[NFB-Krafters-Korner] crochet stitches

Thu Feb 22 17:49:02 UTC 2024

Crochet stitches

Here is part of a book that gives a good description of the chain, single
crochet, half double and double crochet stitches.  I will send more as we
progress.

*** Stitches***

HOW TO CROCHET

     Introduction

     Crochet is an old and versatile form of handwork. It has been used for
centuries. It can be used to make practically anything, from the very
delicate lace with which we adorn our homes and our clothes, to durable
wearable items that keep us warm.

The craft, or art, of crocheting came about when women decided they needed a
way to use the thread or yarn that they were spinning from natural fibers in
a new and different way. Much of the fiber was used for weaving, hence the
first cloth that people used to make clothing. But fibers like wool lent
themselves readily to more than cloth fabrics. They were spun into yarn and
sometimes different pieces of this yarn were plied into thicker pieces and
more than one  color.

After this discovery was made, families handed down this craft for centuries
until the present day.

     For a long time I have felt that there should be a book that a blind
person can pick up and use to learn this craft. There are many books on
learning to crochet for the sighted crafter. But most of them rely on
pictures to explain how the stitches are made and are therefore unaccessible
to the blind crafter. This small book will take you stitch by stitch through
the steps of crocheting until you can do anything your sighted friends can
do. You will also learn how to read patterns so that once you are familiar
with the stitches, you may pick up a pattern and make anything you desire.
After you learn the basic stitches, there are many new techniques you can
learn such as crochet and weave, crochet on a roll, cro-knit, cro-tatting,
and filet.

     Crocheting can be done with many fibers, from very fine thread to bulky
yarns. There are different sizes of hooks, therefore, to use with these
different types of material. When you're working with thread, you usually
use steel crochet hooks, which range in size from 00 to 14.

When discussing steel crochet hooks, the smaller the number, the larger the
hook. Therefore, 14 is the tiniest hook and 00 is the largest.

     For yarn, on the other hand, these steel hooks are too small in most
cases. Therefore, you use aluminum crochet hooks, ranging in size from B to
Q. When speaking of aluminum crochet hooks, the closer the letter is to the
beginning of the alphabet, the smaller the hook. This means that B is the
smallest, and Q is the largest.

     Why are there different sizes of hooks? Because the hook determines the
gauge, or size of the finished project. When you are first learning to
crochet, it is important to check your gauge, or the size of your work. This
helps you to determine whether you are crocheting too loosely or too tight.
If you are not crocheting to gauge, you may need to use a larger or smaller
hook to achieve the proper size. This is especially important with
wearables.

The gauge that you should

achieve is always given at the beginning of the pattern from which you are
working. After you have crocheted for a while, you will learn how to achieve
proper gauge and this will be less important. But until that time, I
recommend that you have a brailled or marked tape measure handy while
working, to make sure you are working to proper gauge or tension.

     One more important note, these lessons build on one another, so it is
best if you go through them in order. If you skip around in the book, it may
make less sense. Also, since we are relying strictly on words to convey
these basic stitches, it is important that you read carefully through the
instructions before trying the stitch, then read again through each step as
you do it.

This will plant the steps more firmly in your mind.

     Now you are ready to start lesson one. It is my hope that you find this
book useful and that you learn a new and enjoyable craft. Happy crocheting!

Lesson 1

The Chain Stitch

     Before you can learn the basic stitches in crochet, you need to learn
to chain. This is always the foundation of any crochet project, and must be
learned well before any other work can be done. The chain stitch is
abbreviated ch for patterns. This may sound too simple, but if you don't
have a good chain to start with, it can ruin an otherwise great piece of
work.  I suggest that you start with a fairly large hook, a j or a k
perhaps, and some worsted weight yarn. Tie the yarn on the hook  with  a
slip knot. To make a slip knot, wrap the yarn around your finger once. Then
wrap the yarn around itself at the bottom of the loop on your finger and put
the end through the loop. Tug a bit to tighten, then place the loop from
your finger on your crochet hook. This loop should be tight enough not to
come loose, but not so tight that it can't move on your hook because it will
form your first chain stitch.

          Hold the hook in your dominant hand. There are many different ways
to hold a

               crochet hook. I will not, therefore, suggest a correct way as
I don't believe

               there is one. Some people hold a hook as you would a pencil
or pen.

               Others hold it as you would a knife, with your hand on top of
the hook.

               This is my preferred way as it gives me more control over the
end of my

               hook as it goes through the stitches. But if you feel more
comfortable with

               another way, even if it isn't one of these, that is fine.
Hold the hook in

               whatever way is comfortable to you. I would suggest, however,
that in the

               beginning, you hold it with the hook end up so that it is
easier to catch

               your yarn. As you progress in your work, this may change, but
for now, it

               is the easiest way.

     Once you have made a slip knot, and have it on your hook, the yarn
you're working from should be hanging down beside the tail left from the
slip knot. You can weave in this tail later and it will not detract from
your work.

Step 1:   Bring your yarn over the hook, coming toward you. This means

that the yarn will

be lying on top of your hook and will be fully wrapped around the hook so
that it is hanging down as it was before, but there are two loops on your
hook, one from the slip knot, and the one you just made.

Step 2: Then slide the loop that is on your hook from the slip knot over the
one you made by wrapping the yarn, and off of the hook.  This leaves one
loop on your hook, the one made by your yarnover. You have completed one
chain stitch.  Give the tail of your yarn at the bottom a slight tug to make
sure the loop you made isn't too tight. this will keep your chain even. Do
this after each loop you make.

Step 3: Then yarn over again and push the loop on the hook over it and off.
Again give the tail a slight tug to straighten it.  It is essential that you
practice this until you can chain evenly.

Otherwise, your work will not lie flat.

Later in this book, I will give you some practice pieces to do with each
stitch, so that you can work with the stitch a wile and get used to it. This
is the only way to learn. However, I think it would be a good idea to try a
sampler, so that you can see how the stitches build on one another.

It is very important to know what a correct stitch looks like so that you
can find and fix your mistakes. We all make them, and the easier they are to
find and fix, the less frustrating the work will be. To begin your sampler
then, start by chaining 40 chain stitches across. Do this until your chains
are fairly even across so that the sampler will be flat enough to show your
stitches well later. When you have completed this, continue on to the next
lesson.

*****Lesson 2

THE SINGLE CROCHET

     For lesson 2 we will start on the single crochet. This is abbreviated
sc for patterns.

The single crochet is the basic stitch from which all other stitches are
built. To make a single crochet, you will be working into the chain stitches
you made in lesson 1. You should have 40 stitches across, and have your hook
in the loop of the last stitch.

Step 1:   Not counting the loop on the hook, find the second chain

from your hook and put

the hook through it. You should now have the chain on your hook, and behind
it, the loop of the last chain you made in the foundation row.

Step 2: Yarnover as you did to make the chain stitch. Pull the loop made by
the second chain from your hook over the yarnover and off of the hook. This
leaves two loops on your hook, the one from the yarnover and the one from
the chain at the end of the row.

Step 3: Yarn over again and put both of the other loops off of the hook over
the yarnover. This leaves one loop on your hook, the one from the last
yarnover. You have completed one single

crochet stitch. Continue steps 1-3   across the chain, making a single

crochet in each chain stitch.

At the end of the row, you should have 39 single crochet stitches.

After you have done this row,

do another row of single crochet stitches into the previous row, but before
you start, chain one stitch. This brings your hook up to the top of your
work. Also, since you always work from right to left, it will be necessary
to turn your work so that the hook will be on the right end of your work.

Again, practice makes perfect. If your stitches seem a little tight, or the
loops on your hook are difficult to move, concentrate on making your
yarnovers looser so that this will not happen. It is not unusual for
beginners at crochet to work too tight. Just relax and enjoy learning and
soon your work will reflect your relaxed state and become looser. You don't
want your stitches to be too loose, but you want them even so that your work
will be close to proper gauge or size when finished.

Lesson 3: The half double crochet

     the next stitch you will learn is the half double crochet, abbreviated
hdc in patterns.

Step 1:You will remember that when you did the single crochet, you put the
hook through the chain or stitch and then made your new stitch. This time,
before you do that, you will yarnover first.

Step 2: After you yarnover, put your hook through the stitch and yarnover
again.

Step 3: Pull the loop made by your yarnover through the stitch. You will now
have 3 loops on your hook. The one farthest back is from your previous
stitch or turning chain. The next is from the first yarnover you made before
going into the stitch, and the one closest to the hook is the second
yarnover you made.

Step 4: Yarnover again, and pull all three of the loops behind this last
yarnover off the hook over the yarnover you just made. This will leave one
loop on your hook, which came from the yarnover you made before pulling off
the other loops. You have completed a half double crochet.

Now, to add some of these stitches to your sampler, work as follows:

Step 1: Take up your work and turn it so that the hook, which should be in
the last stitch at the end of your second single crochet row, is at the
right end of your work.

Step 2: As before, you need to bring your hook up to the new row's height.
You will remember that when you did a single crochet, you chained one (ch1)
at the end of each row. But half double crochets are a little higher than
single crochets, so you chain two instead of one when you're going to make a
half double crochet row. This is written ch2.

Step 3: Once you have made the 2 chains, go into the next stitch and do your
first half double crochet according to the previous steps given. Continue
across the row, doing a half double crochet in each stitch across to the
last stitch.

Step 4: Once you have finished crocheting in the last stitch, chain two as
before, turn your work, and start back across to make your second row of
half double crochets.

When you reach the last

stitch, it will be the chain two that you made when you started the first
row. Make a hdc in the top chain of this ch2.

     Now, before going on to the next stitch, look for a moment at the
stitches you have made so far. A careful inspection of your work will show
you that single crochets are smaller than half double crochets. This is
because of the aded loops used to make the half double crochet.

Therefore, you now know that the more loops there are in a stitch, the
longer or higher it will be.

When you feel that you have mastered this stitch go on to lesson 4.

Lesson 4: THE DOUBLE CROCHET

     the next stitch you will learn is the double crochet, abbreviated dc
for patterns. This stitch is another basic stitch and builds on the half
double crochet learned in the previous lesson.

Step 1: To double crochet, before inserting the hook in the chain, wrap the
yarn around your hook once. this is a yarn over, like the one you did in the
half double crochet.

Step 2: then insert the hook in the chain, yarn over again, and pull the
loop through as you did when you made the single and half double crochet.
You will then have 3 loops on your hook.

Step 3: then yarn over again, and draw through two loops, leaving 2 loops on
the hook.

Step 4: Yarn over again and draw through two loops. You now have one loop on
the hook and have completed a double crochet.

     To practice this, let's look at your sampler. When you pick it up
again, you should have one loop at the end of your last row of half double
crochets. Put your hook through this loop. As before, you need a turning
chain to keep your work straight. But also as before, your work is changing.
These stitches are higher still than the half double crochets you made in
the previous rows. So instead of chaining twice, you chain three times,
written ch3. Usually, unless the pattern says otherwise, your turning chain
for double crochets will be a ch3.

So make three chains, then

follow steps 1-4 above and make a double crochet row across in each half
double crochet you made before. When you finish this to your satisfaction,
chain 3, turn your work and do another row to get back to the other end of
your work.

     Now stop for a moment and look at your work to learn the difference
between these new rows and the previous ones. You will note that these are
longer stitches and probably easier to distinguish from one another than the
half double crochets or the single crochets. Since you cannot use your eyes
to look at your work, it is very important that you teach your fingers to
know these stitches when they see them. When you have learned them well
enough, proceed to the next lesson.

--

Independence is yours .  Are you willing to reach for it?

Tammy

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