Tunisian Crochet Sample – colour changes

As a follower of this blog, you will know that I am new to Tunisian crochet and that the only stitch that I have learned so far is the simple stitch (or plain Tunisian stitch). I’m also having some difficulty with the tension of my work, which can vary greatly. I have therefore been working on a never-ending stream of swatches in an attempt to master the art of maintaining the tension of my work.

Getting extremely bored with just working square simple stitch swatches, I decided to have a go at changing colours. For some time now, I have been working on a chart design for a name, and I decided to use the letter “S” from that name as my first attempt at colour changing. I chose it because of the overall simplicity of the design and the separate blocks of colour.

I have been knitting for many years and understand fully the principals on which colour changing is based. I could have easily used this knowledge to work out how to accomplish colour changes using the technique of Tunisian crochet. However, I decided to see what’s out there in the way of video tutorials for learners like me. I think you can learn a lot from from seeing how other people work, sometimes including how not to do it.

There were lots of videos available and although I did not watch them all, the ones I did watch all had something to offer in terms of ideas and techniques. The most helpful video I found deals with every little detail of the process, which is ideal for the learner.

I learned a lot from this video, including the very interesting use of clothes pegs as yarn bobbins. I doubt I will ever need to use clothes pegs as I have collected many bobbins over the years. My favourite brands are Susan Bates (large) and Clover.

As you can see, my first attempt at colour changing has turned out pretty well. I used the technique of carrying the yarn across the back of the design for the bottom half of the “S” as this involved crossing only two stitches. However, I quickly came to the conclusion that you get a much better finish if you use a separate bobbin of yarn for anything more than one stitch.

I am definitely going to undertake a more adventurous colour change project in the future.

 

Entrelac sample – Tunisian Crochet

Although I have always known about Tunisian crochet, I had never actually learned how to do it. I also knew about Entralac (knitted and crocheted), but the fabric did not appeal as the design appeared quite boring. I therefore never learned that either.

I decided it was time to learn both techniques, at the same time. I found them both very easy to learn and surprisingly addictive.

Tunisian crochet –

Tunisian crochet is somewhat like knitting, both in the appearance of the finished fabric and in that you “cast on” the first row of stitches onto the hook/needle.
However, unlike knitting, Tunisian crochet is worked on the right side only, and is worked with a long straight hook that has a stop at one end.

Unfortunately, I did not have a Tunisian hook, and as I intend this to be a one-off experiment, I did not want to spend a lot of money on an expensive branded hook. Fortunately, I found a perfect set of 11 Tunisian hooks on Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CE7RZF0?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00).

The hooks are sizes 2-8mm and 10.6” long. I would recommend these hooks as they are nice to work with, and very good value for money.

The only stitch I’ve learned so far is the Tunisian simple stitch (or Tunisian plain stitch), and would advise that the quickest and easiest way to learn this stitch is to watch any one of the many Youtube videos available on the subject. I intend to expand my knowledge of Tunisian crochet stitches, and this sample is my first attempt.

Entrelac –

Basically, Entrelac fabric is made up of a series of tiled blocks, which are worked one at a time in tiers. These blocks are usually multi-coloured and are worked in the same direction on each tier. The blocks build one upon another. Individual blocks are made by picking up stitches along the cast-off edge of a block from the tier below, and working the stitches of the block together with the selvedge of the next block from the tier below. The fabric can be worked to produce a piece with pointed edges. However, a straight piece can be produced by working triangles/half-block for the first tier, then every following tier must begin and end with a triangle. The last tier must also be a triangle/half-block.

Again, I would advise that the quickest and easiest way to learn the basics of Entrelac is to watch any one of the many Youtube videos available on the subject, but I would particularly recommended the following videos which show how to achieve a straight piece.

Entrelac does not have to mean boring diamond block. You can use triangles, rectangles, spiral squares, or combinations of different shapes. It can also be worked in the round.