I love knot stitches! They are so easy and fast to make. This shawl is made completely with knot stitches that each measure 2 inches long. Of course you can make the knots stitches any length that you desire. To see what smaller knot stitches look like check out my knot stitch capelet that I made a while ago. The series of knots give a beautiful lacey and light look. If you don’t know how to crochet knot stitches yet, you can use the knot stitch tutorial. This shawl can be crocheted by beginners if you are just learning to do knot stitches. Skill Level: Finished Size: 72” (183 cm) wide, 17” (43 cm) tall Note: You may adjust the height and width, by following the instructions within the pattern

Materials: Medium Weight Yarn (approximately 200 yards) Crochet Hook I (5.5 mm)

Gauge: each knot stitch is 2” (5 cm) long

Crochet Pattern: Shawl
Start by making a chain of 36 knots or as many knots to form the desired width of the shawl
Row 1: make 2 knots, sl st in third knot from hook, (make 2 knots, sl st in next knot) across: 72 knots, 36 sl sts
Row 2: make 1 knot, turn, sl st in first knot, (make 2 knots, skip 1 knot, sl st in next knot) across: 71 knots, 35 sl sts

Repeat row 2 ten times or until shawl is the height that you want it. Note that for each row you do, there is 1 less knot and 1 less sl st than the previous row.

If you need help with crocheting this shawl, don’t worry! Just leave a comment and I would be glad to help.

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Spheres are the universal shape for balls, amigurumi, stuffed animal parts and plenty of other things that you may want to crochet. There are many ways that you can crochet a sphere; here is a tutorial for one of them. You are going to start off by crocheting a circle, then you are going to make the middle of the sphere and decrease it to finish. Below is a pattern for a very small sphere. You can increase it by following the notes to increase the initial circle and increase the number of rounds made for the middle.

Finished Size: 2” (5 cm) diameter, you may increase this sphere to make it the size you prefer

Materials:
Medium Weight Yarn
Crochet Hook F (3.75 mm)
Polyester Fiberfill

Crochet Pattern: Sphere
Round 1: ch 2, 6 sc in second ch from hook, place marker: 6 sc
Round 2: 2 sc in each sc around: 12 sc
Round 3: (2 sc in next sc, sc in next sc) around: 18 sc
Round 4: (2 sc in next sc, sc in next 2 sc) around: 24 sc
Round 5: (2 sc in next sc, sc in next 3 sc) around: 30 sc
Note: to increase the size of the sphere, continue to increase this circle.

Round 6 – 9: sc in each sc around: 30 sc
Note: rounds 6 – 9 make the body of the sphere. In general, the number of rounds to make the body should be the number of rounds completed thus far minus one. For example, there are five rounds before round 6 in this pattern. Therefore, there are four repetitions of the above line. The amount of repetitions for a different sized sphere also depends on a crocheter’s style. Some crochet tighter than others.

Round 10: (decrease, sc in next 3 sc) around: 24 sc
Round 11: (decrease, sc in next 2 sc) around: 18 sc
Round 12: (decrease, sc in next sc) around: 12 sc
Fill sphere with fiberfill.
Round 13: decrease around: 6 sc
Note: if you increased the size of the sphere you will also need to decrease the sphere as much as you increased it by.

If you need help crocheting this sphere, just leave a comment and I would be glad to help!

After writing the post about the young women decorating the city with crochet, Patrice (a Crochet Spot reader) sent me a related article about a man who hangs his crocheted hats around the city.

Ernie (not really his real name) taught himself to crochet four months ago. Three times a week he crochets wool hats and hangs them up in the poorest neighborhoods of Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is even said that his hats get disbursed to some of Grand Rapids’ “most unapproachable residents”.

Here is a hat hanging on a tree waiting for someone to take it!

Each hat is hung with a friendly tag, which says something like:
“Take me, I’m free!”
“Free to a good head.”
“You deserve this.”
“Enjoy!”
“Smile!”

So far Ernie has hung 30 to 35 hats and counting. He doesn’t want credit or publicity from his actions. All he wants is to help people keep warm, no matter who they are.

Here is a picture of Ernie hanging a hat.

I believe that Ernie’s actions is something that everyday people can do. In fact, Ernie is an everyday person that takes an extra step to help others. In Ernie’s words, “I just think everybody should be treated as a human being. And if everybody did just one little thing, it would improve the lives of so many people.”

I agree!

Source: The Grand Rapids Press

I recently read about the “Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project” that has just opened to the public for viewing at The Gallery at Scottsdale Civic Center Library. It is a fabulous collection of crocheted coral reefs from thousands of volunteers around the world! Not only is a great accomplishment, huge attraction and super stunning to look at, it has a serious message behind it that we are losing natural coral reefs. This project is inspired by Margaret and Christine Werthheim, who are also co-creators of the “Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project.”

Here are some photos of the exhibit, which I think are just stunning!

Photos by Kathleen Vanesian

I can definitely see that they were crocheted, but the way they resemble coral reefs so much is just amazing. This work isn’t just beautiful but it also has meaning. I wish I had the chance to see it in person!

Brighten up a child’s day with this fun and flowery shoulder bag! It’s great for toting around some toys or playing dress up with. The shoulder bag is easy to crochet. You can even use scrap yarn for the flower appliqués. Just follow the crochet pattern below to make a great gift for a little girl. Skill Level: Finished Size: 8” (20 cm) wide, 7” (18 cm) tall, not including strap

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Keep your cell phone safe with this cute cozy pattern. This pattern can easily be adjusted for different sized cell phones! Just have your cell phone handy or the dimensions, and follow the instructions provided within the pattern to make a simple cozy for your cell phone. This is a great scrap yarn project and can also be used as a change purse, small wallet or cardholder! Skill Level: Finished Size: 4 ½” (11.5 cm) tall, 2 ¾” (7 cm) wide, ¾” (2 cm) button diameter Note: you can make any sized cell phone cozy you desire by following the instructions in the pattern.

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Here is something eye catching and interesting that I came across the other day. There is a group of women in Denver that are crocheting things and hanging them in public places. Here is the video for more details!

At first I thought that crochet everywhere would be the most pretty thing ever just thinking about walking around town and seeing crochet. But them I realized, it probably isn’t legal, and not fair for people who aren’t big crochet fans. Right now I don’t know what to think.

What do you think?

This crochet hook case is made with a series of shell stitches. It uses the same shell stitch pattern as the shell stitch blanket pattern. To make this case, we start by creating a simple rectangle shape that is as wide and tall as you want your case to be. Then we create another layer for the pockets inside. The pocket layer is then sewn to the hook case to form as many smaller pockets as you desire. Last but not least, a tie strap is attached so that you can roll your hook case up and secure it! Skill Level:

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Maria D’Antuono is a 98 year old women who survived the recent L’Aquila earthquake in Italy. She was trapped for 30 hours under her bed when her house collapsed. After being rescued, reporters asked her how she passed her time. Her answer was that she was doing crochet! Even at the worst of times, us crocheters don’t put down our hooks! Better yet, it is the worst of times that makes us pick them up. Many believe that crocheting is a stress reliever and that crocheting is what helped this women survive.

Slip stitches are the smallest stitches in crocheting. They are great for joining ends. In this example of how to crochet a slip stitch, we will assume that you already created a foundation and we will be using a slip stitch to join two ends to create a circle.

This tutorial is for both right and left handed people. For left handed pictures, roll your mouse over the image and it will change for you.

Let’s start with a foundation chain like this. (How to Crochet a Chain)

Insert your hook into the first chain on the chain. You should now have 2 loops on your hook.

Yarn over (wrap the yarn over your hook).

Pull the strand of yarn through the 2 loops that are on your hook. You should now have only one loop on your hook.

Congrats! You just made a slip stitch! Slip stitches are used for more purposes than just to make circles. You can also slip stitch across rows if desired. The idea is to insert your hook into the stitch that you want to make your slip stitch in, then yarn over and pull your strand of yarn through all the loops on your hook.

Was this helpful? Do you still need more help? Leave a comment to let me know!