Two Christmas Placemats

Crochet, Holidays, , , , ,

The second of a two place-mat set is on the right, and the one photographed before is on the left.

DSC08538 Each placemat took about 10 hours to make, and I enjoyed crocheting them while I watched (listened) to TV, or listened to music.  I used the same pattern, varying the location of some of the color blocks.  Both were done with three strands  with three strands of size 10 crochet cotton and a Boye size 00, 3.5 mm steel needle.The only downside to this activity, is that one sits while doing it.

They are about 15 inches by twenty inches by 20 inches. The one on the left is a little larger, and I attribute this to the fact that one of the strands in the border was a Herrschner’s size 10 cotton.  It is very slightly thicker than the other size 10 cotton, which could have been one of several other brands.  I needed to use the cotton of which I had enough to finish the color blocks, because if you use a different yarn, the color will vary, and the effect will be a bit different.

The gauge of a four inch by four inch square is about 19 double crochets by close to 10 or 11 rows

Not only are the dark green borders different here, but the one on the left is a bit more even, probably due to the slightly heavier cotton.  Not only is Herrschner’s size 10 cotton a little thicker, it has a little less of a shine.

One of the joys of working with this size 10 mercerized cotton is the slight shine and drape of the products.

In contrast, kitchen cotton has a rather matte outcome, and is often stiffer.

Both of these cottons are machine washable, cool, gentle cycle, with flat pieces best dried flat.

January 6, 2016 update.  Feedback was that somebody would have liked them better if there were four.  I’ll make two more.

 

 

 

 

The Crochet Hook Size Matters (Coasters) Combination Trials

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DSC08480After I finished these smaller coaster (3 1/4 inches in diameter) with an F hook, I remembered that the larger diameter coasters (4 inches) with the same pattern were made with a three size larger hook, an I hook.  The tighter stitch makes for a less smooth a trim circle.

DSC08477 Here I tried a set in marl,  trimmed

DSC08478 with with solid green, the best looking solid color, and made into a set with one of each of the solid colors trimmed with the Christmas marl.  Of these the white with marl looks best when viewed live.

DSC08471 These 4 1/4 inch marls are done with three inner circle of double crochet, followed by a row of single crochet, and ended with a row of double crochet.

Christmas Marl Crocheted, Cotton, Trimmed Coasters

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Here is a set of coasters which I just made, because I wanted to try out some marl crochet cotton.  This is kitchen weight ( similar to worsted weight, or #4; it does have four different colors twisted together as plies).

DSC08471 The green and the red looked the best in person, with the deeper green trimmed one being the best.  The next best was the red trimmed one.  These are done in double and single crochet.    I trimmed one of each of the four in a color similar to one of the marl strands with the chain stitch.

DSC08473 In person these two looked less good than the first two, and the white one was the least good of all.

From this project I learned:

That the marled cotton does not look muddy, as I thought it might.

The darker contrasting colors (the Christmas-y green and red) look better than a same toned color trim (the sage green trim).  The least good trim on this marled background was the white with its strong contrast, but lighter color.