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| Featured Pattern of the Week: Baby Cowboy Hat |
        Interested in knitting? Visit our sister site: Knitting Pattern Central  | Tips 'n TricksDo you have a helpful hint or handy trick that will make any aspect of crocheting easier? Share it! Post ideas on scrap yarn usages, stitch markers, starching, hook organization, color changing, maintaining your sanity while following a difficult pattern, etc. There is most probably someone out there that will benefit from your help. Need ideas yourself? Read others' comments--we all live and learn! Name: Melyssa Subject: lost hooks Comment: Hi! I love your website. iv'e just started crocheting not too long ago. One way to keep your hook in a safe place is to stick it in your ball of yarn. Thanks! Name: jaye Subject: measured yarn ounces Comment: WHENEVER I MAKE MY AFGHANS, I ALWAYS WEIGH MY YARN AND MARK THE COST OF YARN ON IT. THEN WITH MY LEFT OVER I WEIGH IT AND PLACE A PIECE OF MASKING TAPE AT THE ENDS AND MARK ON IT THE OZ'S AND THE PRICE AND DIVIDE THE TOTAL OZ'S BY THE PRICE. AND THAT WAY I KNOW HOW MUCH IT COST TO MAKE MY BLANKETS. Name: Cheryl Subject: composition book crochet journal and post-it notes Comment: Not only do post-its work well to keep track of where you are in a pattern (sticks nicely and stays put!), you can also write down the day you started, type of yarn used, hook size and completion date. Then, when the project is finished, transfer the information to the composition book (yes, the kind we used in school) as a crochet journal. The finishing touch is a photo of the work in your journal! Name: Cheryl Subject: personalized labels Comment: It is well worth the couple of bucks to buy those little personalized labels with your name on it...esp. when giving crochet as a gift. And instead of sewing the label in, just use a little fabric-tac glue to hold it in place (it stays on wash after wash ladies!). The personalized label reminds the receiver just how much care went into the work...crochet gifts are always from the heart! Name: Amanda Subject: Inexpensive Patterns Comment: I love having lots of patterns to look through without getting on the computer. I go to used bookstores in town and buy old crochet magazines. They are usually about 50 cents a piece. I keep them in magazine boxes that go on my bookshelves, so everything looks neat and tidy. I have so many patterns from before I was born (I'm 26) that can be updated by simply changing the color scheme! Also, my best friend has cats. To keep her yarn from being run through the house, she puts balls of yarn for her WIP in a shoebox with a hole cut in the end and threads the ends through. Name: Marcy Subject: storing hooks Comment: In additon to the tip from Del B.: some toothbrush holders have a small hole at each end that tiny hooks may slip through, I put a cotton ball in each end to help prevent that. Name: Jequeta Subject: counting rows Comment: Sometimes you may need to count many rows. A good way to keep track is to use coins. Say you are on row 5 and the next 5 rows need to be repeated. This works great when working in rounds. Using a nickel for row 5, add a penny to it when you finish row 6, another one for row 7 etc. When you finish row 9, you should have 1 nickel and 4 pennies. For row 10, change to a dime. This has helped me many times, especially when I cannot located my row counter. Coins are always handy. Name: Del B. Subject: hook storage Comment: I store my smaller crochet hooks in a plastic travel case used for a toothbrush. The case easily fits any place you store your yarn. Name: Marcy Subject: marking rows Comment: I have run into several patterns that say to mark a stitch or a row with a small piece of contrasting yarn, I hate trying to tie a piece of yarn onto my project. I found that a bobby pin works beautifully, especialy if you have the kind with the rounded ends, thay way it will not split your yarn as easily, and it is easy to place and to remove. Name: Sue Ellen Subject: Learn to crochet Comment: I have been crocheting for over 20 years and I was lucky enough to be taught very basic crochet by my grandmother when I was young. However I wanted to learn more. I found that checking out books from the library from the CHILDREN'S section worked wonders. They are written in very simple language and usually have wonderful illustrations for those of us who are visual learners. Name: Betty Subject: Marking patterns Comment: when I am crocheting pettern I have a trick my mother shared years ago. I use a straight pin with a large ball head (hat pin works great!!!), or even a t pin, and stick it into the pattern where I am at. It keeps me right on track and I can follow rows really easy. If you are afraid of damaging your pattern (I have reused mine lots of times!!) just make a copy and that way, also, if the pin gets bumped out of place you can find where you were with the 'new hole' Name: Linda Subject: lost hooks Comment: I've been crocheting for 40 years. It's my stress reliever, my therapy.My hint---I made a bunch of small cloth bags and into each I put a little container of assorted size needles and a scissor(I bought them for 15cents each at the school supply sale). When I start a project I put the hook I need into the bag with the needles and scissor and that goes into my work bag.I also put one containing a few different size hooks into the car so I don't have to crawl under the seat the next time I drop my hook on the way to work (yes, my husband drives). In this complicated, electronic world in which we live, crocheting takes me back to the days when we hung our laundry on the line and no one thought we were weird for doing so. And yes, I do hang my laundry on the line! Name: Allison Subject: Sanity with Difficult Patterns Comment: Whenever I am working on a challenging pattern - I walk away and come back to it a few days later, reread the pattern and try again in a quiet room with no interruptions. Oftentimes, I figure out what I was doing wrong and that breather from it refocuses me on the project I'm working on! Name: debra Subject: granny squares Comment: whenever i finish up a project i use the left over wool to make small granny squares - i have about 300 of them in all different colors - when i get ready to stich them up in black i will have a blanket with many mulitiple colors that if i had to go out and buy all this wool it would be quite costly. Name: Dorothy Subject: granny squares Comment: When you make an afghan out of squares or any other shape make a couple extras stitch them to the back side of the afghan. If you ever need to replace a square you have it made and the color will match because it has been laundered with the rest of the blanket. Not to mention the dye lot will be the same. No more searching for an old dyelot or pattern. Select a Page << Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 Next >> Share your own hints by filling in the form below... |
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