Want a pattern?

I have to get you die-hard knitters to try a little crochet. You too can be obsessed. After all, why should I be alone in this madness?

I'm assuming that you do know how to crochet. If you don't, find a good book or take a class and learn. It's a totally different skill from knitting. Knitting can easily be graphed; most crochet is done "in the air", kind of like the difference between counted cross stitch and freehand embroidery. Sort of. I'm guessing that you use different parts of the brain to do each one. So look at this as a way to increase your intelligence, or, at the very least, add to your scarf collection.

Here's how you do the standard ripple pattern:

1. Chain a multiple of 12 + 3. If you crochet tightly, go up a hook size for that first row.

2. 1 DC into 4th chain from hook.
*1 DC into next of 3 chains, [DC 2tog] twice, 1 DC into each of next 3 chains, 2 DC into each of next 2 chains* Repeat from *, ending last repeat with 2 DC into last ch. Turn.

3. Ch 3, 1 DC into same st. * 1 DC into each of next 3 DC, [DC 2tog]twice, 1 DC into each of next 3 DC, 2 DC into each of next 2 DC*. Repeat from *, ending last repeat with 2 DC into either the ch 3 loop or into the third ch of that loop. Turn.

That's the entire pattern. I have to admit that I do cheat and do that last 2 DC into the chain 3 loop from the previous row. I can't see that it makes any difference, at least in this pattern.

I used a skein of New Bambi with a size 4 hook, and I got a very drapey fabric. You don't want to construct a wall here; you want the thing to be a bit flow-y, so that it will drape around your neck. 3 or 4 repeats of the pattern will do it for a scarf.



Here's how to do a DC 2tog. This is a crochet decrease, and once you've learned it, you will love it. It's so organic.

Work the first part of a DC: just the first yo hook, pull through. So, you will have 2 stitches on the hook. Then, do the same thing with the next stitch, and you will end up with 3 stitches on the hook. Then, yo, and pull through all those stitches. What you are doing here is leaving the first stitch incomplete, and then doing the same thing with the second stitch. By then yo, and pulling through all the stitches on the hook, you turn 2 stitches into one. If this doesn't make sense, let me know, and I'll try to photograph it for you.

Heather x - I'm so glad I rediscovered crochet; it's addictive. My mom taught me how to crochet when I was a kid, and I made doilies. I was so fascinated with them. I still have them somewhere in the linen closet. I should haul them out and have them framed.