Author: Susan L

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Filet Crochet Hints and Tips

I’ve done Filet Crochet for many years and along the way, I’ve learned some important things. If you are having trouble with your filet crochet, please take a few minutes to read these hints and tips!

 

1. If your dc stitches are too short and you have trouble getting the proper row gauge, try using an extended dc instead of a dc to make taller stitches. To make an extended dc (edc), YO, insert hook in specified st or sp and draw up a lp, YO and draw through 1 lp on hook, [YO and draw through 2 lps on hook] 2 times.

 

2. Turn work counterclockwise at end of each row for best results (the opposite direction as turning a page in a book).

 

3. For last stitch of each row, work into back loop and back bar of turning ch at end of row to get edges to lay flatter.

 

4. To help keep your place on the filet chart, use a magnetic board, ruler, pencil, etc. Make an extra copy of the chart, if desired. If using a magnetic board, put a magnetic strip above the current row so you can see the row below to help keep stitches lined up and mistakes to a minimum. If you don’t have a magnetic board, you may want to mark through the rows on the extra copy of the chart as you complete them.

 

5. Always wash and block filet pieces when finished for best results. I like to wash/soak my filet in the kitchen sink with a small amount of liquid laundry detergent. This removes any dirt and grease that may have accumulated while crocheting. Then I rinse the filet piece, squeeze out the excess water (DO NOT WRING) and put it on a clean kitchen towel to absorb more moisture. For more on blocking, read my “blocking” post here.

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Granny Square Afghan Repair

Today, I finally decided it was time to mend the Granny Square afghan that my step-mom made for me several decades ago. One of the yarns that she used basically started disintegrating in the afghan! None of the other yarns came apart, but this one yarn must have been wool and got eaten here and there in the section of that yarn.

 

Here’s a photo of some of the bad spots:

 

 

The bad yarn is the purple yarn that has holes in it just below the yellow yarn that I put on safety pins so those yellow stitches wouldn’t come out.

 

The bad yarn was in the middle of the afghan instead of at the end (it’ll never happen at the end, that’s one of Murphy’s Laws!). I started my mending where the last stitch with the bad yarn was worked. First, I cut out the bad yarn a little at a time. At the same time, I ran the new yarn (with the help of a tapestry needle) through the bottom of the yellow stitches, from left to right like this:

 

 

I was careful NOT to split the yellow strands and to run the new yarn through the bottom of all 3 dc stitches in each group of 3 dc (6 strands total: 2 strands per stitch).

 

When I got to the beginning of the bad purple yarn, I joined the new purple yarn the same as I would when making a color change (I yarned over with the new color and dropped the old color that was used before the bad purple, making sure there was a long enough tail of both yarns to weave in later).

 

Then I started crocheting with the new purple, working one section of “3 dc, ch 1” at a time. After crocheting each section, I inserted my crochet hook from left to right in the base of the yellow stitches where I ran the new purple thread through, tightened up the yarn between the yellow stitches and the new purple stitches and pulled the purple loop through the base of the yellow stitches like this:

 

Step 1

 

Step 2

 

Step 3

 

When I got to a corner, I worked the first set of “3 dc, ch 1”. Then I pulled the purple loop through all 6 yellow dc in the corner and worked the second set of “3 dc, ch 1” like this:

 

Step 1

 

Step 2

 

As I worked, I had to pull more new purple thread through all of the yellow stitches to where I was crocheting the new purple stitches. It was a tedious process (it took about 2 hours), but I was able to mend this afghan with great success! Here’s how a section of the afghan looks now with the mending done:

 

 

I think it came out quite nice! What do you think? The new stitches look just like the old stitches, except for the shininess of the new yarn. Oh, I also tried to match the gauge that my step-mom used (with some success, but I’m gauge challenged, so it could have been a little better!!!).

 

I hope this has been helpful for you to feel confident in mending your Granny Square afghan that is in need of some TLC!

 

Happy crocheting (and repairing),

Susan Lowman

 

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