Maggie’s Kitchen Potholder
I spent my weekend doing all the things I love best. Knitting, spinning, cooking, and . . . crocheting! Yes, it’s true, I now love crocheting. It still feels awkward but it’s getting easier and I’m – dare I say it aloud – starting to understand it. I even went to so far as to actually make and finish a potholder.
The pattern is Maggie’s Kitchen and the yarn is some Knitpicks CotLin that I had lying around. I found the yarn to be rather split-y and I didn’t love working with it but the colors are nice and I didn’t want to use yarn I really loved in case it wound up a disaster.
It’s not bad for my first effort and the back was definitely faster to crochet than the front. I know there are mistakes but I found that crocheting, unlike knitting, is easier to read. I was able to see where I was in the pattern, I was able to count my stitches, and I found the learning curve to just be faster than when I learned to knit. I’m not sure if this is because of my existing knitting skills or if it’s because crocheting is easier to learn but I’m happy that the process is moving along.
I must admit that the edging is my favorite part. I used version 3 from the pattern and it was fun and came out just the way I expected. Hooray for that!
I’m certainly not ready for any potholder swap but I do think I’ve earned the right to crochet with the good stuff.
Next up – Maryse’s Modern Vintage Potholder!
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I do love the look of crocheted home items – dishcloths, potholders, doilies – especially with a vintage look. fun colors, too! (enjoy working with the “good stuff” 🙂
I do find crocheting easier to read, but of course when I did crochet I didn’t make anything too complex. Love the fun colors you’ve assembled!
Beautiful. You inspire people to pick up “the hook” again!
Look at you go! Proud of you. I love the differences in crochet, and how creating sculptural and textural pieces is so intuitive in the format. Have you started reading charts? Talk about visual and intuitive!
You go! I started a potholder last year but got distracted.
That turned out just lovely!!
You did GREAT !!!! OH, I haven’t crocheted in awhile. The dishclothes killed my hands so I stopped. Now I am going to need some potholders too. I am finally back knitting – but it is controlled now. There is nothing better than crocheting an afgan during the winter months. Sorry for the spelling 🙂
I might just have to work on my crochet skills, just to keep up LOL!
Nicely done! Crochet is fun and a totally different thing from knitting. Pot holders, coasters and the like are great in Cotton Classic. Can’t wait what you create with the bright and beautiful colors!
Lovely potholder, and I like the colors you’ve chosen for your second one. I crocheted for many years before learning to knit (learned when I was about ten), and I agree that it is easier to read. It’s been a very long time since I did any crocheting, but just this weekend I was revisiting some old doily patterns and getting a bit of the urge to start “hooking” again. 😉
The crochet potholders are so vintage! I know my older girl would love to see some in our kitchen, but dang it…I gave all my crochet hooks away years ago. Do I need to reinvest?? You’re making me think I do!
Cotton classic makes me swoon a little. I love the array of colors, and it is really nice to crochet.
Nice work!
Ooo, I like the good stuff!
I think crochet is easier because you only have to deal with one loop at a time. You don’t have to worry about dropped stitches, and it’s much easier to rip out if you have to.
I like the Cotlin for kitchen items – it’s nice and soft after it’s been washed and blocked. But yes, it’s not all that fun to work with initially.
My mother recently made a crocheted cable hat that looks like it’s knit. It’s definitely not a beginner project, though.
So cute! I’ve been crocheting since I was 8, so it’s second nature to me. I don’t do anything fancy, though. I wanted so much to participate in the Potholder Swap this year, but I let time get away from me and had too many other projects going at the same time. I’ll make mine anyway (I’m using KnitPicks ‘Simply Cotton Sport’) and have them ready for next year! I have some crocheted potholders from my dear grandmere – they’re too small for actual use, more like coaster-size – that I have proudly displayed on my kitchen wall. She crocheted them in VERY fine cotton on teensy hooks. I intend to duplicate them for my siblings this year for Christmas so they can share in Grandmere’s legacy (at least in spirit).
Good for you! I just reach for the kids’ loom and bag of loops when I need a new potholder — not the point of your post, I realize, but works OK in the kitchen.
Go you! I don’t know that crochet is necessarily easier to read than knit — a lot of beginners including me get confused by counting the turning chain as a stitch — but, that apart, I do find it easier and faster. (And, as you will have discovered by now, the oft-repeated tale that it uses three times as much yarn as knitting is a scurrilous calumny.) One thing I love about crochet is that edgings are so easy: once you know the basics you can pretty much wing it. In fact I find crochet in general much more conducive to winging it than knitting.
Crochet is addicting. I’ve been a hook addict for ages now!
Ah, I think you meant “crochet” with the good stuff! :o)
I thought I’d do the swap this year but didn’t get motivated in time. Next year!
Yay! have fun with the “good stuff”. I love the colors that it has to offer and you picked some really nice ones. i can’t wait to see how they come together.
ahh nothing\ like progress to motivate !! Good crocheting……love that you graduated to the real stufff. I find crocheting easier too, but harder on my wrists for certain!
I knew you could do it!
I’m impressed! Pretty soon you’ll be making one of those gorgeous granny square blankets! I love those!
Very nice!
you are a natural crocheter!!! lovely! and i am going gaga over those colors of yarn…so springy and perfect for this time of year!
nice job!!!! yay! and yes, cotton classic is awesome for crocheting.
Your potholder looks great! I love those colors together.
I think you may be right about knitting giving you a head start on crocheting. A friend of mine is a big crocheter and she recently decided to learn to knit. She’s already on her second garment after knitting just a scarf and a cowl!
I have been crocheting potholders too, but I have to limit the amount of time I work on them or my wrists and left hand start to hurt. (Different motions and muscles than knitting, I guess.) I have been using “I Love This Cotton” from Hobby Lobby—in my little town in Iowa, we have a yarn shop, but she doesn’t carry anything that is 100% cotton. If I get to a larger yarn shop on my travels, I want to stock up on Cotton Classic. I have seen it, but usually don’t buy it because I prefer to knit with wool. I printed out the pattern you used from Ravelry—I hadn’t seen it before, and want to play with the different edgings and maybe use them on some of the other patterns I have been trying—mix and match. I realized a few days ago that I have to stick with round potholders because I don’t know how to turn the work and start a new row in crochet, as you would to work back and forth. (!) Look at MaggiesCrochet.Com—the Daisy Potholder and the Gold & White patterns are my favorites, and they seem easy to work and the patterns themselves are easy to follow. I think I am going to use the “Gold & White” pattern for the next swap I am in. Also—I read you “10 on Tuesday” post about snacks—I have just discovered Laughing Cow cheese. Yikes! It is pricey, but it is GOOD. I like it on those Swedish Wasa crackers.