Thread Crochet Part Two

This is my latest attempt at thread crochet. A challenging piece! Just as a sidenote, the pineapple design is symbolic of hospitality, as explained in 50 Fabulous Pineapple Crochet Motifs by Jean Leinhauser and Ferosa Harold.

This book has a great intro and many truly stunning pieces, everything from traditional doilies to angels and owls. The pieces range from intermediate to challenging(such as the above motif). I will try to get a better picture for my next post.

Thread Crochet

So I've started doing thread crochet again. It's really no different from any other kind of crochet, just smaller. You get used to the scale after a few rounds.

I also learned that crochet patterns in other countries besides the US use a different system of abbreviations. Instead of the US version, which uses sc, dc, etc., international patterns use dc for sc, and tr for dc. Just a little bit of trivia.

Here's a little history about crochet, from Wikipedia:

No one is sure when it began, but there aren't any references to it before the 19th century in Europe. One of its earliest incarnations, Irish lace, was developed during the Great Irish Famine (1845 - 1849) as a way to generate income for poor Irish people.

Crochet has spread in popularity in the modern era, even being included on television shows like Project Runway. Filet crochet, Tunisian crochet, tapestry crochet, broomstick lace, hairpin lace, cro-hooking, and Irish crochet are all variants of the basic crochet method.

In my next posts, I'll include simple how-to's on crochet basics and new techniques, such as a magic circle and the Japanese foundation row, which eliminates the need for crocheting a chain when working a foundation row of single crochet.

Since this is my first post, I want to tell you a little about myself. I'm a bookkeeper who lives on an old farm. I love to crochet, embroider, paint and draw, read, whatever keeps me busy. I'm just starting to sell my crafts online and at craft fairs, and so far have been enjoying that too.

I learned to crochet and embroider from my grandmother, as a lot of us learned from our parents and grandparents. I got more into the crocheting at first, but picked up embroidery again a few years ago. I learned more on my own, and recently have begun designing my own embroidery patterns. I learned Hardanger, crewel, counted thread techniques, and Ukrainian embroidery. I also recently became a crochet teacher at the local craft store. I enjoy teaching the technique to beginners and helping out seasoned crocheters with their problems in patterns and such.

In this blog, I hope to have some how-tos, simple projects, interviews with other crafters, and other things to keep it interesting and varied. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I will enjoy writing it! Thanks, and I'll see you next time.