Handbook of Wool Knitting and Crochet Part 7

1. Knit 7, purl 2, slip 3 st.i.tches on a spare needle, knit 6, then knit the 3 st.i.tches from the spare needle, forming the twist, purl 2, knit 10, purl 2, slip 3 st.i.tches on spare needle, knit 6, knit the 3 st.i.tches from spare needle, purl 2, knit 7, turn.

2. Knit 6, purl 1, knit 2, purl 9, knit 2, purl 1, knit 8, purl 1, knit 2, purl 9, knit 2, purl 1, knit 6, turn.

3. Knit 7, purl 2, knit 9, purl 2, knit 10, purl 2, knit 9, purl 2, knit 7.

Repeat last 2 rows, alternately, for 30 rows, making the twist, as directed in 1st row, every 6th row.

For the instep: Count off or leave 29 st.i.tches; knit back 8 st.i.tches on these 29, and on the 8 st.i.tches work back and forth until you have 8 ridges. Pick up the st.i.tches around edge of instep, and work back and forth along the entire row for 4 ridges; bind off.

Make the other leg in the same way, sew up the seams and join the two by the middle seam.

Around the top work a row of s.p.a.ces, in which to run the drawstrings, thus:

1. Fasten in, chain 5, * miss 2, a treble in next, chain 2; repeat around, and join to 3d of 5 chain.

2. Miss 1 s.p.a.ce, 4 trebles in next, miss 1 s.p.a.ce, fasten in next; repeat.

Crochet a cord of the wool and finish the ends with ta.s.sels.

A Knitted Hood for Miss Dolly

[Ill.u.s.tration: A Knitted Hood for Miss Dolly]

Using blue Saxony and medium steel needles, cast on 74 st.i.tches; knit plain back and forth until you have 10 single ribs, then bind off 6, knit across to within 6 st.i.tches of the end and bind off these. This is for the front or turnover of the hood.

Next row, knit 1, * over, narrow, knit 1; repeat, forming holes in which to run ribbon.

Now change to white yarn and knit across, adding 6 extra st.i.tches distributed along the front near the top in order to make the back a trifle full, * knit 1 row, purl 1 row and knit 1 row for a triple rib; repeat from * 16 times, always slipping the 1st st.i.tch of each row to give a good selvage.

Bind off 26 st.i.tches on each end of the work; be sure that this is done on the wrong side, and just before knitting the last row of last rib, as the binding off finishes the rib and is essential in keeping all the ribs the same.

Knit the crown on the 16 middle st.i.tches, in the triple ribs described.

Widen twice each end of crown needle during 1st 2 ribs. Knit same number of ribs as the front, narrowing once or twice each end of needle near extreme end of crown.

Pick up the st.i.tches for the neck around lower part of crown and fronts, about 18 st.i.tches on each of the latter and alternate loops on the crown; knit across with blue, making a row of holes as on the front; knit 6 or 7 single ribs, and sew neatly to the st.i.tches bound off at lower edge of front.

Sew the crown neatly to front, run ribbon in the s.p.a.ces made for it and tighten slightly, and finish with ties and bows of ribbon.

By adding extra st.i.tches to the front, and making the crown proportionately larger, these directions will be found to serve admirably for baby's first hood, or as large a hood as wanted.

A Lesson in Crochet

The st.i.tches and terms given herewith are such as are in general use, and were taught the writer by an English teacher of crocheting, herself a professional in the art. In some periodicals and books, the real slip-st.i.tch is omitted, and the single is called slip-st.i.tch; the double is called single, the treble is called double, the double treble is called treble, and so on.

There are different ways of holding the crochet-needle and carrying the thread, and many consider one way as good as another unless, as is usually the case, one's own method is thought a little the best. The following instructions were given by the English teacher in question, and are those commonly accepted: Hold the needle in the right hand very much as you hold a pen when writing, letting the handle extend between the forefinger and thumb, which rest on and hold the needle. Hold nothing but the latter in the right hand, not allowing the fingers of that hand to so much as rest on the work. Hold work with thumb and second finger of left hand, letting the thread pa.s.s over the forefinger, slightly raised, or held up from the work, under the second, over the third and under the little finger. These instructions are especially good for using yarns, when it is desirable to keep the work as soft and fluffy as possible.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 1. The Chain-St.i.tch]

THE CHAIN. (Figure 1.) Make a loop of thread around the needle, take up the thread and draw through this loop (that is, push the hook under the thread that pa.s.ses over the forefinger, draw it back, catching the thread, and pull this through the loop on the needle), forming a new st.i.tch or loop, take up the thread and draw through this, and so continue until the chain is of the length required, tightening each loop as drawn through, so that all will be of uniform size and smoothness.

After a little practise one does this without thought. When abbreviations are used, that for chain is ch.

THE SLIP-St.i.tCH is properly a close joining st.i.tch: Drop the st.i.tch on the needle, insert hook through the st.i.tch of work to which you wish to join, take up the dropped st.i.tch and pull through, thus making a close fastening. This st.i.tch is sometimes used to "slip" along certain portions of the work, from one to another point, but single crochet is more often employed for this. The abbreviation is sl-st.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 2. Single Crochet]

SINGLE CROCHET (Figure 2, frequently called slip-st.i.tch, and sometimes mitten-st.i.tch) is made thus: Having a st.i.tch on needle, insert hook in work, take up the thread and draw it through the work and the st.i.tch on the needle at the same time. The abbreviation is s c.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 3. Double Crochet]

DOUBLE CROCHET. (Figure 3). Having a st.i.tch on needle, insert hook in work, take up thread and draw through, giving you two st.i.tches on the needle; take up thread and draw through the two st.i.tches. The abbreviation is d c. There are many variations of the double-crochet st.i.tch; the slipper-st.i.tch, or ribbed st.i.tch, is formed by taking up the back horizontal loop or vein of each st.i.tch in preceding row. A quite different effect is given when the hook is inserted under both loops.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 4. Treble Crochet]

TREBLE CROCHET. (Figure 4.) Having a st.i.tch on the needle, take up the thread as if to make a st.i.tch, insert hook in work, take up thread and draw through, making three st.i.tches or loops on the needle; * take up thread and draw through two, again and draw through two. The abbreviation of treble crochet, is t c. It will be noted that the single crochet has one "draw," the double two, and the treble three, from which these st.i.tches take their names.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 5. Half-Treble Crochet]

HALF-TREBLE OR SHORT-TREBLE CROCHET. Like treble to *; then take up thread and draw through all three st.i.tches at once.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 6. Double-Treble Crochet]

DOUBLE-TREBLE CROCHET. (Figure 6.) Having a st.i.tch on the needle, take up the thread twice, or put it twice over the needle, insert hook in work, take up thread and draw through, making four st.i.tches to be worked off; (take up thread and draw through two) three times. The abbreviation of double-treble crochet is d t c.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 7. Triple-Treble Crochet]

TRIPLE-TREBLE CROCHET. (Figure 7.) Take up thread three times, insert hook in work, take up thread and draw through, making five st.i.tches on needle; work these off two at a time, as in double treble. The abbreviation is t t c.

One sometimes has occasion to use other extra-long st.i.tches, such as quadruple crochet (over four times before insertion of hook in work), quintuple crochet (over five times), and so on, which are worked off two at a time, exactly as in treble or double treble. In turning, one chain-st.i.tch corresponds to a double, two chain-st.i.tches to a half or short treble, three chain to a treble, four to a double treble, five to a triple treble, and so on, adding one chain for each extra "draw."

PARENTHESES () AND ASTERISKS OR STARS * * are used to prevent the necessity of repet.i.tion and save s.p.a.ce. They indicate repeats of like directions. Thus: (Chain 3, miss 3, 1 treble in next) three times is equivalent to chain 3, miss 3, 1 treble in next, chain 3, miss 3, 1 treble in next, chain 3, miss 3, 1 treble in next; or to * chain 3, miss 3, 1 treble in next, repeat from * twice.

The worker should be careful in the selection of a hook. It should be well made and smooth, and of a size to carry the wool smoothly, without catching in and roughening it. If too large, on the other hand, the work is apt to be sleazy. Needles that have been used for some time work more easily than new ones. If all makes of crochet-needles were numbered in the same way the size might be easily designated; but it happens that no two manufacturers use like numbers for the same sizes, hence the rule given is the best that can be.

Crocheted Jacket

[Ill.u.s.tration: Crochet Jacket]