|
ABOUT ME
Purplelinda Crafts came about because of my frustration in trying to buy items for Crochet, there was very little choice on the internet and at the wool shops. I am proud to have the largest selection of Crochet Patterns online in the UK. I first started selling on eBay and still sell my most popular items on the site. I am based in Inverness, Scotland and ship orders worldwide.
I love crocheting and could spend every hour of the day making something, I first started crocheting when I was about 8/9 years old. I was taught by mum who made items like blankets & peg bags. The 1st project I completed was a crochet blanket made in trebles with all different colours of wool and I still have it today. I drifted away from crocheting and started again when I was 18 years old, I bought a crochet stitches book and started teaching myself the different stitches. The only crochet patterns I could find then in the late 80's were for Doily & Mats which I made loads, I really feel that working with the finer threads helped wonders with my tension. I started designing my own blankets using various stitches, if someone was expecting a baby I would be making a blanket. I noticed crochet hats were getting very popular with the Stars like Justin Timberlake, Jenifer Lopez & Usher so I started my own range of hats for men & women which I sold on eBay. I will one day get these on to working patterns and offer them for sale and free patterns. I currently love the crochet books from Japan, they have inspired me to design my own animals and dolls. I would love to have my own crochet book published but I have to leave this until my kids get older.
ABOUT CROCHET
Crochet is a centuries old craft that takes its name from the French word croq, which means hook. Crochet, a fun and relaxing craft which is easy to learn. You can create beautiful fashion and home accessory projects such as tops, hats, ponchos, scarves, doilies, afghans, toys and baby items. All you need is a hook and a ball of yarn. All crochet stitches are a series of loops and wraps of thread around the hook. Every pattern starts with a slip knot followed by a series of loops called chains. These chain stitches form a foundation row. The first row of a pattern is built on this chain foundation. Each successive row is crocheted on top of the previous row. Each row in a pattern may call for different stitches, but all stitches are variations of the basic double crochet stitch which is very easy to master.
Crochet Hook Sizes Conversion Chart
|
Metric
|
0.60
|
0.75
|
1.00
|
1.50
|
1.75
|
2.00
|
2.50
|
3.00
|
3.50
|
4.00
|
4.50
|
5.00
|
5.50
|
6.00
|
6.50
|
7.00
|
|
Old UK
|
7
|
6.5
|
5.5
|
16
|
15
|
13/14
|
12
|
10/11
|
9
|
8
|
7
|
6
|
5
|
4
|
3
|
2
|
|
USA
|
14
|
12
|
9/10
|
7/8
|
5/6
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
E
|
F
|
G
|
H
|
I
|
J
|
K
|
-
|
Crochet hooks are available in steel, aluminium, bamboo and plastic and come in various sizes from 0.60mm right though to 20mm in the UK. New styles are coming out all the time like clover soft touch hooks and clover lite hooks, to make crocheting easier and fun. Crochet Cotton comes in various sizes, colors and thicknesses. The cotton threads are sized by weight with each weight identified by a number. The lower the number the thicker the thread is, for example No.5 is a much heavier than No.20. Cotton thread sizes include No.3, 5, 8, 10, 20, 30 & 40. The Cotton thread size can be written as No.10, Tkt 10 or size 10. Most patterns in the United States call for size 10 (Tkt 10, No.10) known as bedspread weight. Sizes 30 and 40 are used less frequently these days and are suitable for fine lacey designs and usually only available in shades white, ecru & cream.
More Details to be added
Prym Knitting Mill Maxi
If you are having teething problems with the knitting mill maxi it is usually just a tension problem as all mills are tested at the factory to ensure all the latch hooks are running. Here are some tips to help -
Drop a long end of yarn down the middle of mill when you start so you can grab it and place tension on the yarn as it moves through the mill. Slowly turn the handle and watch each latch hook open and close, if one doesn't stop. Use a fine crocket hook or a yarn needle to open and close the hook that doesn't cooperate. I do recommend starting very slowly and pick up speed gradually. Once you have made enough of a square to hold on to and put tension on it, it gets easier because the tension helps the hooks open and close. You will find that different yarns work better than others. Clip on weights could be used at the end but I still recommend using hand at the beginning.
Here are the links to the free patterns at prym-consumer.com -
- Bedspread - http://www.prym-consumer.de/en/pdf/Web_Engl_StrickDecke.pdf
- Cushion - http://www.prym-consumer.de/en/pdf/Web_Engl_StrickKissen.pdf
- Lampshade - http://www.prym-consumer.de/en/pdf/Web_Engl_Stricklampe.pdf
www.purplelindacrafts.co.uk
|
