Let's Knit Magazine - Your knitting, your style

I’ve been looking for more amigurumi patterns online,and someone on Ravelry has done the penguin, which looks very cute
http://www.lionbrand.com/cgi-bin/patternFinder.fcgi?craft=Crochet&search=Search&searchText=amigurumi

I want to make myself the sunhat from Lk and the bag

Thanks for that suse,It’s been added to the favourites!! I’m making the turtle at the moment for hubby’s cousin’s kiddy as going on hols with her at the end of next month.  It’s so lovely and I’d had the pattern kicking about for ages and I was getting bored knitting a jumper day in day out for my wee cuz.  I’ve got both halves of the shell, the head and one leg finished...and I’ve hopped back to the jumper!!! ADD strikes again, lol.

NicKnits - 14 June 2008 03:31 PM

because I’m not! Am I the only one that appears to be incapable of learning to crochet? I taught myself to knit (with the help of the LK DVD and a few books) but can I teach myself to crochet? NO! and it’s dricing me mad! it can’t be that hard!

NO YOU ARE NOT NICKY....I have bought and tried lots of books even some that are mentioned above and I was going to try the tutorial in John Lewis in Glasgow but decided I was not going to make a fool of myself in public by not catching on.  I can knit almost any knitting pattern and even design my own sometimes but CROCHET...I honestly don’t know why I can’t manage it. I would love to be able to do it. So if you manage it ....come and visit me and show me how it’s done.

Grant42 - 15 June 2008 12:46 PM

I have not brought it this month as i am not into crochet,i will buy next months instead,what patterns are in next months?

I’m not into crochet either Sheryl but I did buy the mag....so I posted on another thread that if anyone wanted this month’s copy let me know and they can have it.  There are not really any patterns in it that I would fancy doing and my list of ‘things to do’ is quite long anyway.

I hope you are feeling better Cheryil...I have just been trying to get myself up to date with some of the postings as I am not on as often just now.  Too much gardening and cleaning up after workmen… and getting more knitting done.  I wanted to finish the cardi I posted yesterday as I thought it would suit DIL better than me....one of these days I will knit something for myself....when I lose about our stone I think Take care Cheryl.

KnittingOma - 15 June 2008 08:06 PM

Grant42 - 15 June 2008 12:46 PM

I have not brought it this month as i am not into crochet,i will buy next months instead,what patterns are in next months?

I’m not into crochet either Sheryl but I did buy the mag....so I posted on another thread that if anyone wanted this month’s copy let me know and they can have it.  There are not really any patterns in it that I would fancy doing and my list of ‘things to do’ is quite long anyway.

I hope you are feeling better Cheryil...I have just been trying to get myself up to date with some of the postings as I am not on as often just now.  Too much gardening and cleaning up after workmen… and getting more knitting done.  I wanted to finish the cardi I posted yesterday as I thought it would suit DIL better than me....one of these days I will knit something for myself....when I lose about our stone I think Take care Cheryl.

Hi Nessa,thank you i feel better now than what i did,i must have a good old clean tomorrow,i did not do anything last week,only lay down.You take care as well Nessa.

Hello Nicknits!!

because I’m not! Am I the only one that appears to be incapable of learning to crochet? I taught myself to knit (with the help of the LK DVD and a few books) but can I teach myself to crochet? NO! and it’s dricing me mad! it can’t be that hard! red face

Don’t give up on crocheting. When we were little we used to do finger knitting - you know when you tied a loop around your index finger, wrapped the wool over and pull the loop over the top.  We used to sit for hours to see who could make the longest chain rope.  Well crocheting is like finger knitting except you use the hook as your finger.  If you can’t hold the wool in the other hand it doesn’t matter, hold it in the same hand.  I made my first Granny blanket when I was 8 holding the wool and hook in the same hand.  Ok it wasn’t perfect but I got better!

By the way Morrisons had sold out of Let’s Knit so I haven’t got my hooks yet! Boo Hoo!

I am still endeavouring to learn to crochet.  I think I’ve mastered the circle now which I wanted to learn for my chocolate chip cookies and this weekend I have struggled to produce a circle within a square, which means I can use up all my ends of balls and make squares for a blanket (yeah right that’ll really happen).  I kept sneaking off to my bedroom to sit in the quiet.

I do struggle with crochet though.  Knitting instructions hold very little mystery to me, however reading a crochet pattern is still a real struggle and I always have to refer back to my book to see what I’m meant to be doing.  I usually restart several times!  I also can’t do it in front of the tv like I can with knitting as I have to concentrate harder, there’s lots of frowning and tongue in the corner of my mouth. 

I have two books, one is Crocheting for Dummies, which I don’t like particularly and the other is called something like Encyclopedia of Crocheting Techniques by Jan Eaton, which has been really helpful - all the instructions are very clear and it has big pictures too!

I am determined to carry on with it though and want to do the festival mat and bag in this month’s magazine.  There have been many occasions where I have ended up with a long line of stitches over my needle like a knitting needle and I’ve had to restart.

I am going away for a weekend to Lyme Regis with James soon and will be taking my book and my hooks with me - I think I can crochet on the beach more successfully than I could knit, it seems far more portable.

alisonb - 15 June 2008 08:50 PM

Hello Nicknits!!

because I’m not! Am I the only one that appears to be incapable of learning to crochet? I taught myself to knit (with the help of the LK DVD and a few books) but can I teach myself to crochet? NO! and it’s dricing me mad! it can’t be that hard! red face

Don’t give up on crocheting. When we were little we used to do finger knitting - you know when you tied a loop around your index finger, wrapped the wool over and pull the loop over the top.  We used to sit for hours to see who could make the longest chain rope.  Well crocheting is like finger knitting except you use the hook as your finger.  If you can’t hold the wool in the other hand it doesn’t matter, hold it in the same hand.  I made my first Granny blanket when I was 8 holding the wool and hook in the same hand.  Ok it wasn’t perfect but I got better!

By the way Morrisons had sold out of Let’s Knit so I haven’t got my hooks yet! Boo Hoo!

I used to do the finger knitting as a child too Alison..and I have managed a chain in crochet...but can’t seem to grasp doing anything with it.  I have looked at instruction books and just can’t seem to grasp it. It’s after you do the chain I have problems with...trying dc and all the other instructions.  I have knitted for well over thirty years and can knit almost any pattern and have been designing my own for my grand daughter sometimes ....but crochet is beyond me....H E L P as I would love to be able to.

I was taught about 20 years ago and managed a square, but then got back to knitting and forgot almost straight away. I’ve had a few abortive attempts but nothing serious enough to actually pick it up.
I’m trying to get my house and garden up to date at the moment and then plan to sit down later in the week and have a really concerted effort. I’ve got various tutorail type stuff in various books etc, there are so many online demos and if push really comes to shove there is a hookster (I can’t bring myself to call her a hooker!!!!!it just sounds wrong) at the brum knit night who seems very friendly and lovely. I will beg her to teach me and I will promise to knit her the world in return if she is sucessful.

knitternicky - 16 June 2008 11:22 AM

if push really comes to shove there is a hookster (I can’t bring myself to call her a hooker!!!!!it just sounds wrong) at the brum knit night who seems very friendly and lovely. I will beg her to teach me and I will promise to knit her the world in return if she is sucessful.

I loved that Nicky...so watch what you call her if you need to use her for crochet lessons…  

I haven’t used my free hooks yet but I’m sure I will sometime soon. Crochet was always a mystery to me until Easter this year when I sat down and forced myself to learn and I found a super easy scarf pattern over on craftster which is basically just chains and a few slipped stitches! It’s my only crochet FO and I’ll put the link here in case anybody wants to try it, and I’ll put the pics of my finished one up! It really is so easy and quick and it’s a great sense of achievement to have something wearable! Anyway, enough waffle! The pattern is here http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=54297.0

And here’s my finished scarf

KnittingOma - 16 June 2008 11:26 AM

knitternicky - 16 June 2008 11:22 AM

if push really comes to shove there is a hookster (I can’t bring myself to call her a hooker!!!!!it just sounds wrong) at the brum knit night who seems very friendly and lovely. I will beg her to teach me and I will promise to knit her the world in return if she is sucessful.

I loved that Nicky...so watch what you call her if you need to use her for crochet lessons…  

Don’t worry Nessa I will, you should check out her stuff it’s beautiful and inspirational. Her id is cacauli, shes from South America. I adore the pink bag. She is very loud and very funny too. I was sorry to miss the last meet last week because I wasn’t well. She had promised to crochet me a cupcake for my birthday.

This is where I learned from http://learntocrochet.lionbrand.com/

I find the lionbrand site a really useful resource, they have loads of free patterns on there too.

I wanted to have a look at the magazine as I’ve never bought it before and just arrived here via a web search for a knitting forum!  But for some reason my local newsagents seem to sell cross-stitch and machine knitting magazines but no knitting ones at all - I’ll have to try and pop into town and see if I can have a look at some.

I’m not sure who said they’d just crocheted a penguin amigurumi but I’ve just finished making one for my boyfriend and it was quite sweet.  He seemed pleased with it and has christened it pick-up…

love the scarf Heidi!

I’m using one of the bamboo hooks to make a fruit basket for my fruity amigurumi.
I seem to have tons of hooks as I got a bundle of very slender sizes from the charity shop for £1, then a bought a huge one (15mm?) to make a dog mat with cut up t-shirts (the ones that are too far gone for a charity bag). I’m practising to get my tension right before I start on a hat and a bag for me!

I’m not getting on too well with them yet, I think I need a bit of peace and quiet and Youtube in front of me to have a proper go at it.  I really want to learn but I know what I’m like, I just get annoyed if I can’t do it straight away.  I found out tonight that there’s a Learn to Crochet class this Sunday and next here in Edinburgh but I don’t think I can make it.  Will watch out for the next one, or I might decide at 4pm on Sat that I will go after all!  I’ll see how I get on with Youtube first - might have a chance tomorrow evening to have a proper shot at it.