Bumpy Dishcloths

 If you're wanting to make a quick, inexpensive gift, dishcloths are an option.  Patterns for dishcloths abound.  I designed this one using triple crochet (tc) stitches to give it texture, which can help with scrubbing. The corner loop allows you to hang them.

These were made using Sugar and Cream twists cotton yarn with a J hook.  When finished they measure 11" x 11".  After
washing they shrink to being
10" x 10". 


Here's the pattern:

Ch 28

Row 1: sc in 2^nd ch from hook, sc across, ch 1, turn

Row 2: sc, (tc, sc) x 13, ch 1, turn

Row 3: sc across, ch 1, turn

Row 4: sc, sc, (tc, sc) x 12, sc, ch 1 turn

Row 5: sc across, ch 1, turn

Repeat Rows 2-5  six times, so that there are 12 rows of bumps. 

Border:

Round 1: sc around with 3 sc in each corner

Round 2: sc around with 3 sc in each corner

Loop: at final corner, sc, ch 18 tightly, sc in same corner, slip stitch and fasten off.

Scallop Edged Placemats

One of the first things I designed were placemats.  I've found them useful in protecting my furniture and in making the table look nicer.  They also can be nice gifts, but the time commitment can be considerable.  It takes me roughly two hours to make a single placemat.  Therefore, it will take roughtly sixteen hours to make a set of eight.


Also, before you devote the time to make them for someone, or even for yourself, it is important to determine if the color will go with the plates.  I recommend taking a piece of china with you to the yarn store to select the color.  You might be surprised at what looks good with your plates.  For Christmas last year I made a set of these placemats for my mom.  It wasn't a surprise on Christmas morning because I had sent her to the yarn store to pick out the color beforehand.  She took a plate and told me she wanted Frosty Green.  I then went to the yarn store and found the yarn.  When I saw it, I did not like it, nor did I like the resulting placemats that I made from it.  Then we used them with her china for Christmas dinner.  The color was perfect for her china and made everything look nicer.  The point is, take a plate with you when you pick your yarn. The placemats shown here are from sage green yarn, with a close up of the stitches in the bottom picture.

So, here's the pattern:

Use Red Heart Super Saver Yarn with a  J hook.

Ch 45

Row 1: tc in 5^th ch from hook.  ltc across ch 5 turn

Row 2-10: ch 5, turn, tc, ltc across
Border: ch1, turn, sc, (sk 2, 5 dc, sk 2, sc) repeat around.  sc should be in corners and in the ch 5 voids on the sides.  

ltc= linked triple crochet
For a tutorial on linked stitches, see my friend Nettie's blog at: http://loveinthestitches.blogspot.com/

Potassium Ion Channel

So....one manifestation of my nerdiness is that I was in a biochemistry class focusing on proteins this past semester.  For extra credit we could make a 3D model of a membrane protein.  Here's what I made:


And here's how to make it:

Protein Monomers (Make 4)

Ch 203

Slip stitch in 2^nd chain from hook and in next 4   (5 slip stitch)

Ch 3, 2 dc in same ch (3 dc in each ch) x7                    (8 with 3 dc in each)

Slip stitch in 8 ch                                                           (8 slip stitch)

Ch 3, 2 dc in same ch (3 dc in each ch) x23                  (24 with 3 dc in each)

Slip stitch in 4 ch                                                           (4 slip stitch)

Ch 3, 2 dc in same ch (3 dc in each ch) x35                  (36 with 3 dc in each)

Slip stitch in 16 ch                                                         (16 slip stitch)

Ch 3, 2 dc in same ch (3 dc in each ch) x23                  (24 with 3 dc in each)

Slip stitch in 20 ch                                                         (20 slip stitch)

Ch 3, 2 dc in same ch (3 dc in each ch) x52                  (51 with 3 dc in each)

Slip stitch in remaining 5 ch                                           (5 slip stitch)

Assembly of the protein can be accomplished in many different ways.
I used five flower arranging cylinders (3 7/8 inches tall each) stacked together, held together by skewers and attached to a piece of round styrofoam to form the base.
To have the helices retain their integrity and not be stretched out by the weight of the yarn, I threaded straws, cut to the appropriate length through the helices. Then I ran a bit of yarn through them and tied the yarn very very tightly to the end of the helices. This makes the helices stay on the straw and not stretch.
I then stuck a skewer through the straw of the last (longest) helix. Halfway through, I pushed the skewer through the side of the straw and pushed it into the support column.
I then ran skewers through the column at the top and about a third of the way up, and then draped the strands on this scaffolding as shown in the actual protein structure at the website shown below.
http://www.pdb.org/pdb/101/motm_disscussed_entry.do?id=1f6g
Protein is 1F6G in the protein data bank.

 

Howdy!

I started crocheting March of last year and I absolutely love it.  I'm an engineer by day and a crocheter by night.  I'm going to post patterns I've designed that I think others would enjoy and/or find useful. 
Thanks and Gig 'Em!

-Sarah