Scrubini (Skrub/in/ey)

 I will admit, Scrubini (pronounced like Gemini), was based probably exactly from a pattern I saw on Ravelry, and I thought it was such a neat project that I had to do it for my own.  Is there a difference to what that person's pattern was, I highly doubt it.  Having said that, I will not post this to Ravelry because I don't want to step on someone elses creative toes.  This was not my own orignial design.  I do not want the credit.  But, it is a cool way to practice using Plarn and creating it so, Let's just call this a tutorial in plarn.

HOW TO MAKE PLARN

1. Place a finger into the Corner "Pocket" in the side-bottom and pull down to straighten that side.  It should naturally fold in on that side.  Repeat for opposite side.
2. Fold bag in half, then in half again, and if desired, in half again.
3. Cut 1/2-1" strips starting from the bottom, removing the first 1/2" worth of the bottom.  Continue cutting in this manor.  When you get to the handles, toss along with the bag's bottom.  NOTE: the width of the strips are approximate.  No need to literally measure them out.  
4. Open up a strip and gently pull open to it's full ringy potential.  Do this with a second strip and link them together by folding a strip in half through another, pull one end up through itself and gently tug taut.  
5. Continue in this matter with remaining strips and roll into a ball.

Add more bags/strips as needed.  TA-DAAA PLARN!

 

 

 

THE PATTERN

rated "B" for basic stitches, & Granny Square Know How

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Requirements:
Size H Hook
Approximately 2 grocery sacks worth of Plarn
Small amount to 1/3rd ball of Cotton Yarn
Small amount of contrasting or verigated yarn
(optional for a trim)

1. take your plarn like it's double stranded and make a slip knot as usual to start chaining.
2. Ch. 5 & Join.Ch3, 2 dc, (ch1, 3dc)3x's to make a square.  Should have 4 total shells. Join in top of beg. chain.
3. Slst. across the shell and into the ch1 space.  Ch3, 2 dc in ch1, ch1, 3 dc in same chain.  (3 dc, ch1, 3dc) corner shell made in next ch1 space and around.  Join in top of ch3.
4. Slst across this shell and into Ch1 space.  Ch3, 2 dc in ch1, ch1, 3 dc in same.  (shell in space between shells, corner shell in next ch1 space) around  Join.  Fasten off Plarn.

 

• Attatch Main ball of cotton yarn in any space and double crochet across all stitches.  New Corner Shell...(2 dc, ch1, 2dc) and dc across.  Continue in this manner, joining 1 stitch before the joining chain.  Ch 3 and continue in this manner for a total of 8 row all together, including plarn scrubber section.  
• Optional Decorative row:  Attatch contrasting yarn, or maintain current color and single crochet across all stitches and 3sc in the ch1 spaces.  Join and finish off.

A Word on Fiber: What does it Matter?

Well, it matters greatly.  Let's think of fiber in terms of Human Hair (which, technically, can be considered a fiber..in a creepy, yet very wrong sense.).

Depending on your race, genetic disposition, and how your hair is cared for, it has different properties and textures.  Caucasian hair, for the most part, can be curly or straight, but most of the time, has an even texture that's fairly easy to manipulate with a little product or tools.  African Hair tends to be highly coarse.  This means it can be corded, braided, and twisted with ease because the hair has a "springy" quality known as "Memory".  Asian hair is, for the most part, stick straight and slick.  Not a lot can be done with it, but with accessories and creative cutting, can be put together in an array of styles.

If you think of Yarn Fibers in these terms, it may be a little more understandable as to why pattern makers and knitter/crocheters alike use certain fibers for certain applications.  For this lecture, I am lumping Fibers into 3 basic categories: Animal, Plant, & Man-Made

Animal Fiber:  Animal fiber is the hair or fur from critters.  In no certain order here are some that are popular and/or kinda odd.

Sheep

Alpaca (a type of Llama)

Angora (type of both goat and rabbit)

Merino (Goat)

Cashmere (Goat)

Bison (No, really)

Dog (couldn't make that up!)

In relation to human hair, Animal Fiber is like Caucasian Hair.  It has texture and can be manipulated if you apply heat.  If you "bump-it", you get volume or what is called "Felting" when you take an item made with an animal fiber and agitate the living ba-cheese-us out of it in hot, soapy water.  Then again, African Hair "felts" also, in which is called "Dread Locks".  But that's for another discussion on another site.

     Animal Fibers are recommended for use in Garments for their softness and moisture resisting properties and for felting projects.  What causes felting is the "barbs" that all animal (and human) hair has on each strand.  If you watch Shampoo commercials, you will notice this.  When hair is stripped of it's natural oils (via soap) and is viggoriously rubbed against itself (via aggitation..this is why hair tangles, btw, when you rub your head with a towel) those barbs link together like velcro (thus, felting).    

    Non-Animal fibers lack these barbs.  Yeah, Cotton shrinks when you wash it a first time, but it doesn't link together.  It just gets small and softens...which brings me too...

Plant Fiber:  Plant Fiber are fibers that come from natural and/or organic resources.  Plant fiber is the preferred choice of fiber for Vegan knitter/crocheters, or people who are trying to "go green".  They may also be seen knitting or crocheting with Bamboo, Rosewood, or other wooden crafting tools.  Here are the plant fiber yarns I know of thus far...

Cotton

Bamboo (you read that right)

Soy

Raffia

Hemp (heck yeah!)

Linen

Flax

Twine

In Human Hair terms, I would consider Plant Fibers to be the Asian Hair of the fiber kingdom.  It's slick, it has no memory, but with the right tools, can make some really great styles.  

     Plant fibers are best for things such as summer garments, bags, and home items.  Plant fibers retain little heat and offer killer liquid absorption.  Both are excellent properties to have during the summer when you want a cute little top to wear, but animal & man-made fibers are just too warm.  The durability of plant based yarn increase dramatically when it is knitted, crocheted, or even woven.  This is why designers prefer these fibers for such things as purses, wash-clothes, rugs, and even rope.  For example, cotton yarn in itself is fragile and easy to break if you pull on it just right.  But once you use it in a seed stitch, or double crochet it, it will be one of the best dish-clothes you ever had!  Also, plant fibers have no stretch or memory.  Both a blessing and a curse.  If you mess up, you're kind of boned.  You can't just throw it on a Niddy Noddy, wet it, and hope for the best, but if you are making one of those super cool baby sling thinggers, then a good quality plant based yarn is going to be sweet!  If you used a cheaper acrylic, it's going to stretch like crazy and then you will be carrying your child at your shins.  As entertaining as the thought is, using your baby as an attached hacky sack is WRONG!

Man-Made Fiber:     There is absolutely nothing wrong with using the cheap ol' stand-by of Acrylic Yarn.  Now breath and make this your mantra when you just HAVE to knit/crochet something and all you have is $5 to your name and enough gas to get you to Craft Warehouse and back home.  Here are the examples of Man-Made Fiber

Acrylic

Nylon

Plastic Bags (oh my, yes)

Chenille

Chitlin

note: for the record, Chitlin is technically an animal fiber being it is made from crab shells, but it is created chemically into a soft yarn.  I've bought sock yarn made from it.  It's pretty sweet.  Also, does not hold the properties of Animal yarn. DOES NOT FELT.

Notice how I capitalized "Does Not Felt".  Man-Made fibers are the African Hair of fiber.  No matter how you treat it, manipulate it, or play with it, it will never felt or have ALL of the same properties of Animal Fiber.  Case in point.  Let's say 2 people make sweaters from the same pattern.  Both use worsted weight  yarn but one is using 100% Merino Wool, the other is using 100% Acrylic yarn.  The Merino is going to have far better drape and feel to the sweater than the Acrylic which, no matter how the person steams it, blocks it, or incorporates a few tactful short row shaping here and there, their sweater will just look cheap and uncomfortable.  

     Man-Made fibers are used more or less for items in the "Others" category.  Usually afghans, Slipper Socks, Hats, Mittens, Decor, or What-Ever in general.  BUT!!!...THERE IS EXCEPTION TO THIS!!!

     There are some Man-Made fibers that are made in a "soft" format.  To be very specific, yarn examples such as Caron Simply Soft or Vanna's Choice make GREAT "Garment" yarns if you are looking to make a sweater on the cheap.  My only warning is that they may not be as warm as animal fiber, and not as moisture wicking as plant-based fiber.  When wearing a man-made fiber garment, I do suggest wearing an under garment.

Blends:     Now, let's say you want to make a cute sweater for your Brother's 3 year old boy.  You want the sweater to be soft and warm for the upcoming winter season, but kids are HARSH on clothing so you want some stellar durability let alone want it to be washable, since your Sister-in-Law has her hands too full with the darling kiddo to hand-wash a hand-knit sweater.  Which yarn do you go for?  A blend!

     Blends are that math-equation you peeked over Marty McMathelson's shoulder during the big Algebra quiz.  The answer to your scenario, as stated above:  You want yarn that's X% animal, Y% Man Made.  The more animal, the softer and warmer.  The more man-made, the more washable and durable.  The same goes for with plant fiber...If you want to make a really cute Short-Sleeve Kimono Wrap style top, but won't shrink completely in the wash, or become totally disfigured in the wash, get yarn that's X%Plant, Y% Man made.  The more Plant, the cooler and more liquid wicking.  The more Man-made, the more washable and shape retaining.  

     Blending fills in the gaps and solves the problems you have with 100% of something may have cons too.  You can even find blends of like animal to animal, or like plant to plant, or even like man-made to man-made because each different type of something has it's own goodies to it!

I hope this has been helpful to you, my readers.  Fiber Knowledge is essential if you ever want to substitute one yarn for another in a project.  I'd hate to see you use an el cheapo acrylic yarn instead of the suggested cotton for the drum bag, then have your clutch size strap hang to your knees because you didn't know how bad acrylic stretches.

If you have further questions regarding fiber, please comment below and I will try my best to answer.

Swiffer Thong

I made this pattern because I just had a bug in me to do it.  I've seen many patterns out there for washable Swiffer sweeper/mop covers but none of them were compatible with this latest rendition of the Swiffer mop.  Well, when it hit me on how to go about this pattern, I laughed.  A thong.

Now your Swiffer can both do the job of a regular crocheted Swiffer pad, 

BUT NOW CAN MAKE YOUR SWIFFER LOOK LIKE A TRAMP TOO!  n_~

I'm totally kidding, but it is very functionable and a quick make, too.

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The Swiffer Thong

This pattern is rated "B" for Basic

simple construction, basic stitches, and can be finished less than a day.

You will need:

1 ball of Worsted Weight Cotton Yarn

     ~sample used Bernat Cotton Handicrafter Yarn

Size US H hook

Stitches Used:

Single Crochet (sc) 

Single Crochet in the Back Loop (scbl)

Single Crochet 4 together (sc4tog)

     ~(insert hook into next stitch and pull up a loop)4x's.  Yarn over and pull through all loops on hook.

Single Crochet 3 together (sc3tog)

     ~do as for sc4tog, but repeat the first part only 3x's.

~no real gauge.  Just adjust size to fit your own Swiffer.  Theoretically, this thong can be made to fit any Swiffer

The Pattern:

Chain 45 semi-loosely.

1st row: sc in the second chain and across to the end.  Ch1 and turn

2nd row: scbl and across.  Ch1 turn.

Repeat 2nd Row for 4" (or until it has reached the size of your swiffer pad base.)

Going down the short row, continue sc down the side until the last 2 spaces before the corner.  sc4tog and sc down the long side until 2 st before the corner, sc4tog, and continue like this for the other two sides.  Do not fasten off or slip stitch to join the row.

As the prior row, sc down the short row to 1 stitch before the corner, sc3tog.  Continue in this same manner, again sc3tog the corners.  Slip Stitch the end of the row.  DO NOT FASTEN OFF!

Ch25 and fold piece in half to find the center front stitch.  The front is the furthest center part from where this chain is beginning.  You know, like a thong (sandal thong).  Attach the chain with a sc then ch 25 more.  Attach this chain with a slip stitch to the opposite corner of your starting chain and NOW fasten off.  Weave the tail into the free loops on the inside of your thong.  Remember to turn out our corners to form pockets.

This will fit snugly to your Swiffer's pad base and the pad may be small at first, but the ribbing will stretch a bit and the front should not hinder the spray nozzles at the front of your base.

You can Steam Iron to "block", but it's not necessary.  It's just going to get dirty anyway.  n_~

Drum Circle

Drum Circle
*drum bag & cover*
Crochet

This bag has put me on a mission.  I was going to make this right if it was the last thing I was going to do!  Thankfully, the person who wanted this bag made was very patient with me.

Construction of this bag is simple enough.  I don't do complicated because complication = more yarn + time.  But, upon completion, I have found that this bag can be left on for practice purposes.  That means you can still play the drum in the bag with out too much loss of sound, but still have it muffled enough to not really bug anybody!


I do want to suggest that you use a worsted weight, plant fiber type yarn.  For example: Cotton, Bamboo, Hemp, Linen, Flax...because it has minimal stretch.

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The Pattern
Rated: “AB” for advanced beginners
&
“CYOA” for Choose Your Own Adventure
This patterns contains basic stitches
Rounds, and techniques not commonly used
In crochet.
Just about any part of this pattern
Can be tweeked to your liking.

Finished Size:  varies upon drum.
Pattern is written to be adjustable

Requirements:
About 6 skeins cotton yarn
(More or less really, depending on the size of the drum)
A small amount of any yarn, coordinating or match
Size K hook
Size I hook (for handle)
Yarn/Darning Needle
A closure of any type.  Button, cording to tie with, clasps, zipper, what-ever floats your boat.

Gauge:
With K:  1 / 2” per dc.  Each Round’s diameter should theoretically equal +1”.
Therefore, 10 rounds=10”, 12 rounds=12”, 14 rounds=14”, so on and so on.

Note:  When joining new yarn, I recommend weaving in the tails 

of the old and new yarns while continuing

on in pattern.  Knotting the yarn ends together is kind of sloppy 

and may not do the drum-head any favors.

 The bag shown was made for a 16” hand drum and used 6 balls of Lily Sugar & Cream Stripes worsted weight cotton yarn.

Stitches & Methods used:
Stitch (st)
Chain (ch)
Slip Stitch (sl st)
Single Crochet
Double Crochet (dc)
Adjustable Loop/Magic Ring
Loop yarn around and hold with fingers, chain 1 then single crochet around x times, join, pull hanging yarn end tight to close
Tunisian/Afghan Stitch
    Chain x stitches.  Pick up, yarn over, and pull through each chain across.  Chain 1, yarn over, pull through 2 across leaving remaining loop on hook.  Do not turn.  Insert hook through the front of the vertical bar, yarn over, pull through and continue in same like manor across, finishing as you did the previous row.  Continue in this manor for a basic Tunisian/Afghan stitch.

Side Rounds (make 2)

R1:  Using the “Magic Ring” method and your K hook, chain 1 and sc 10, 
        slip-stitch to join round.
R2:  Ch 3, dc in same space, 2 dc around & join
R3:  Ch 3, 2 dc in the next st. *dc in next st, 2 dc in next.  Repeat from *, join.
R4:  Ch 3, dc in next st.  2dc in next.  *dc in next 2, 2 dc in next.  Repeat from *

Continue around in this pattern, adding 1 stitch before each 2dc in stitch.

When each circle measures the diameter of the drum head, do a few more rounds of just straight Double Crochet to make a gusset.  Even though cotton yarn has very little stretch, a fabric of Double Crochet does have a bit of a “Mesh” quality to it.  I suggest 1 round for every 2 inches worth of the side of the drum. 

Take in account; you will need to do the same for the other bag side.

A drum with a 6-8 inch depth, each Bag Side  will need 2 extra rows of plain double crochet for the gusset. 

Finish-off.

 

Strap (just one):

With your I hook, chain 8.  If you desire a wider or narrower strap, add more chains.

As described in the stitch directions, Tunisian Stitch for as long as you want your strap.  If you want just a handle, do about 14-18” worth of Tunisian stitching.  If you want a Shoulder Strap, about 30-40” worth.  If you want to Strap the strap to ride across your chest like a messenger bag, 60”.  It’s really up to you.

 

Finishing:

With your iron, set your iron to cotton, and high steam.  Iron each piece individually, including the strap.  Tunisian Crochet curls like nothing else!  If you have too, spray your strap lightly with some water and iron it as straight as you can.  Let set to cool and air dry in place.  Once dry, feel free to assemble.

Assembly:

With your yarn needle and a good long length of your remaining matching/coordinating yarn, whip stitch

the sides together.  If you are feeling adventurous, you can even attempt a mattress stitch.  Stitch your sides until they are 2/3 of the way around.  Secure the end. 

With your strap, right side facing out, approximate 2” down from the open edge down and sew in place. 

Repeat with the opposite edge.

With your coordinating or matching yarn and yarn needle, use a back-stitch to make an X and Square formation at the sewn points of the strap.  As seen in the picture here…

 
This will make sure the strap is firmly in place and not flop around.

Add closure as desired.  For buttons, just single crochet 1 round, then on the second round on either side,

chain 2 for a medium size button, 3 for a larger button at the approximate mid-point of that side, skip same

amount of stitches, then finish round.  Single crochet for a third time, stitching in each stitch around.  Attach

button on opposite side of the button hole.



Stick your drum in the bag and your good to go to your local Music Festival or Pagan Ritual!!  Namaste,

Blessed Be, and Party On Wayne.

Pattern Ratings

The Ratings Guide

Here is the listing on how I will rate these patterns.  This will help better guide you through which patterns are just right for you.  Some items I will have a mixed media of techniques such as Tunisian Crocheting, Linen Stitches, I-Cord both Crochet and Knit, and even CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE!!  I’m big on people making things to their own liking and interchangeable parts.  So think of most of these patterns not as “A complete design for people to create verbatim.”  Think of these patterns of “I created a template for you to make them as you like best”.   So, enjoy.

 RATING 

“B” is for Basic

Simple and Basic techniques and methods used

Everyone can do this

“AB” is for Advance Beginner

Some shaping used

Perfect for trying something new

Some adventuring required, but nothing committal

Some Assembly Required

“SN” is for some Skill Necessary

Using semi-complicated stitches, so read carefully.

Knowledge of almost all stitches used mandatory.

Meaning, I will not spell out anything I feel should be known for this level

If the stitch is TOO weird, I will go into detail once.

“CYOA” is for Choose Your Own Adventure!

Exactly what it means.

Pattern is FULLY customizable. 

If you have a favorite technique, by all means, USE IT!!

Caution; CYOA may require you to do your own math to make gauge, sizing, knowledge of fibers and their own unique properties before starting in on the pattern.  Stitch at your own peril!

If you have questions, feel free to comment and I will try to explain in detail.