Frou Frou Progress; Troubleshooting

Finished seaming my Frou Frou tonight and got ready to add the trim, a little concerned about all the changes I'd made to the pattern. Then I discovered...

...there was not enough yarn!!!!! EEEEK! TLC Lustre has been discontinued for ages!

Thank goodness, Herrschners has a bunch of colors in stock. Not just dark green, but also the lovely dark red Claret. The swatch I whipped up with Claret on the Bond machine was elastic, lustrous, gorgeous. Not only that, but the price was $1.27/ball!!! I stocked up.

NOTE ON FROU FROU PATTERN ERROR:

A lot of people have been having trouble with the trim not flaring out. I did a swatch on one small section of my sweater to test. Based on the photos and the logic of the stitch pattern, I think the problem is in Round 2. If you modify it to the following, the trim flares out about 25-30% by the last row.

Round 2: Ch3, draw up a 1/2" loop in next sc, sk next sc, draw up a 1/2" loop in next sc, yo, draw yarn through 3 loops on hook, ch3, *draw up a 1/2" loop in same stitch as second leg of last cluster, sk next sc, draw up a 1/2" loop in next sc, yo, draw yarn through 3 loops on hook, ch3; rep from * around, sl stitch in third ch of turning ch to join.

I suspect it also helps to crowd the sc base of the trim (Round 1) when doing the front of the body. That is, do more than 1 sc per row. I did 3 sc every 2 rows, though this may turn out to be too much.

Starburst Hat Tutorial

STARBURST HAT TUTORIAL

This hat is crocheted from the top down in the round, working in one direction. The starburst accent is created with four alternating rows of 5-dc shells and dc5tog's.

Important Tip: To keep the seam straight, begin every other row by crocheting the first stitch one stitch ahead (to the left) of the slip stitch join. However, do not do this for the 5dc shell and 5dctog rows.

Yarn: DK to worsted weight yarn, in Main Color (MC) and Contrast Color (CC). I used Knit Picks Andean Silk in gray and Malabrigo handspun/hand dyed merino in a sky blue.

Hook: 5mm, more or less depending on yarn and preference.

Special stitches:
-5dc-shell: 5 dc in same stitch
-dc5tog: (Yarn over (YO), insert hook into next stitch, YO, draw yarn through stitch, YO, draw yarn through 2 loops on hook) five times. Then YO, draw yarn through all 6 loops on hook, chain 1 to close.
-dc2tog: (Yarn over (YO), insert hook into next stitch, YO, draw yarn through stitch, YO, draw yarn through 2 loops on hook) twice. Then YO, draw yarn through all 3 loops on hook.

TEMPLATE:

Foundation: In Main Color (MC), Chain 3, slip stitch in first chain to join into circle.

1: Ch 2 (counts as first half double crochet (hdc)), 8 hdc in circle over the loose tail. Slip stitch in second chain of turning chain to join. Work in one direction from here on; do not turn. Pull the tail to tighten the circle. (9 hdc)
2: Ch 1, 2 hdc in each stitch across. Slip stitch in top of first hdc to join. (18 hdc)
3: Ch 1, (2 hdc in first stitch, 1 hdc in next stitch) across. Slip stitch in top of first hdc to join. (27 hdc)
4: Ch 1, (2 hdc in first stitch, 1 hdc in each of next two 2 stitches) across. (36 hdc)
5: Ch 1, (2 hdc in first stitch, 1 hdc in each of next 3 stitches) across. Slip stitch in top of first hdc to join. (45 hdc)

Continue established pattern, increasing by 9 hdcs each row, until you reach the desired diameter, 6 to 7 inches depending on head size. (I used Contrast Color (CC) in rows 6 and 9, and reached my diameter for a smallish hat in row 9.) Begin side rows.

Side row 1: In MC, hdc each stitch across, increasing or decreasing a few stitches evenly as needed to achieve the multiple of 7 stitches required by the starburst pattern (see below).* Slip stitch to join.

Starburst pattern:

Side row 2: In MC, ch1, sc in first stitch, (skip 2 hdc, 5dc-shell in next hdc, skip 2 hdc, sc in next hdc) across. Slip stitch with CC on top of first sc.

Side row 3: In CC, chain 2, dc2tog on first two dcs of shell, (sc in 3rd dc of shell, ch 2, dc5tog, ch1, sc into last leg of dc5tog just made, sc in 3rd dc of shell) across. End with ch 2, dc2tog in last two dcs of shell, slip stitch on top of turning chain/dc2tog to join.

Side row 4: In CC, (ch 3, 2 dc) in same stitch as slip stitch join, sc in next sc. (5dc-shell on top of next dc5tog, sc in next sc) across. End with 2dc in same stitch as initial (Ch3, 2dc), slip stitch in MC to join.

Side row 5: In MC, repeat row 3. Slip stitch in MC to join.

To close starburst pattern:
Side row 6: In MC, hdc in same stitch as slip stitch, hdc in each of next 2 ch, hdc in top of dc5tog, skip next ch, hdc in next sc*, hdc in next sc [the one on top of the shell]. End with slip stitch in top of first hdc. You should now have the same number of stitches as in side row 1.

Return to normal rows:
Side row 7: In CC, ch1, hdc across. In MC, slip stitch in top of first hdc to join.

Add plain hdc rows as necessary, alternating MC and CC as desired, with MC in next to last row. The hat should be about 7.25 inches tall at this point.

Last row/border: In CC, ch 1, sc in same hdc, sc in next hdc, spike sc (inserting hook 1/4" below where you normally would), sc in each of nest 3 hdc across, ending with slip stitch in first sc. Tie off. You’ll be short a stitch or two in the end, but that’s okay.

Finishing: weave in loose ends. Voila! Your starburst hat.

Xmas FOs -- Hats! and more

My babies are out the door, hopefully warming their new owners. I was almost sad to see them go. At least a few of them genuinely looked good, so I hope to get up pics of people wearing them soon. Here's one of Sylvia in her cloche:

I started most of the hats from the top down, based on the hat pattern in Interweave Knits' winter 2004 Crochet special issue, and did something different once I got to the right diameter for the crown. (Bought an old copy from a LYS, but it's not on Interweave's website.)

The pattern has a helpful but hard-to-understand tip to keep the seam from roving as you crochet in the round in one direction. Basically, you start every other row one stitch ahead of where you normally would. Because the last stitch then overlaps with the slip stitch/turning chain, this produces a tighter, less visible seam. One of these days I'll put together a photo tutorial.

The above brim, I adapted from Crochetme's Gulf Shores cloche pattern. The flower is from The Happy Hooker's Spring and Winter hat/scarf pattern. The yarn--Plymouth Outback Wool--is a find, with 370 yds/hankd for $16!

I certainly got a lot of practice making hats! Here are a bunch; the ones on the right are for my 8 month old nephew. Unfortunately the gray skies washed out all the colors. :(



Besides the cloche above, my favorites are the gray/light blue starburst hat and the bobble hat below:


... there were some scarves in the mix, too. Here's one with detail. The photos don't do it justice; the yarn is beautiful and lustrous, Lang Pearl in #0046.


I still have a couple projects left, then it's back to sweaters for myself.