Choosing Yarn for your Crochet throw

The patterns, designs and styles you choose for your crochet throws are probably the first thing to inspire you, but the yarn you choose is as crucial to the success of your crochet project. For throws and blankets I like to use Acrylic blends they are hardwearing, soft and easy care. The blends I choose as well as including Acrylic depend on what I’m making. Wool for picnic blankets, nylon, cotton  and merino blends for baby blankets and throws for the lounge or bedroom.

Some of my favourites are Sirdar Snuggly, Sirdar Dapple and Sirdar No 1 and Scheepjes Cotton Fun . Both Caron and Sirdar have a wide range of acrylic blend yarns. Acrylic yarns and blends wash well and are hard wearing with some specifically spun for baby projects perfect for baby blankets and soft throws.

Cheap or expensive yarn what’s the difference? 
Cheap doesn’t always mean inferior, as a better guide, gauge the yarn content against what it is you are making. Important is the yardage on the ball band and bear in mind that not all yarns of the same gauge and weight per ball or skein produce the same amount of yarn. Some expensive yarns for example have a greater yardage than cheaper equivalents. Add one expensive yarn to your throw and it will lift the whole design.

Should you stick to the yarn recommended in the pattern?
There is no doubt that yarns of the same weight vary greatly in the finish they produce. I’ve experimented with different yarns of the same weight and the same pattern and produced very different results, from smaller stitches to different length and different widthways tension. If you want to use an alternative yarn to the one recommended in your pattern check your tension carefully and adjust your hook size as necessary.

Should you go for mass produced or independent spinner and dyer?
Hand dyed yarn is gorgeous  and usually produces unique colour ways. If your throw is a gift or something for a special occasion then buying from an independent dyer is the one to go for.

Colour choice 
Mass produced yarn ranges offer the greatest choice of colours. The more popular the yarn the bigger the choice of colours. Acrylic baby yarn blends usually come in a wide range as do economy yarn ranges. Are you going for brights, subtle shades or contrasting yarns. Look for a wide selection of colours such as Scheepjes colour crafter. Bonus yarns are a good choice for main colours.

What weight?
My favourite is DK (light worsted) weight. Crochet grows quickly and shows good stitch definition. Chunky and Aran weights grow more quickly but stitch definition is not as good. 4ply and lace weight yarns look beautiful but take a long time to make!

Find throw pattterns here.....

My Ten Favourite Yarns of 2018

I love yarn and I love that we have so many stunning yarns to choose from, from big brands to independent spinners and dyers. The quality of yarns today is generally excellent. These are my favourites from this year. It was very difficult to choose, but I can tell you I have used all of these and I love all of them! All the yarns here are double knitting (light worsted) apart from no 10 which is a 4ply (sport) weight.

1. Schjeepes Soft fun cotton -  64 colours to choose from in this 60% cotton and 40% acrylic yarn. It combines the best of both components, soft and lovely to work from the cotton and hardwearing and easy care from the Acrylic. Use this yarn for soft scarves, big squishy cushions and children’s clothing.

2. Wensleydale Longwool - I have wanted to sample Wensleydale wool for a long time so when I visited their shop in Leyburn North Yorkshire I was in my element!  The Wensleydale shop is a treasure trove of yarn, accessories and finished items made using this local Yorkshire wool. This is a traditional 100% wool yarn in a range of colours. It’s warm and has excellent crochet stitch definition. It’s perfect for winter scarves and hats.

3. Di Gilpin Lalland – 100% lambswool this yarn is double stranded. It’s soft and shouts out quality. It crochets beautifully and creates a lovely textured finish. It’s perfect for neck warmers and scarves and would make a gorgeous crochet jumper or jacket. The colours are reminiscent of the Scottish countryside, heather, deep greys, bright yellows and coral pinks are some of my favourites.

4. Sirdar Colourwheel - In 150gm balls and for this you get 520m/568 yards of yarn. Sirdar created 150gm balls so that one ball of yarn would be enough to knit or crochet a scarf and this definitely works for small infinity scarves. Made up of 80% Acrylic and 20% wool Colour Wheel is a warm and easy to crochet yarn. The colour way effect is very pretty giving you a whole range of colours all of which blend together beautifully. Colour wheel is great for scarves and shawls, but I've also tried it for small bags and this looks really pretty. I'd like to try baby jackets in ‘Follow the Rainbow’ and a summer cover up in ‘Flower Garden’.

5. Katia Azteca - a double knit (light worsted yarn), made in Spain. It’s a blended yarn with random slubs. The fantastic range of 17 blended colours includes blues, green, autumn colours and pinks. I used the pink/beige/orange blend to make a hat and scarf set and a clutch bag. Azteca comes in 100gm balls and one ball for me the hat and scarf set. Katia with a large wool content (53% wool, 47% acrylic), is perfectly designed for autumn/winter jumpers. This yarn is one of my all time favourite yarns!

6. Sirdar No.1 - Sirdar No 1 DK 50% Acrylic is soft and has a lovely sheen. Made up of 50% Nylon 230m/251 yards it comes in 100gm balls and it goes a long way! No 1 reminds me of crepe style yarns that were fashionable in the 1980’s. I used it to make a lacy summer shawl and it drapes beautifully.

7. Rowan tweed - This lovely Aran weight yarn is made up of 75% wool and 25% hemp with flecks. It comes in a wide range of lovely soft tweedy colours. Choose from fabulous almond, plum, denim, treacle, pine, duck egg, paprika and moss. I’d be happy with any of these! Nothing says Autumn and Winter more than Rowan Tweed. The great thing is this lovely Rowan yarn is machine washable at 30°C. I used Kelp shade to make a tweed hat. Dense, warm and super cosy Rowan Tweed hemp would be perfect for scarves, winter jumpers or ponchos. I can’t wait to try some cables with it!

8. Dalton border Leicester - Doulton Border Leicester comes in 100gm skeins and the DK has 200metres per skein. 100% pure worsted spun wool, is gorgeous quality with excellent stitch definition and does not split when crocheting. This is not a prickly wool yarn! This range of yarn from a rare breed herd of sheep includes 4ply, DK and Aran. The range also includes a mini skein selection, all close colour tones that have won a wool award, good for a try out of this lovely quality yarn.

9. Debbie Bliss Summer Tweed  - is sold as DK (light worsted) but it feels more like a 4 ply to me. It comes in a lovely range of beautifully blended colours from violet, daisy, poppy, rose, begonia, marigold, honeysuckle and petal. I used honeysuckle. The yarn has slubs which makes for a more interesting finish and gives and extra level of interest. Made up of 52% cotton 48% acrylic Debbie Bliss summer tweed is brilliant for shawls, scarves and lightweight summer knits. Wash at 30C 50 g balls. Yardage is 120m/131yds and Debblie Bliss summer tweed comes in 50g balls. This yarn would make a lovely cover up or summer jacket or a gorgeous holdall style bag particularly blended with a plain double knit yarn (light worsted).

10. Aurinkokehra Yarn - Every now and then a really special yarn comes along, something that stands out from the rest. I found just such a yarn, Aurinkokehra, tucked away on a stall at Yarndale this year and I fell in love with the colour of a hank on the display, a subtle pink/deep lavender blend. Aurinkokehra Yarn comes in a range of weights from chunky to double knit and 4ply. I used the 4ply not a weight I usually use,  but with the subtle blend of colours in a lightweight warm yarn, I knew it would be perfect for a delicate crochet scarf.

Shell Motif Scarf

Who doesn’t love a wrap around crochet scarf or shawl? This elegant design combines practical use and beauty and the finished project can be used either as a shawl or a scarf. Based on a fan shape the design uses a motif with a simple filler based on the main motif. Once you have mastered the main motif the project will be easy for you to complete and it grows quickly. Make the scarf as big or as small as you want by adding or reducing the number of motifs.

To make this special scarf I used Sirdar No 1 DK 50% Acrylic which is soft and has a lovely sheen.  Sirdar No. 1 is made up of 50% Nylon 230m/251 yards it comes in 100gm balls and it goes a long way! If you use an alternative yarn check your tension against the instructions in the pattern. I used one colour to create a harmonious look. Teal one of my all time favourite colours but I think the scarf would look lovely in cream or black.

The shawl design is an open design perfect for cooler summer evenings with pretty fillers finished with a row of generous tassels. I designed the motifs so the centre is raised giving it extra depth. The motifs are made row on row with extra motifs added down the sides at an angle to balance the finished scarf. Grab the pattern here.....

Stained glass Window Crochet Holdall

This lovely bag has a patchwork look about it achieved by adding rows of one main colour in between blocks of contrasting colour which highlight the multi coloured squares. It’s made in a tapestry style crochet which I’ve made simpler for this easy to make bag.

My inspiration for this bag was a blouse design I saw in a clothing catalogue. I knew immediately the material design would look good translated into a crochet design. For my bag I chose colours that blended together but using contrasting colours would look just as good and produce a wonderful pool of colour for your bag. By using brighter colours for the square inserts you would produce a stained glass effect.

The double crochets stitches (single crochet) used in this design show the colours to their best effect and gives a more rigid dense structure perfect for a bag. Before finishing your bag, it’s worth lining your bag stops it stretching and to prevent it being damaged.

The main points to remember when making this bag is to carry the yarn across the back and front. When working the front keep your yarns to the back and carry the main colour along the back, be careful not to pull this too tight. When working the back carry the yarns along the side facing you.

I added big tassels for more interest and thick chunky carrying strap which is long enough to fit comfortable over your shoulder. Grab the pattern here.....

West Yorkshire Spinners

There are so many yarns and yarn suppliers to choose from, that it’s difficult to decide who to buy from and what to buy. Many companies import wool and yarn from a variety of sources and dye on mass others buy in yarn and hand dye! It’s lovely to come across a company that spin, dye and produce their own yarns and if you are in the UK the good news is that if you buy from West Yorkshire Spinners you are supporting a UK company and UK sheep farmers.

From a relatively small range of West Yorkshire Spinners have expanded and now offer choices in 4 ply, DK and Arran, including Blue faced, British Wool breeds, Jacobs, Mohair, Norweigean and Wensleydale. The selection of yarns they offer are all lovely quality and well priced with a good choice of colours and blends.

The British Wool breeds range, Aire Valley which I’ve tried in a double knitting blend comes in very punchy cocktail colours and blends in DK and Arran, it’s a wool rich blends with 75% wool.
I’ve used Illustrious, 70% Falkland wool and 30% British Alpaca, which comes in 100grm balls which produces 225metres.

Blue Faced Arran comes in 4 ply, DK and Arran in multi shades and a good selection of sock yarns. The gorgeous country birds collection is self striping and the autumn collection is has lovely greens and deep rusts. 100% blue faced Leicester DK 100 gm balls (224 metres).
Buy direct from West Yorkshire Spinners

What to make with one ball of yarn

When you feel the need to create something in crochet but time, circumstances or the need to use up some of your stash makes it a necessity, what can you make with one or two balls of yarn?  Of course it all depends on the size of your ball of yarn and the thickness of the yarn, but even 1 ball of chunky or double knit (light worsted) can be used to make something.

One 50 gm ball of double knit (light worsted)  yarn will make one place mat or 4 coasters
Amigurumi are always popular and it’s easy to make a very cute amigurumi with one ball of double knit (light worsted) yarn.

With one 100gm ball of double knit (light worsted) you could make a cushion front. Just add a contrasting material back.

Crochet bootees or sandals for babies are gorgeous and a 50gm ball of yarn will be all you need.

A mug holder, made with two or three granny squares. It’s good to make something useful!

Christmas decorations. Use traditional colours such as white, red and bright green, but any colour will work with a few sparkly beads. One colour Christmas decorations look very sophisticated.

Lavender bags make delightful gifts and are ideal makes for fundraising events. They look lovely made with a cotton based yarn thick or thin.

Use one ball of double knit (light worsted) or chunky cotton to create a small storage basket to keep your jewellery or buttons safe

Crochet a necklace using a cotton based yarn, just add a few buttons or beads.

Crochet brooches are very pretty and take very little yarn.

Decorative crochet flowers are special. Add them to jumpers, hats, cushions or to make in a simple corsage.

Pom poms. Okay so not crochet but pom poms add something special to crochet hats, crochet flower wreaths and children’s jumpers.

Crochet key rings take very little yarn. You could make an entwined knot or a small amigurumi.

One ball of yarn will make a child’s hat.

Crochet headbands or ear warmers, pretty, chunky or elegant don’ take much yarn. Use wool based for warmth and cotton based for pretty flowery styles.

A book mark. Even a simple design will create something lovely to give as a special handmade gift or for fund raising.

Sirdar Snuggly Spots review

Sirdar Snuggly spots is the perfect  yarn to use if you want to create an unusual finish without the need to change yarns. There are many yarns now available that create a variety of special effects but Sirdar snugly spots is a bit more unusual, it creates spots randomly as you work.

There are 16 colours to choose from. I’ve tried the very pale pretty spot, this gives a very subtle sprinkling of pale pink and pale lavender spots. The darker cosy spot produces more pronounced spots of orange and grey.

A 50g ball makes 165m/179 yards. Sirdar Snuggly is made with 55% nylon and 45% acrylic and is very easy to work with. It’s perfect for children’s clothing and blankets and soft scarfs. I used it to make the teddy (more on this in May!). I use hook size 3.25 but any size up to 4 mm would be fine.

I’d like to Snuggly spots for a crochet Arran style jacket using the speckle. This is my favourite in the large range of Snuggly spots. You could also use this yarn for throws and blankets, picking out the colour of the spots for contrasting yarns.

Buy from Deramores.com and woolwarehouse.co.uk