Homespun by Lion Brand

[CascadeConsumer]

Does anybody have tips for handling this yarn? This is a kind of "frilly" yarn by Lion Brand, basically it looks to be yarn fibers twisted in a corkscrew around a central thread for a nice look and feel to the final product.

 

But Good Lord is this maddening to work with! LOL!!! I keep snagging it, left right and center.

 

Anybody have tips for how to handle it? Or do I just need a huge hook? The pattern I'm thinking about trying calls for a K-hook and after hamfisting my way through a tiny test swatch I was ready to throw it across the room!

 

[AmySolovay]

Two words for handling Homespun: Tunisian crochet...

 

Seriously, I can't crochet with Homespun, no matter how much I love it...and I do love it! However, I can work it up in Tunisian crochet easily and it's awesome! I am no longer afraid of Homespun.

 

I agree with Amy that Tunisian crochet is great with this yarn; I did a lot of experimenting with Homespun and I didn't like any crochet stitch I tried until I thought of using Tunisian simple stitch.

[dottie]

My tip for handling this yarn is to leave it in the store for someone else to buy, I don't like this yarn at all.

[jennyh]

My tip for handling this yarn is to leave it in the store for someone else to buy, I don't like this yarn at all.

 

:lol :lol

[maryjotx]

Thanks for posting this question as I've also been wondering how on earth people work with this. I read all the raves about it so was curious to hear others' tips. This thread gave me hope that I should not give up yet! And it also gave me comfort that if I decide to just say no to Homespun, that will be okay, too!

Mary Jo

[MelissaF]

When I first started to crochet I bought tons of homespun, then found out all of the "issues" that everyone else has with it, and let it sit in a box for years. I finally whipped up a few lapghans with it, only to find that if my dog or cats go anywhere near them their fur would stick to it and never come off. I finally just gave the lapghans to the pets and don't plan to go back to homespun again. I mostly crochet baby blankets, anyway, so the colors aren't what I'm looking for.

[amydepew]

Two words for handling Homespun: Tunisian crochet...

 

Seriously, I can't crochet with Homespun, no matter how much I love it...and I do love it! However, I can work it up in Tunisian crochet easily and it's awesome! I am no longer afraid of Homespun.

 

[checkers]

My 2 tips: Work more slowly than you would with smoother yarn, and work between the stitches (if the pattern will allow) instead of into the top loops of the stitch. I'm still a beginner with Homespun, but I love the two projects I've made so far--Doris Chan's All Shawl in Montana Sky, and Lion Brand's Urban Wrap in Prairie.

[LaVonneK]

Large hook, and learn to work by feeling the stitches, not looking for them. Takes some practice but once you get it you'll do fine.

 

Jean Leinhauser

I agree with Jean You have to feel the stitches, its the only way I learned to work with it. Its a lovely yarn its worth giving it a shot.

[Becky Morgan]

BTW, if you're traveling through Ohio on I-70 during the holidays, Crafts 2000 at the Ohio Valley Mall has bags of unlabeled (but obvious) Homespun for $4.99. There are three skeins in each bag, sometimes one big and one small but always adding up to at least a pound. I wish they wouldn't put two skeins of one color and one of another in at random, but if you dig through the stick you can match them up nicely.

 

I bought another bag of two Rococo and one of that sky blue with black to match the bag I got a month or so back, and the Rococo is turning into a big shawl.

I has a happy thinking about the warm

[DebraKay]

BTW, if you're traveling through Ohio on I-70 during the holidays, Crafts 2000 at the Ohio Valley Mall has bags of unlabeled (but obvious) Homespun for $4.99. There are three skeins in each bag, sometimes one big and one small but always adding up to at least a pound. I wish they wouldn't put two skeins of one color and one of another in at random, but if you dig through the stick you can match them up nicely.

 

I bought another bag of two Rococo and one of that sky blue with black to match the bag I got a month or so back, and the Rococo is turning into a big shawl.

I has a happy thinking about the warm

 

Our Big Lots had the same bags, unmarked, 3 skeins for $4.99. I just left them in the store as I still have another poncho to finish with this yarn and then I will probably never use it again. I like the finished product, but crochet is suppose to be my de-stressor and it is just too much work for me to use Homespun. I can get it going with looser stitches, as I mentioned earlier, but not my natural crochet feel.

[jennyh]

One tip that really helped me is if you are working with dark colored yarn, put a white cloth behind it and it really does help you see the stitches better.

 

This is true because the absence of color of the white background does not absorb as much light as the dark surface, and so the light is reflecting and bouncing back to help illuminate the work....

 

light--and color--are fun for me.

[Craftonite]

My local Catan's had some of this same unlabeled Homespun deal. I got one with 2 Colonial and 1 quartz. Score!

[TroopinFairy]

I've gotten some of this yarn to make a shawl. The pattern says to use a k hook but as loosely as I'm making the stitches I still cannot see or feel them. Would it be ok to go up a hook size?

[Craftonite]

I've gotten some of this yarn to make a shawl. The pattern says to use a k hook but as loosely as I'm making the stitches I still cannot see or feel them. Would it be ok to go up a hook size?

 

 

I've used K, L, and N with Homespun, and they've all worked.

[TFCH8184]

Im still putzing with an afghan that Ive been making with Homespun...I have a hard time actually wanting to work with this yarn but I bought it before checking on here to see how hard it would be to work with. Im using a J or K hook and a nice loose V stitch. Its still trying at times but if I go nice and slow and only do a couple rows at a time I found I dont feel like tossing it in the wood stove as often as when I first started using it.

[gumby28]

I agree with Amy that Tunisian crochet is great with this yarn; I did a lot of experimenting with Homespun and I didn't like any crochet stitch I tried until I thought of using Tunisian simple stitch.

 

I use Homespun for the basket weave stitch.

[CollieGrl64]

When I use this yarn, I use it to make prayer shawls alllllllllll the time, I tend to go for K or above hook. The only real problem I have is if I have to frog it at all and that is just sometimes. I used a new wood hook with this to make my X-MIL a scarf a few weeks ago and it worked better then an aluminum hook. If you have a larger wooden hook try using that. Mine glided through the stitches very nicely.

[txteach2b]

I read about people's issues with Homespun, and I decided I wanted to make myself a shawl with it. I thought I was going to have all kinds of problems with it, but I haven't, and I LOVE Homespun! I just have to feel the stitches, work loosely, work slowly, and use a bigger hook. I have also found I HAVE to count my stitches at the end of the row...or else I will inevitably miss one.

 

I finished a shawl for a friend, a ruffle scarf paired with a cloche and soon-to-be wrist warmers, and I'm in the process of finishing my own shawl. I love the painterly colors...they're so pretty!

 

I'm reading about Tunisian crochet, and I can't wait to try it with the Homespun...

[mva5493]

my tip for handling this yarn is to leave it in the store for someone else to buy, i don't like this yarn at all.

 

:lol

[mva5493]

I am currently working on a granny square in homespun, and although I love the way it is turning out, it is not the best yarn to work with. I think practice is the best advice because I also bought some of this yarn quite some time ago, tried to work with it and put it away. But I found A LOT more of it on sale and loved the colors so decided to give it another try. It's working much better now. It also knits beautifully without all the headache.

[Trish F]

On 11/3/2010 at 11:40 AM, amydepew said:

Two words for handling Homespun: Tunisian crochet...

 

Seriously, I can't crochet with Homespun, no matter how much I love it...and I do love it! However, I can work it up in Tunisian crochet easily and it's awesome! I am no longer afraid of Homespun.

 

This sounds like a great suggestion! What size Tunisian hook works best with Homespun?

[Alaina]

Wanted to chime in here.

 

One key, as most have said, is to work with a larger hook if the pattern calls for it. I read elsewhere that using a plastic hook is sometimes easier with Homespun (for me, it didn't matter if it was plastic or aluminum, but some say the plastic slides easier).

 

Another key is the pattern itself. Use patterns that have you going into Chain-spaces rather than individual stitches (which can be hard to see). I've found that getting started with Homespun is the hardest part (stitching into your starting chain) but once you get going, it's easier to SEE where you're going.

 

Some of my favorite Homespun Patterns are:

 

1. Rustic Squares Afghan ~ http://shop.leisurearts.com/cart/pc/The-Story-of-Homespunandreg;-225p1219.htm (in the Story of Homespun book) Four pics of this afghan on Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rustic-squares-afghan/people

 

2. A Great Big Granny Square ~ These are really simple to do with Homespun, and if you use the Painterly Colorways, the gradual color changes will give you a stunning effect!

 

3. Morning Has Broken Shawl ~ on Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/morning-has-broken Notice her use of open stitchwork, which is easily seen!

 

4. Super Fast & Easy Throw ~ http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/chs-supe.html?r=1 The first row is the hardest after chaining 116 stitches. After that, big open tall stitches make this an easy crochet project.

 

5. Classic Elegance Afghan ~ Also from the Story of Homespun book. Here is a pic http://www.123stitch.com/pictures/LAS-4599-6.jpg This looks GORGEOUS when you use a Painterly Colorway (as seen in this version on Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/projects/johengen/classic-elegance-afghan )

 

6. Half Granny Shawl ~ easy free pattern, also found/seen on Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/half-granny-square This one was done in Homespun Harvest http://www.ravelry.com/projects/queenofcrochet/half-granny-square-2?wwparam=1287589628 (again, nice effects with the painterly color-changing yarn)

 

7. Bridal Shawl ~ Another open lacy stitchwork pattern that is easy to see. Free on Lionbrand's Site http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/80205AD.html Done in Homespun Quartz http://www.ravelry.com/projects/jennycorn11/bridal-shawl

 

8. Arrow Lake Shawl ~ super easy V-stitches. Again the hardest part is starting it, once the pattern is established, you're home free! http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/81006AD.html?noImages=

 

Hope these help! I really love Homespun Yarn (now that I've learned how to work with it). The end products are so soft and lush, and the painterly colors make the items look like more work than they are. And because it's a chunky yarn that often takes larger hooks, most patterns work up rather quickly!

 

Alaina

[darah]

I just crocheted up a pair of mittens using a J hook and Homespun, and it worked okay as long as I was careful to work loosely. Is it a pattern where you can easily go up a hook size without messing it all up?

[Becky Morgan]

Loose is the key. It's possible to work tight with it, but it doesn't look or feel right when you're done. I love Homespun, but know a lot of people don't for that reason.

[Granny Square]

Big hook, and try a stitch where you can work into a chain loop instead of a stitch - example a v-stitch, or sc, ch-1/next row sc into the ch-1 space, ch-1 over the sc.