Have you seen the trend of knitting projects with dropped stitches that are later picked up into a braid? Of course, crochet stitches don’t drop, so there needs to be a workaround. Using long chains, crocheters can achieve the same look. If you’re familiar with long chains such as those used in the Knot Stitch (Also known as the Lover’s Knot or Solomon’s Knot), You’re already ahead of the game.
read more »

Do you love the look of knitting but don’t have the desire to pick up the needles? Tunisian Crochet offers many gorgeous stitches that have a similar look to knitting, but what if you don’t want to dip into the Tunisian waters yet? Here comes the Camel Stitch, a crochet stitch that looks remarkably like knitting.

read more »

The holiday season is well underway and I hope you have been enjoying it as much as I have! In order to support your Christmas and holiday gift giving, I created these downloadable “crocheted by” gift tags. There are 5 different variations to print and use.

For me, the worse part of the Christmas season is the day we have to put away all of our festive and beloved holiday decorations. I mean, who wants to be the people with a Christmas tree up in April? The holiday season is over and here it comes- the winter ennui (that’s my “Vocabulary Word of the Day” and it means boredom)! I look around, and within an hour my formerly happy, cozy home looks empty and sullen, with a pile of dead pine needles covering the floor! So this year, when I take down the Christmas décor, I am going to hang up winter décor!

Yes, in our house, January will be the month to decorate and celebrate the winter season with a variety of fabulous winter-themed décor such as snowmen, snowflakes, and snow, snow, snow!
read more »

As a crochet-addict and mother of three, I am constantly trying to find ways to get my kids crocheting. The Chain Stitch Christmas Garland was perfect for us! This project is a great way to use the kids’ Christmas season excitement to teach them a few crocheting fundamentals. The garland is worked entirely in the crochet chain stitch, and the end result is a colorful, braided garland to hang on your tree, mantle piece, or anywhere else you wish. My kids chose to hand there’s on the cat; but that’s another story.

read more »

A Guest Post by Molly Ferriter.
(Tips from a Crochet-Obsessed Mommy)

Okay, I’ll admit it… I used to be a yarn snob. I’m serious; I was a real Crochet Princess. I used to shun the Walmart yarn section like the black plague. I mean, who wants that scratchy acrylic yarn anyway? I’ll tell you who… I do! I am a former public school teacher turned SAHM (stay at home mom), obsessed with crocheting, and now that my family of five lives on one income, I can’t afford to be a yarn snob. And to be honest, I’ve come to love the abundance of colors and the wash-ability in acrylic yarn. I very rarely use anything else anymore. I can toss my hand-made hats, mittens, sweaters, afghans, and amigurumi Elsa dolls right into the washer without worry, because honestly, I don’t have time to hand-wash my crocheted items. I need a durable, washable, dryer-safe, colorful, kid-friendly yarn. Red Heart Super Saver to the rescue!
read more »

Did you know that while crochet is found all over the world, the names and abbreviations we use for the crochet patterns are different, even in other English-speaking countries? It can be very confusing to come across a great crochet pattern, look it over, and realize that the stitches in the pattern do not appear to match the picture! Luckily, it’s pretty easy to read a foreign crochet pattern in English, and I’ve even created a downloadable chart for you to keep on hand in case you need it.

I should mention here that our Australian Crochet Spotters must be doing these “translations” all the time!

It’s safe to say that a lot of traditional crochet stitches translate over to Tunisian crochet. Bobble stitches can make nice accents with either technique.

If you are not familiar with Tunisian Crochet, see the Tunisian simple stitch tutorial to get started. It also helps, but isn’t necessary, to know the Tunisian double crochet stitch and the traditional crochet bobble.
read more »

There is quite a bit of math that goes into crochet. Sometimes it works perfectly with basic techniques, but there are times where a crafter needs to get creative and increase to decrease or decrease to increase to get the right shaping and number of stitches. Learning to mix up your increases and decreases is useful for designing and improvising as well as for as customizing patterns to fit yourself.
read more »

The puff stitch is one of the many traditional crochet stitches that easily translates over to Tunisian crochet. I like puff stitches because they don’t add as much bulk as some other relief stitches, but they still stand out nicely. If you are already familiar with Tunisian crochet, try this stitch out.
read more »