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Saturday 20 June 2015

Spice up my hooks!

When I started crocheting I used some old crochet hooks my grandmother and my mother-in-law had given me a long time ago. I didn't think about 'good' or 'bad' hooks. It was just a hook, wasn't it? But one day I needed a hook size I didn't have in my stock and so I went to our local yarn shop to buy a new hook. It was a Clover with a soft grip. 

What a DIFFERENCE!!!!

I couldn't believe how easy it suddenly was to crochet even for several hours. The next day I searched the Internet getting more information about the world of crochet hooks. You can get very cheap ones and ones that cost more than the yarn you need for a blanket. I immediately fell in love with these wooden hooks.
Last year my siblings gave me this set as a birthday present. I was so happy! It is very comfortable to crochet with them, I enjoy it a lot but sometimes I just need a thicker handle. But I have so many crochet hooks already, I don't really want to buy more of them. I just can't throw things away that are still usable. I love to repair, to renovate and to find a different usage for something no longer suitable. I wear trousers, shoes and shirts that are more that 15 years old, our furniture is a mixture of old family heirloom and flea market finds.  We always keep things that might be used otherwise. And things we do not keep, we try to give to someone who still could use it.
 I just don't want to be part of the throwaway society though I am aware that it is not possible to escape entirely from it. 

Back to the hooks... What to do with the simple metal hooks that do not feel comfortable to work with? Do you also have quite a few of them lying around?
The lovely lady in my local yarn shop told me about the possibility to make a handle for hooks using polymer clay, here in Germany called Fimo. You can get it in all different kinds of colours and I chose red and white just to start with. My daughter was enthusiastic about helping me and she couldn't wait to start.
First we put some white Fimo onto the hook. You have to knead it a little until it is soft.
We decided to mix the white and the red to get some kind of polka dots.

You really have to roll it for a long time to get it soft and smooth. Finally we were able to cut pieces. But I already realised that the inner circle was not really round. So maybe no polka dots?
But we put the pieces enthusiastically around the white handle until it was completely covered.
Once the hook was covered, we use our hands to gently roll the hook, squidging all the clay so it sat evenly around without any seams. No, no, no, no round polka dots, but we didn't mind, just taking the next hooks to try. 
 That afternoon we made four handles, trying different methods. When we finished them they had to be baked in the oven. I put them into a mug filled with black La Gomera sand (oh holidays, where art thou...) and put the hooks head down in the sand.

That's how they looked like after baking. The left one was our first. The next one is a polka dot hook now. We just put little white dots on the red clay. The other two were made by my daughter. Very creative indeed! And she got hooked on spicing up even more hooks! A couple of days later I had to buy green and blue clay and we started again. 

This is the result:
Three more hooks that are wonderful to work with and they look wonderful, don't they? I really love to crochet with them! All in all we embellished seven hooks, here you can see them in all their beauty!

 And though it is just 13 degrees above zero, no flip-flop weather, no homemade ice tea and sunbathing in the garden, we still enjoy German strawberries that I have bought on the market. The ones in our garden are still far from getting red...

I LOVE THEM!

Dark chocolate brownies topped with mascarpone cream and strawberries is a treat you can enjoy in all weathers.  

I hope you also have something to enjoy this weekend. 
Back to crochet!

Viola



5 comments:

  1. I love your strawberries and polka dot plate which match your hooks! Very artistic! My friend Adrienne uses polymer clay to make her own handles too. You can mould the handle to fit your hand perfectly.
    Just because you have new hooks, it doesn't mean the old ones become redundant. You might find that different hooks have different weights, shapes, points, throats etc. The different shapes and materials they are made of will behave differently. The best hook for the job might be whichever one matches the application. Having a variety from which to choose is so helpful. Next time you are making swatches, play around with different hook types as well as sizes and discover the differences. Have fun! :-)

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  2. The hooks with their new handles look amazing! I especially like the polka-dots and the flowery-looking handle on the red hook.

    We hate to throw things away too. Many of my clothes are many years old and not at all in fashion, but I wear them because I like them and because they are too good to get rid of.

    Enjoy those strawberries, and I hope your weather warms up soon. :)

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  3. The hooks look brilliant. I hate to throw stuff away too when it can still be used. I might give this a try some time. Our strawberries have only just started to ripen but they taste delicious.

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  4. Wow what lovely hooks you and your daughter made! It is so much more comfortable to crochet with a soft handle, I agree, and even nicer when the handle is a pretty one!
    Happy new week, Viola.
    Helen xox

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  5. Your hooks are amazing, I would love to give that a go! I'm dreaming about strawberries ☺️

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