch. It’s actually slightly diagonal (more so if the preceding stitch is a traditional dc), but when you’re done, it will be more level and the resulting stitch will resemble two rows of single crochet.


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Crochet Pattern: Bordered Bib

Posted in Free Crochet Patterns on January 14th, 2012 by Candace – 1 Comment
Babies sure are cute, but they’re also messy and unpredictable, so it’s good to have a sizable collection of bibs on hand. This bordered bib will catch your baby’s food and protects clothes– maybe even that sweater you crocheted.

The raised post stitches and simple decreases make this a good pattern for beginners who want to branch out.

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How to Crochet: Linked Half Double Crochet (Lhdc)

Posted in Tutorials and Help on January 11th, 2012 by Candace – 16 Comments

Linking half double crochet stitches (and other stitches) eliminates the space between the stitches and creates a denser fabric. The stitch is simple to make and is great for when you need a tighter horizontal gauge.

If you’re left handed, you can hover over the pictures with your cursor to see the left hand view.

Start by finding the vertical thread at the left side (right, if you’re left-handed) of the stitch.


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