The Crochet Handbook: Learn what Equipment you need to Crochet, The Basics of Crochet, How to Read Written Patterns, Graphs, Charts and Diagrams, and More (2 page)

That is really all you need to start to crochet. As you gain experience you will find the types of hooks you like the best and branch out into different types of crochet such as Tunisian and Hairpin Lace. If you’re just starting out invest in a nice quality set of aluminum hooks ranging from size E to K. These will serve you for many years. I still use my first set, and I’ve been crocheting for many years.

The yarn you choose for your projects is one of the most important decisions you will make in crochet. Knowing how to choose the correct yarn is an essential skill. In this chapter we will go over the types of fibers used to manufacture yarn, yarn weights, gauge, and how to understand a yarn label.

Yarn Fibers

Yarn is manufactured from three main types of fibers; animal, plant, and synthetic.

• Animal fibers include wool, alpaca, angora, cashmere, and silk.
  
• Plant fibers include soy, cotton, hemp, bamboo, and linen.
  
• Synthetic yarn fibers include acrylic, polyester, micro-fiber, and metallic fibers.
  

Each type of fiber offers its own set of benefits. Acrylic yarn is very easy to work with and care for. Wool is also very easy to work with, but requires blocking once your project is completed and after each wash. Plant fibers wick away moisture and cotton absorbs water making it a great choice for kitchen and bath projects.

Yarn Weight

Yarn comes in weights ranging from 0 to 7. You may even find weight class 8 which is a super jumbo yarn used for rugs and other home décor projects. As you can see in the table each weight class has a recommended hook size. Always check the pattern to see what weight of yarn is called for when you go to purchase the yarn.

Gauge

Gauge refers to the number of stitches across a row in four inches, and how many rows it takes to create four inches in length. Before you begin a project always take time to make a gauge swatch. Use the yarn and the hook size called for in the pattern and crochet up a four-inch swatch. Count the number of stitches across the row, and how many rows make up four inches and compare these numbers to the gauge of your pattern. If your swatch is too large or too small you may have to go up or down a hook size.

13 stitches across 4 inches

15 rows in 4 inches

In the previous images I used a medium weigh yarn and a size I/9 hook. This gave me a gauge of 13 stitches across four inches, and 15 rows to make four inches in length. If you look at the yarn weight chart you can see these numbers fall into the gauge listed for a medium weight yarn.

The Yarn Label

The yarn label will tell you almost all you need to know about a particular yarn. On the yarn label you will find the fiber content, weight, recommended hook size, gauge using that hook size, color, and laundry care instructions. Most yarn manufacturers use a standardized set of laundry care symbols. You can find a complete list of these symbols at the Lion Brand website.

In this example of a Red Heart Super Saver label we see this is an acrylic yarn with a weight class of four. The recommended hook size is I/9 which should give us a gauge of 12 single crochet across four inches, and 15 rows in a length of four inches. Fabric crocheted with this yarn may be machine washed and dried at no hotter than 104 degrees, but not ironed. There is no dye lot for this yarn, but if there was you would want to purchase at least one extra skein of the same dye lot to be sure the color is consistent in your project.

In this chapter we will cover the basic crochet stitches used in patterns as well as their abbreviations and symbols. These abbreviations and symbols are used in written patterns, charts, graphs, and diagrams. If you already know how to crochet, then this chapter can serve as a quick refresher course. If you’re a beginner, then this chapter will teach you basic crochet stitches you can use in all patterns.

Chain Stitch

Abbreviation: ch

Symbol:
or

Create a slip knot and place it on the hook. Place the yarn over the hook (a yarn over) and pull the yarn through the slip knot on the hook. This is a chain stitch. Yarn over and pull the yarn through the loop on the hook to crochet the next chain stitch.

Slip Stitch

Abbreviation: sl st

Symbol:

The slip stitch is used to join rounds of crochet and to move the yarn to the proper position in a pattern. Insert the hook into the next stitch, yarn over and pull the yarn through the stitch and the loop on the hook.

Single Crochet Stitch

Abbreviation: sc

Symbol:

Insert the hook into the next stitch, yarn over and pull through the stitch. Yarn over and pull through the loop on the hook. When you start out with the first row, skip the first chain stitch of the foundation chain. This skipped stitch counts as the first single crochet stitch. To begin a new row of single crochet chain one and count this as the first stitch in the row. Insert the hook into the next stitch, not into the base of the chain one to crochet the next stitch.

2 Rows of Single Crochet

Half Double Crochet Stitch

Abbreviation: hdc

Symbol:

Yarn over and insert the hook into the next stitch. Yarn over and pull the yarn through the stitch. There are now three loops on the hook. Yarn over and pull through all three loops at once. When using a foundation chain, skip the first two chain stitches and use the third chain from the hook. To begin a new row of half double crochet chain two and insert the hook into the next stitch, not into the base of the chain two.