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Knitting Friday

This Friday, I have a pattern for a knit (armbands) and crocheted shrug. Now since I made this shrug, I learned how to make a foundation chain plus single crochet row. Here's a link to YouTube instructions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZrabIcA8C8

She goes rather quickly but she makes "clear" stitches which you can follow. I'm mentioning this type of chain cast on because if I had known it before I made the purple shrug, I would have crocheted all of it. The beauty of this type of CO? You work one chain/single crochet at a time to the size you need. No more chaining the number mentioned in the pattern, working a few rows

Knit cuff, crochet shrug

, and discovering your work is too small/big.

The pattern for the shawl pictured is:

 Simple K/C Shrug (Pictured shawl is 32" long and 21" width not stretched.)

Materials: US 8 needles, circular or DPN, I hook, and heavy fingering/light sport weight yarn

CO 43 using US 8 needles. Join and work 8 rows in seed for your first armband. BO and transfer your last loop to an I hook. Chain 2 and work 36 half double crochets (HDC) across your BO edge.T (You will be crocheting flat now.)

Next row: *Ch 5, skip 2 HDC stitches, single crochet in next HDC* across. (12 Ch-5 spaces made) Turn

Next row: *Ch 5 then sc in each ch-5 sp of previous row across* with two exceptions: In the first and last ch-5 spaces of the row, you'll work two ch5/sc stitches so that you will be increasing two ch-5 spaces on each row. You'll work this row till you have 16 ch-5 spaces.

Note: I didn't have a lot of yarn so I stopped at 16 ch-5 spaces but you can make more spaces. And. you could crochet one row straight (see below) and one row with the increasing till you get the number of spaces you want.

Straight Body Row: (once your shrug is wide enough) T. *Ch5 and work 1 single crochet in each ch-5 sp across, no increases in the first and last space* Work this body row until your shrug is long enough, minus about 2".

Second armband decrease: On this row, you will decrease 1 ch-5 space each side until you're down to 12 ch-5 spaces again:

How to decrease at the beginning: Ch 5 and bring your hook through the first and second ch-5 sp working your sc in the second ch-5 sp. 

Then work *ch 5, sc in space as usual across.

End Decrease: With 2 ch-5 spaces left, ch 5 and bring your hook through the last two ch-5 spaces, working your sc into the last ch-5 space.

Work this row to 12 ch-5 spaces.

Next row, HDC row: T, Ch 2 and work 36 HDC  across in your 12 ch-5 spaces.

Armband: Using the loop on your hook as your first stitch. change to US 8 needles and pick up 43 stitches. Work armband as above. Bind off. Weave in your two ends and wear.

That's it. Right now, I'm in love with shrugs so there may be a new one next week. Happy knitting!