Tag: crochet

Spinning dog hair

On By CarynIn Craft

My friend brought me a bag of dog hair! For a spinner, this is an exciting thing, especially when the dog has an undercoat.

Photo description: white and fawn colored dog hair in a gallon plastic bag
Photo description: Baxter as a puppy. He is 30% Great Pyrenees, 30% Cattle Dog, 20% Boxer, and 20% Belgian Malinois according to a DNA test.

I chose to separate out the white and fawn colored hair, because it didn’t seem right to blend it when Baxter the dog is spotted. The hair was clean with only a slight doggy smell, so I did not wash it. I did card it with a fine toothed set of carders.

Photo description: the white portion of dog hair loaded on one carder
Photo description: Missy the dog is very interested in the smell of the carded fiber. (Her hair smooth and is very, very difficult to spin.)

I chose to spin Baxter’s fur with a spindle shaft without a whorl, so I could have absolute control over the twist. It was a moderately difficult spin, not as easy as Samoyed, but still spin able.

Photo description: single spun dog hair on a shaft with cup hook

I chain plied the singles to make a three ply yarn. I like chain plying potentially delicate singles because if I do get a break, I can ply it together relatively easily.

Photo description: three ply yarn on a spindle shaft wrapped in a crisscross style

Because Baxter is a beloved pet, I decided to make a small keepsake with this yarn. I crocheted the white yarn in a circle, then used the fawn colored yarn to crochet a heart shape.

Photo description: heart crocheted from two colors of hand spun 100% dog hair

I believe scent is an important link in memories, so I did not block or wash the heart, but instead placed it in a plastic bag to preserve the scent so it will be a comfort when my friend pulls it out in the future.

Poncho fix

On By CarynIn Craft

To make the poncho that I made from a free blanket wearable, I used inexpensive acrylic yarn to do a blanket stitch around the neckline, then crocheted into the blanket stitch.

Photo description: single crochet into a blanket stitch, video here

I then alternated rows of shell stitches, 3 on the first row, two on the second, and decreased at the V on each side.

Photo description: crochet added to the neckline of a 2 rectangle poncho

I don’t know why one side has more stitches than the other, but I didn’t count, so that is probably the cause of the error. The crochet did help keep the poncho on, but I still hate wearing it. I even tried wearing it sideways with a “V” on each shoulder. That was better, but the corners on my hands were annoying.

Photo description: same poncho, but turned 90 degrees with the V neck on the shoulders

I’m very glad I did this trial with inexpensive materials, and did not put in hours knitting something that I would hate wearing.

Throwback Thursday: crochet bracelet pocket

On By CarynIn Craft, throwback

In August of 2016 I was in the throes of crocheting bracelets and anklets with small pockets. It started with being annoyed at my fitness tracker on my wrist. When I walked, I was pushing a stroller and my steps weren’t being counted because my arms weren’t swinging. I had the idea that I could put the tracker on my ankle, but there weren’t any bands big enough to go around, so I crocheted one. I had friends ask for one, so I made a bunch and started to sell them.

Photo description: eleven crocheted and braided bracelets with button closures and small mesh pockets made from pearlized cotton in various colors and lengths
Photo description: closeup of the pocket, with a key inside, quarter on one side for scale, and a fitness tracker on the other side
Photo description: bracelet shown closed

The problem with the crocheted cotton was that cotton stretches with time, and each strap was crocheted to size with no adjustment. The button also wasn’t a reliable closure. Sometimes brushing against furniture would pop the anklet open. I sold a few, but after the design problems became apparent, stopped making them.

Throwback Thursday: New Year’s Day

On By CarynIn Craft

I went into my photo app and searched New Year’s Day for my throwback today. I found a quirky little project I did back in 2016, where I was experimenting with small alternating blocks of Tunisian crochet.

Photo description: four squares of Tunisian crochet connected as stitched, sometimes called “sew as you go”, made with red, green, and white variegated cotton yarn
Photo description: nine square swatch with a crochet border
Photo description: same nine square swatch, but labeled with the order number and if the rows were done from the right or left

I think the variegated yarn and Tunisian crochet made some interesting pooling variations. When I washed this swatch, though, it puckered and buckled aggressively, so I did not pursue the technique farther.

Happy New Year, may your year be filled with successful experiments!

Throwback Thursday: Memory slip

On By CarynIn Craft, Wildlife

As I was scrolling through old photos I came across a mystery in May 2016. My memory is full of holes, which is why I take pictures and write in a journal. I found a picture that I had no memory of taking, or why. Here is what I think happened in April 2016. I crocheted a basket with cotton variegated yarn around a rope core as an experiment.

Photo description: olive, teal, and white variegated cotton crocheted basket
Photo description: closeup of basket showing a rope core under the crochet stitches

Two weeks later I have a picture of this same basket lashed to a branch as a makeshift nest for baby birds.

Photo description: baby birds in a nest inside the same crocheted basket

I don’t recognize the car in the background. The tree is not a live oak, which was the only kind of tree we had at the time in our yard, but the grass is St Augustine which was common in our neighborhood. The side walk configuration suggests a front yard. I did not write about the basket or the birds in my journal. What? So maybe it is not my story. I’m thinking a neighbor had a bird nest fall down and I offered my basket as a substitute nest. Maybe?

I do wonder what happened to those young birds and if the nest repair was accepted by the parents. Hm.