Quick links: MFYBAL overview, weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Welcome to Week Two!
We hope you’ve been able to introduce yourself in the group forum and are ready with your pattern, materials, and measurements. It’s great to read your introductions and chats–keep them coming! We had fun following you back and checking out your social media feeds. Some of you’ve done some pretty sweet yarn bombing.
Remember, you can do everything in this yarn-bomb-along at your own pace. Simply follow along with the weekly posts as you come to the next step (linked at the top and bottom of every week’s page for reference). If you are ready to start the pattern but aren’t quite sure where you’ll put your monster feet yet, you can still crochet the toes this week. Next week we will use the measurements.
Beginners, did you get a chance to brush up on your skills? We posted a thread in the group forum for beginners’ resources. Feel free to check out the resources there and post anything else you find useful. Since the monster feet pattern is for advanced beginners, we’ll jump right into it this week and assume you know the basics of crochet.
Crochet warmup
It’s always a good idea to read through a pattern from the beginning. At the very least, be sure to read over the stitches and techniques used. Check that you’re familiar with the standard US terms and abbreviations we’re using at the end of the pattern.
The Craft Yarn Council is a great resource for needle arts at all levels. Here are some helpful resources:
- Crochet Abbreviations Master List (includes differences between US and UK terms)
- How to Read a Crochet Pattern (including how to read asterisks and parentheses)
- How to Make a Chain Stitch and Single Crochet (you will single crochet in the first pattern round)
As we work through the toes in our video below, we’ll show you how to half double crochet (hdc), then how to increase (inc) and decrease (dec) using hdc. Remember to use the internet! Anytime you need help with a term, search YouTube with the term plus the word crochet and look for a video that works for you. Or, post your question in the forum and we’ll help you out.
Making the toes
Each toe is a partial sphere that’s crocheted in the round as a spiral. You can find many ways to begin crocheting in the round and a million tutorials on YouTube. We like to start crocheting in the round with a magic ring (also called a magic loop, magic circle, adjustable loop). Use your preferred method; the important thing is to use a method that creates a tight ring so there’s no hole where stuffing can poke out. Here is a simple magic ring photo-tutorial Jill made for her favorite way to do it.
Once you’ve got your magic ring, follow along with this week’s video tutorial below. After a short recap of week 1, we crochet a toe together, explaining all the stitches involved along with a few pointers. Both newbies and experts can sit back and make a toe along with us.
See you online!
Remember to post your projects and questions in the forum and online using #MFYBAL. We’d love to hear, why do you like to yarn bomb? If this is your first one, what made you interested?
xxxo,
Lorna & Jill
KNITS FOR LIFE 