How to make a Chain

The chain is the first step for all projects discussed here. Please review these steps as many times as you need to master the concept, and feel free to have fun with it! Once learned, the art of making chains can be super fun! Also, get your friends to learn chaining and play fun games like Speed Chaining or Chain Length competitions! I know it can be difficult to start, but fun is just around the corner! 

Proper holding technique: 

  1. To start, place your hook (with the slip knot on it) in the hand you write with; if you can write with either, place it in your right hand.
  2. With your other hand, wrap the side of the yarn attached to the ball/skein around your pointer finger, with the side attached to the hook closer to your thumb. (the cut side is called the "tail" and will not be used for the remainder of the project)
  3. Loosely hold onto the rest of the yarn with your ring finger and pinky(this keeps)
  4. Take your thumb and middle finger and pinch the knot at the bottom of your slip knot (this keeps the chain steady while the hook moves back and forth) 
  5. slide the hook back and forth while keeping the loop in place to ensure there is enough room to complete a chain; the chain should move freely. If the loop is too tight, hold the knot firm and lift up on the loop. If the loop is too loose, pull the yarn on the side wrapped around your finger.
  6. Now, we are ready to start the chain!
Making the chain:
  1. Point your hook face down, then wrap the yarn connected to your pointer finger around the hook once, starting from your thumb and going under the yarn.
  2. Make sure to Continue to hold the knot at the base of your loop so the yarn doesn't twist or slip away.
  3. Pull the yarn wrapped around the hook through the loop, pointing the hook towards the knot so it can slide through the loop and not get caught. 
  4. Once the hook has passed through the loop, turn the hook to face up so the new loop doesn't slip off.
  5. Finally, push the hook back up so the new loop is firmly on the hook.
  6. Continue steps 1-5 until the desired length. When the chain gets longer, move your thumb and middle the hold farther up the chain to keep control of your work.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

About this Project

This Project is the workings of a Girl Scout Gold Award.  For those unaware of what a Gold Award is, it is an 80-100 Individual Girl Scout Project that focuses on a community issue and works to solve its root cause. The Girl Scout is asked to find an Advisor, a set of team members, and to lead the project and the team.  She is also asked to create a project that is sustainable for a number of years into the future.  My project's community issue focuses on School-Induced Anxieties and how to stay mindful, present, and grounded, when presented with these stresses.  For most of my life, until the age of 15/Sophomore year in high school, I was schooled at home, In the Fall of 2021, I made a decision to move to Public School in order to graduate with the friends I'd made through the Music Department of my high school through my involvement in Marching and Symphonic Band classes.  Upon entry into the Public School System, I began to pretty immediately realize the stre...
Read more

About Me

My name is Alani Wiist.   I am a recent graduate of Murray High School in Utah where I played the trumpet for 3 years in the Murray High School Marching Band, and was the Drum Major my Senior Year of High School.  I also played the trumpet in my school's Symphonic, Philharmonic, and Jazz Bands during High School.  I have taken my love for Marching and Music with me to the University of Utah, where I now march for the Pride of Utah: The Marching Utes!  I am a Girl Scout of 13 years.  I always loved financial and cooking badges. My favorite memories with my Troop were our summer daycamps.  I loved visiting the Farmer's Market, Water/Outdoor Play Days, and visiting a local Goat Farm.  I've taken my love of finance to the U with me, and am majoring in both Business and Music.  I began Girl Scouts as a Kindergarten aged Daisy, at 5 years old, in 2011, and graduated, in 2024, as a thirteen year, and fourth generation Girl Scout.  In 4th grade ...
Read more

Mindfulness Resources

Image
 You'll see the following resource again in the "Make Your Own Kit" page, but here are some suggested ways to stay mindful and present as a practice, while you engage in crochet: Think about what mindfulness means to you Keep your mind focused on the present Let your worries go and focus on the steps There are 4 main movements in crochet, use these movements to. . . Think of 4 positive words/affirmations about  Yourself~Your World~Indoors~Outdoors~Family~Things You Love~ What you aspire to/want to be~Gratitudes~Things you want to let go of~Nature~ You can write a silly or special poem, song, or create a rhyme My Mindfulness Liaison was helpful in steering me towards a great resource for a specific practice in mindfulness which is within the DBT or Dialectal Behavior Therapy model.  I am providing a graphic here for simplicity, but feel free to look into DBT/Dialectical Behavior Therapy and research any number of websites for resources and information.  Credit for thi...
Read more