Third Attempt-Double Stitch Method

Hi once again!

I attempted my third crochet technique, double stitch method, which seemed to be the fastest, but hardest process of all. I thoroughly enjoyed the final outcome of this attempt as it proved to be the most successful of all. Although it was challenging, the process of crocheting during all three attempts started to become meditative and relaxing for me at the same time. It became painful for my hands, however, during this attempt because it uses a method of interlocking the loops into the fabric, but doing a yarn over and pulling through two loops instead of one. It is quite similar to the half double crochet method in my second attempt.

Double Stitch example

I started this attempt by looking for new videos on YouTube that showed me how to do this technique for beginners.

 

Pointing out all of the flaws from my first two attempts, I tried to make this one as slowly as I can and as flawless as possible. I found a really good video on YouTube that went as slow and as detailed as possible. Following the video, I attempted to stitch my chain in the beginning like I did in my first attempt.

 

After stitching my first chain, I attempted to double stitch. Once I finally got the logistics of it, I noticed it became much easier for me to continue because of my other attempts. I made the rows a little bit longer than the second attempt to make my headband much thicker and tried to also stay consistent in my rows so that my ends would meet at an appropriate angle. The only struggle I had with this attempt was keeping my size constant and eventually I had to improvise and make one side the same size as the other side, leaving the middle much smaller.

 

Final

Overall, it was such a rewarding experience and I'm so happy I learnt how to make these headbands. Although it was challenging, I can honestly say I've conquered my very first craft and crochet projects simultaneously and I definitely created my own entertainment in the process of making it (Yes, I'm a drama queen). I'm fully addicted to this craft and I'm more than excited to start making other crafts that would be used by myself and others and maybe, starting my own business:)

 

Great fit

 Thanks for reading!

 

Second Attempt - Half Double Stitch Method

Hi All!

After my first crochet attempt using the single stitch method, I decided to challenge myself further by crocheting using the half double stitch method, which is different from a single stitch in wrapping a loop around the hook before it goes into the loop to stitch, and only pulling it through one of the loops instead of all of the loops. 


Half Double Crochet example

I started by looking on Youtube for videos related to the half double crochet method and found a few good ones, but most of them were going too fast for me to comprehend. This method seemed to be much harder at first because I had to add more loops before pulling into the first number of chains that I made.

 

 

For this method, I used the same kind of yarn from my first attempt and a crochet hook, and began crocheting. This method made the process much faster for me. I made the loops a bit longer to make the headband thicker and also tried making my loops tighter so that the headband was more appealing.

 

First row of half double stitch


 As I continued on, I tried keeping my rows consistent and in a modular form as opposed to the first attempt that I did. It was challenging to move from my first row to my second row without curving it and each row took me a while to complete at first.

Getting there

 I stitched each row until the headband started to become thicker. At this point, my hands are in pain from the constant stitching and the positioning of my hands. My rows started to become rounder as I tried to tighten it by pulling firmly onto the yarn. I eventually loosed a few of the loops and started over.

Finally, I finish about 30 and some rows of chains using this method to fit the headband around my head. To make it more appealing, I added a knot in the front of my headband using the single stitch method and slid it onto the headband before crocheting the ends together.

 

Viola! A perfectly stitched headband using the half double stitch method.

 

As you can see, a lot of my rows are uneven, especially the beginning and ends rows, which was a struggle using this method as one side of the headband was bigger than the other side. All in all, I had so much fun doing this method and couldn't wait to be done to try it on.

Final Product

 In my final iteration, I will be attempting the double stitch technique and correcting my mistakes further from crocheting this headband during my second attempt.

 

Thanks for reading!

History of Crocheting

Crocheting is the process of knitting different pieces of material together in an interlocking motion to form a fabric, and derives from the French word crochet meaning hook. It can be used for therapy, creating sweaters, gloves and other kinds of clothing and textiles, or just simply making items for yourself and your loved ones for the holidays. It was initially developed during the Victorian era as a faster way to make lace instead of using needles and bobbins. (Ohrenstein 4).

Crocheting was introduced as a way to alleviate starvation caused by the Irish famine at the time. It became popular after crocheted laces were made for Queen Victoria, in which she wore in support of the suffering Irish. During that time, it was widely used in baby bonnets, nightgowns, handkerchiefs, cuffs, and collars and became popular amongst women that enjoyed indulging in handiwork  and making patterns as a hobby. (Ohrenstein 4).

In earlier days, yarn was used as the material for crocheting, but it was much lighter than the yarn used today. Earlier techniques were slip stitches that were made using tools such as bones, wood and animal horns (Blakley 5). Priority was placed more on making crocheted items for home décor and not fashion, like today. These techniques changed as a result of the need for more patterned laces (Ohrenstein 4). The craft remained domesticated until the 1960’s when young people rebelled against the establishment, and the art of crochet changed drastically (Blakley 5).
Today, easier materials are used for crocheting such as the crochet hook, instead of natural tools. Many people still indulge in the craft and it has definitely become a popular craft amongst all ages and in undomesticated settings.

Blakley Kinsler, Gwen. “Crochet Beginnings”.The Fine Art of Crochet: Innovative Works from 20 Contemporary Artists. Authorhouse. 5-12. 2013. Print.

Ohrenstein, Dora. “A bit of History”. Crochet Insider's Passion for Fashion. Leisure Arts Inc. 4. Print.

 

 

First Attempt- Single Stich Crochet

Hi All!

I attempted my very first crochet project this weekend making a headband using the single stitch method. It was so fun and challenging all at the same time, but I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. 


Single Stitch example

I crocheted using a 5.50mm crochet hook and Size C yarn that I found at the Dressew fabric store in Vancouver and searched a few videos on Youtube to see exactly which method was the easiest to begin with and was ideal for beginners. Some of the techniques I found for stitching was cluster stitch, double stitch, half-double stitch, single stitch and triple stitch, but the easiest was the single stitch method. The methods differentiate based on the number of loops being interlocked into the fabric as you stitch.

Before starting anything, I measured my head to see how many rows I would need to crochet to obtain a full headband. I began by creating a loop around my crochet hook and using the crochet hook to make a chain out of the yarn using about ten or more loops to create my first row for the headband.

First chain

Curly crochet rows

Following that process, I had to create another chain which would create the second row, but this time, I had to lock it into the first chain using the single stitch method and continue on until made about 30 or more rows. The size of my headband was 22 inches, but I made it a bit shorter since the headband turned out to be stretchy.

The most challenging part for me was first, making straight rows that weren't too tight. My headband kept curling up into a ball because of it being too tight.

Second row attempt

A lot of times, I had to pull the loops out to start the row over because it wasn't forming how I wanted it to. Another challenge I had was keeping the headband length and size consistent. It was really hard for me stay focused on where to form my next row when turning the crochet project to the other side and eventually, I ended up figuring it out that I should form an extra loop when turning to avoid there being less loops in a row.



Almost done

The last part was a bit easy because I had already learned the logistics and method of single stich crocheting and I just had to repeat the process, but joining the two ends together to seal the crochet and tying at the end.

I had a lot of fun doing this iteration and it was intertwined with a lot of frustration, laughs, excitement and crying! Yes, crying! lol

I'm hoping in my next iteration, I can experiment with the double stitch method to see if I can master this art and hopefully create a more designed headband as well.

Thanks for reading!
 









Crocheted together

Final headband



Excited as ever. Can you see it? lol

Final



Yayyyy. All done

Project Intro

Hello,
I'm Yadira!

I'm going to be exploring the art of crocheting as there are a lot of beneficial advantages to crocheting, in terms of making gifts for others, saving money, therapy, or just having fun making items for yourself.

I will be making different iterations of a crocheted headband mainly because I've never tried doing anything crafty and I've always wanted to learn how to crochet, but never found the time to. I also thought it would be helpful in learning new ways to save money and making things for myself. I see this being a long-term project where I would make different things not only for myself but perhaps, investing in a long-term business with my new skill. All in all, I will most definitely be going out of my comfort zone with this project.

My process will begin in researching different crocheting methods, other materials that may be used, the history of crocheting, blogs, DIY videos, cultural differences and special techniques that people use to crochet. I will also try playing with different designs of crocheted headbands that people use when crocheting.

Hopefully, I'm able to successfully complete a crocheted hairband in a small amount of time and explore with even more items in the near future.

Here are some of examples of previously made headbands using the crochet method: