Waffle Stitch
4mm hook, Divante DK Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 1 hour 25 mins
Amount of yarn used: 13g
Foundation chain is multiples of 3, plus 4
I started with a ‘fun’ one, at least in my opinion! I wanted to have a go at this stitch for the longest time, because it looks really cool and is super textural. Like many of these patterns, they’re usually a variation on the ‘basic' stitches, so once I got the hang of the process, it wasn’t too bad. Though, I did go wrong at the start slightly, which you may be able to see in the photo- looks like I added an extra stitch on the beginning row. Doh! It creates a pretty structural, stiff fabric, so wouldn’t be suitable for every project, but it would lend itself nicely to some really creative pieces. I was stoked to have finally got round to trying this stitch and would be amazing if I could try to incorporate it into one of my designs at some point…
Half Double Back Loop Only
4.5mm hook, Women’s Institute DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 55 mins
Amount of yarn used: 9g
Foundation chain is to the required size, plus 1 for HDC
From the sublime to the quite basic, we go back to my HDC BLO mission, in the shape of testing out my perceived ‘Goldilocks’ hook in the form of a 4.5mm. If you cast your mind back to my previous post on this, it is for a sweater vest, which will become my next project. Which is why this specific stitch is currently under so much scrutiny! I still don’t know if the 4.5mm is the ‘one’; I feel because I didn’t crochet this test swatch in the same yellow colour as the other experiments, it’s made my decision making process even harder, as it didn’t feel like it was a direct comparison. Though, I know for a fact I don’t want to use the 5mm and the 4mm does seem a little on the dense side, so I should really just bite the bullet and make the garment using this hook. I mean we’re talking fine margins here, so why I can’t just pick a hook size and start the thing is beyond me…
Almond Stitch
4.5mm hook, Wendy Supreme DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 50 mins
Amount of yarn used: 6g
Foundation chain is multiples of 8, plus 5
Again, my quest for the ‘perfect’ hook continues into the Almond Stitch. Aforementioned in my previous post on this, I feel I might have actually hit the sweet spot with the 4.5mm. Has Flora Martyr actually made a decision here? Watch this space to find out!
Basket Weave
4.5mm hook, Women’s Institute DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 1 hour, 10 mins
Amount of yarn used: 9g
Foundation chain is multiples of 8, plus 7
This was another one I’ve been wanting to try for a while now, because I absolutely love the stitch pattern. Admittedly, it was slightly difficult to get the hang of, but once I got in the rhythm of it, it was all good and I didn’t make any glaringly obvious mistakes. Well done me! If I’m getting pernickety about hook sizes here, then I feel the 4.5 was a bit too much of a middle ground for this stitch- if it was for a garment, I would have sized up to a 5 to allow slightly more stretch/ drape, because it does work up a quite stiff swatch. And if it was for an item such as a cushion or bag or what have you, then I would have sized down, to give it a really compact feel and even more structure and less stretch. I do really like how this one turned out, so I’ll definitely want to try something in this stitch in the future. My ‘to crochet’ list is not getting any shorter!
Houndstooth
4mm hook, Women’s Institute DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 1 hour, 10 mins
Amount of yarn used: 12g
Foundation chain is multiples of 2, plus 1
Following on from a few of the others in this post, again this is one I’ve been wanting to try for a long time. It’s a nice relaxing stitch to work up, though the amount of ends you need to weave in with this one is not enjoyable! I think this might actually be my favourite of this batch- the colour scheme I used is quite striking and it has a lovely finish. There WILL be a garment out of this in the coming months. Maybe longer, she quickly adds, realising she might not have time right away with all the other stuff she’s got going on! I would say a 5mm hook would be more desirable for this one for clothing, because it would allow for a less dense feel to the fabric.
Moss Stitch
5mm hook, Women’s Institute DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 30 mins
Amount of yarn used: 5g
Foundation chain is any even number
I wanted to try this one to see what all the fuss is about- people seem to love this one in the online crochet-sphere. Please don’t hate me, but I kind of think it’s a bit ‘meh’. Not that interesting, but not offensive either. I do like how neat it works up, but at this point, I doubt I’d make any plans to use it in the immediate future. Sorry, internet!
Shell Stitch
4.5mm hook, Women’s Institute DK Premium Acrylic yarn
Time taken: 1 hour, 10 mins
Amount of yarn used: 9g
Foundation chain is multiples of 6, plus 2
And lastly, we have the Shell Stitch. I’ve been curious about this one- mainly in the mechanics of it. It’s sort of like a much more elaborate granny stitch, in my opinion. And before I go any further, yes, I appreciate the colour scheme is an absolute shocker here! It really was a scrap yarn project in the truest meaning of the term. These were yarns that I had left over from the Christmas projects and which I’m unlikely to use in any of my upcoming pieces, because they’re just not the sorts of colours I wear. So I don’t think the colour choices are doing this stitch many favours- I think if I had gone with more subtle tones or similar shades of the same colour, then I would have been able to make more of an informed opinion on the appearance of this one. But I definitely can see the potential here- maybe for something more like a scarf.
These might be the last swatches I do for a while, because I want to crack on with an actual project now (if I can make up my mind about the hook size, that is)! It was nice to get a few of these out my system though! Plus, I do have a film project to be getting on with- remember I used to make animations, not just crochet?! I am actually working on another big animation project right now, but that is all under wraps currently, though I will reveal all about that when the time is right. Until then, see you in the next one xo
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