Wednesday, April 16, 2014

What to Do About Those Dull Smelly Steel Hooks

They've been around forever, those dull silver metal hooks we would find in our grandmother's sewing cabinet. We would learn how to crochet with larger hooks, and as difficult as it was with a G or H hook, we couldn't imagine crocheting with those tiny ones.

I think its generally the same for all of us. We soon found out it wasn't so hard and we bought our own shiny new steel crochet hooks. It was fine for awhile until the finish wore off and our hands would sweat and smell.

Luckily, there are alternatives, such as Clover Soft Touch Steel Crochet Hook, but they can be expensive. There are other options as well, such as plastic or bamboo handles with steel heads, removable plastic handles and interchangeable sets.

I admit that I haven't tried them all because these days, I have to do everything on a budget and let's face it, crafting supplies can get expensive. But at Amazon.com, I found a set of 8 with bamboo handles that costs almost the same as one of the Clover hooks.



Yes, they are made in China (what isn't these days?) and you will probably wind up not using some of the sizes, but at $9 for eight of them, who cares?

I like them so much that I've already purchased two sets, and not because they fell apart. I tend to use one of a few sizes when I crochet and I temporarily lose the size I need sometimes. So its nice to have a backup.

Monday, April 14, 2014

Here I go again


OK, I'm going to try this again. 

A year or so ago, I started a blog with the same name--Uncommon Crochet Threads. I worked very hard on it for a few months. And I think that was the problem. I went all out. I was using the full version of WordPress (the one that was downloaded on my site and cost me a fee every month). But it was so complicated and expensive that I gave it up.

But I had a great idea for a blog.

With the many crochet and knitting blogs out there, I don't know of many that focuses on crochet thread and the many things you can make with it. 

Some of the topics I hope to cover are brand comparisons, books and magazines, hand-dyed threads offered on Etsy and other sites, vintage patterns and some of my own originals.

Please feel free to leave a comment. Just say "Hi" so I know someone is reading this.