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A Different Sheep- Blue Faced- and the Yarn

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It is becoming a bit more common to find the breed of the sheep listed as the fiber content of yarns, but without some knowledge of the breed it can make it difficult to assess what to expect from the yarn, it can actually make it difficult to assess the yarn itself, as often you may not even realize that it is a wool breed.

Blue Faced Luster or Bluefaced Leicester is an English Sheep breed, and the Leicester (sometimes seen as Luster, especially in the American market) is actually a reference to a geographic location of this long fleece breed. The staple, the actual individual “hair” of the fleece, is long; anywhere from 5-18” (13-46cm), so this means that the yarn can hold together even with less “twist” then some other wool. Essentially what this means is that because the fiber is longer it does not need to be twisted as often to catch hold of other fibers, as a result they may not hold as much air being less warm as some shorter stapled fibers…but not by much as the fiber also has a fine crimp.

Bluefaced Leicester yarn www.lindadeancrochet.com

West Yorkshire Spinners Bluefaced Leicester Aran Prints yarn. (color pheasant)

Wool fibers can retain heat due to air pockets. Like insulation the more “pockets” that can trap air the more it can trap heat. So when a staple is twisted with other staples the spaces between cause pockets of air. The crimp of a fiber, is how much “wave” it has. It is a zig zag effect, and the more crimp the more the fiber can create air pockets and retain heat.

The staple also has a fine micron count, this results in a soft yarn. The micron count in the diameter of an individual strand of fiber. The easiest way to think of a comparison in micron count is to think of the hair of a small child and a grown adult. The child’s hair is noticeably softer then the adults, this is because its micron count is smaller, it is thinner, then the adult.

So with Bluefaced Leicester having all these qualities you can expect that the yarn will have a softness and billowiness to it, as I discovered in West Yorkshire Spinners Bluefaced Leicester Aran Prints. This yarn is true to the nature of the breed. It has a soft yet durable ply that results in a well-defined yarn that gives good stitch definition. This particular yarn has a very versatile quality and can easily create an accessory such as a scarf or hat, item for home décor or a light sweater. I think that this can easily be a go to wool yarn, which fits the build for many projects.

There is some subtle qualities of various wools, and the subtle differences in this one is not something that you will regret.

Crochet Emergency- Shoelaces

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It never seems to fail, my kids shoelaces fail at the most inopportune times; when we are just headed out the door to school, when we are off to a new event or sport obligation. As a result I have had to find some quick fixes and amazingly my kids have come to actually request them now as a fashion statement…I crochet shoelaces.

Granted when really looking at the shoes, they have seen better days, but the kids love them and have some that they will wear until they fall apart. I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, I have a few myself. However dressing them up with a bit of yarn was never my initial intent, it was simply necessity. Yet as my kids get older they have found these bits of yarn helping them to find their own identity.

Crochet shoelaces www.lindadeancrochet.com

Crochet shoelaces

So why crochet a chain, why not just use a strand of yarn? Well the short story is that the chain actually holds better when tying a bow, and is stronger. When using just a stand of yarn, it is held together by the ply. The ply is part of the yarn construction, most yarns are made up of strands that are spun in one direction, then these strands are spun together in the opposite direction, this is the ply. Granted the tension of the ply does create a strong yarn, just not one that is quite strong enough to live up to a shoelace on my kids shoes.

Creating the yarn into a chain, creates three strands instead of just one. It also makes a little more heft in the diameter, so it is easier to tie and untie.

What I find the most interesting is how my kids have fun picking out new colors for the laces. My son even enjoys adding a bright pink to his laces, at least it helps them have some individual style.

Pinwheel Blanket- A Work of Many Ideas

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The Pinwheel Blanket is one that takes a little different approach then I usually do; it is comprised of small motifs that make a larger motif, then joined together. I will admit, I usually think a little more simplistic, I have a motif and that motif gets joined to other motifs, so making a motif out of motifs…well that is like an ah ha moment.

Pinwheel Blanket www.lindadeancrochet.com

Pinwheel Blanket Crochet Now Issue 10

I did not make this realization on my own, I had help. I often believe the best designs come out of a collaboration, ideas always grow when you listen to others…sometimes for the better, like this one. I had worked the smaller motifs together, mostly to see how they looked joined together as I think the join point creates a really interesting effect. It was the editor of Crochet Now that mentioned that the block created looked great just as they were and should be treated like motifs, this allows the join point to become a highlight.

This collaboration has opened my eyes to many different attachment and joining, sometimes it just takes a different view to open up a new world.

So about Pinwheel Blanket, the initial small motif is only comprised of three rounds, so it works up quickly. It grew from a flower, and I feel it has a floral feel. It is at the join point that I see the pinwheel, with a feeling of the whirly-gigs I have seen in the garden. So I guess in a sense this throw has a garden feel for me. With flowers and whirly-gigs it does have an outdoor feel, and even the colors are bright like flowers.

Each small motif is joined to create a square that is the bordered with a main color and joined to other squares, this creates a patchwork and rustic charm while in keeping with garden feel. This is a great project that can be worked as a portable, take on the go and create a fabulous blanket. Check this design in Issue 10 of Crochet Now.

Big Squeeze by Ancient Arts- A Lofty Experience

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I have played with a lot of yarn over the years, but I do not think that I have ever found a yarn that is so forgiving, or as “squishy” as Ancient Arts Big Squeeze.

This yarn is 100% Superwash Merino, as a result it will not felt or shrink but has a very soft feel. The way this yarn is spun it has a great loft to it, and this has a couple of benefits. Not only is it forgiving in the stitches, and adjusting well for uneven tension, but it also holds more air making it warmer.

Ancient Arts Yarn www.lindadeancrochet.com

Ancient Arts Yarn Big Squeeze color Frolic

This bulky weight yarn comes in a skein size of 127 yards (116 meters), which is comparable to other skeins of this weight, and one skein can easily complete a scarf or hat project. With the larger yarn, it garners a need for a larger hook a J/10/6.00mm will give you a pretty dense fabric, and you may prefer working with a hook size of at least K/10 ½ /6.5mm or greater.

The smooth even ply of this yarn also gives great stitch definition so it makes your stitches the star of the show, even though it comes in over 125 brilliant colors.

I feel this yarn will work up nicely in any home décor, simple accessory, or outer wear garment project. Due to the weight and lofty, it is obviously not the choice for small delicate items (in either look or feel). I also would not necessarily recommend it for projects that have a lot of fine detail, as the large bulk and hook make the details almost disappear.

My overall impression of this yarn is that I could just wrap myself in it and it would be a pillow and a blanket, maybe an all in one cocoon, which I could happily go about my day. It is a dream to work with.

Crochet For a Difference- Stacked Clusters

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Crocheters often have a desire, or a need to help others…at least in my experiences, and there are so many ways to Crochet for a Difference. I have found various local opportunities that can benefit from the handiwork skills of crochet and am sharing some stitch ideas and some organizations for you to make a difference in your local community.

I don’t really buy into the “crochet stitch names” kind of thing, meaning, unlike knitting that has an understanding that “garter stitch” is nothing but knitting every stitch, I don’t feel that there is anything that really fits this in crochet. If I call something a “popcorn”, all I am essentially saying is that it is a group of stitches that are joined at the top and bottom of the stitch…I am not telling you how many, or where the stitch is worked, there are just to many variables to be consistent over all the possibilities. So with that said, I have to have some way to differentiate from the stitches I want to share, thus they will have names, but keep in mind my names may not match what another designer may refer to the set of stitch patterns.

So I will refer to this stitch pattern as the Stacked Clusters.

A Cluster stitch is basically where the base of many stitches are worked into the same point, but are finished together as one stitch, in a manner of speaking, like a decrease worked in the same location.

For this stitch pattern the Cluster (Cl) stitch will be worked as follows: [Yarn over, insert hook into indicated stitch, Yarn over, pull through a loop, Yarn over pull through 2 loops] three times, there will be 4 loops on hook, yarn over and pull through all 4 loops.

Stacked Clusters www.lindadeancrochet.com

Stacked Clusters

Row 1: Create a chain that is a multiple of two, single crochet in the second chain from hook, [chain 1, skip 1 chain, single crochet in next chain] repeat across, turn.

Row 2: Chain 3, [Cl in chain-1 space, chain 1] repeat across, double crochet in last stitch, turn.

Row 3: Chain 1, single crochet in same stitch, [chain 1, skip 1 stitch, single crochet in next stitch] repeat across, turn.

Repeat Rows 2 & 3 until desired length.

For some more fun with this stitch, use two colors and change colors every row. Leave long tails when changing yarn and create fringe as you work.

Consider creating a lap size blanket and donating it to a local dialysis center. People receiving medical treatments such as dialysis, sit for an extended period of time, and often this alone can make anyone feel cold. Find a dialysis center near you…here.