Monday, October 17, 2011

How Do I Start?


I just got my Sharp Crochet Hook in the mail, and I bought two yards of flannel from Joann's. Now what? Do I need to wash the fabric? Do I need to finish the edges somehow or sew the two pieces together before I can start crocheting the edging?

6 comments:

  1. Kristin my sil might know, ask her.
    kristinnakaya@gmail.com

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  2. Hey also when you find out can you share?
    I also think with a small hook and small yarn you could make cute flowers for hair clips.

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  3. Wash your flannel first, flannel always shrinks a bit, so wash it the way you would when you would be washing it normally, then sew your edges down, just like a normal folded over edge.

    then you can start your crocheting, you will want to start with a blanket stitch first, you do that with a needle and your crochet thread. Get a nice needle, a heavy one like for darning socks with almost, with a big enough eye to put your crochet thread through, and do a buttonhole or blanket stitch, it isn't like the blanket or buttonhole stitch on your sewing machine,and here are a few sites to see how it is done

    youtube.com
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME3qZMol4RI
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoCIefoyvCQ
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJht13Bcw-U

    and it is really easy to do, but that will give you a clean line across the very edge of your blanket in which you will be able to crochet without having to try to poke extra holes in your flannel.

    you can then use any crochet pattern or design you want for your edge :)

    hope this helps :)
    Bri.

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  4. Since you have the sharp crochet hook, you can skip the blanket stitch. That's the whole point of the sharp needle, but do wash the flannel first. I'd probably only hem the edges if I were doing a wide stitch. If you're going to do the first row a quarter inch down into the fabric, it'll gather the edge up and protect it, if your first row of stitches are close enough together. Do a small sampler and wash it afterwards to see how it looks to you. It just depends on what kind of stitches your first row is going to be. You'd be safe to hem, but might not need to. (I hate hemming...)

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  5. I say do a sample of both, see which way you like it better, personally I don't use the buttonhole or blanket stitch on fleece but always use it on flannel, but that is just me. a sample like Kathleen said really is the smart start :)

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  6. Definitely wash them first, they often shrink differently. Then I'd run a basting stitch around the edge to keep it together(unpick later). I don't think you have to hem it as long as your stitches are pretty close together.

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