Saturday, November 1, 2008

Experimenting With Tunisian Crochet

I’m home again (at least for now)! I have several more trips coming up, so I'll be traveling off and on for the next couple of months.

The last few weeks have been hectic so I took a day off this week and made it an official play day. I spent the day experimenting with my Tunisian hooks and an assortment of stitch patterns, which I've been wanting to do for awhile.

I started with a Tunisian short-row dishcloth I found recently on Crafty Boy’s (Khebin Gibbons) Web site. At first glance, it appears a bit complicated, but it’s really easy and fun to crochet. The photo above shows my finished version of the dishcloth, which I made using Peaches & Cream worsted weight cotton yarn.

I followed the pattern exactly through the sc border around the outer edge. Then, because I wanted the dishcloth to be just a little larger, I added a mock shell border. You can find the pattern for the Tunisian Short-Row Dishcloth on Khebin's site at:

http://1craftyboy.wordpress.com/2007/12/27/tunisian-short-row-dishcloth/.

My simple instructions for the border are below. (Note: I used a crochet hook two sizes smaller than the afghan hook and a relaxed tension to work Rnd 2 of the edging to keep it from ruffling.)

EDGING
Rnd 1: Follow the instructions given in Khebin's pattern.

Rnd 2: Ch 1, (sc, ch 2, dc) in same sc, sk 1 sc, *(sc, ch 2, dc) in next sc, sk 1 sc, rep from * around, join with a sl st in beg sc, fasten off.

I enjoyed making the first dishcloth so much that I made a second one, and will be adding it to my list of favorite dishcloths to make again in the future.