Hi Jean When knitting you can use very thin yarn with (relatively) thick needles to get a lacier look or thick yarn with (relatively) thin needles to get a dense texture but when crocheting you do need to match the yarn to the hook size - it should sit comfortably in the hook without excess space but it must not be thicker than the hook will accommodate otherwise the plies get separated whilst pulling the yarn through the loops.
I have been looking at my collection of crochet hooks. I know I have a 0.75mm hook somewhere but it's in one of those very safe places that I can't locate! So, I've been through all the conversion charts on the web and put my own together, it's at http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.uk/lace/conversions.htm I do have an old size 5 which looks right; just a bit bigger than a 0.60mm. 40 crochet (DMC/Coats) is a bit thick for this hook. 70 or 80 fits better, so 27-30 wraps/cm There are several 100/3 silks which fit into that range, including those from Gutermann, Bart & Francis and Piper's Silks. http://www.bart-francis.be/index.php?item=silk----cordonnet-3-thread&action=page&group_id=21&lang=EN http://www.pipers-silks.com/ProductInformation/SpunSilk.htm http://www.guetermann.com/Content/Guetermann/02__en/Unternehmensbereiche/01__Retail/Products/01__Threads/SewingThreads/SilkThread/N_C3_A4hf_C3_A4den__Contentlist__Silk.html It might be worth your while contacting either Francis Busschart of Bart & Francis or Susan Peck of Piper's Silks to see which of their threads is the most tightly spun. I was going to ask 'what size beads does it say?' but then I see 'transparent white beads, rather larger than seed beads'. Seed beads nowadays come in a range of sizes, so even that doesn't help! They will of course have to be big enough to thread onto whatever silk you decide to use. Brenda Hi Jean > I remembered that I'd bought three Victorian miser purse patterns from Dakota > Prairie Treasures.com, reprinted from old publications for SCA enthusiasts. > Two of those call for purse silk, the other for crochet silk. With them are > equivalence charts for crochet stitches, knitting yarns and needles, and > crochet threads and hooks. Of course there's no equivalent for purse silk or > crochet silk, but there is an explanation of crochet silk: > > "A hard twisted silk,used for knitting and crochet. The sizes vary from 1 to > 5; the latter being the finest. Nos. 1, 2 and 3 are the most common Observe, > there is an immense difference both in the quality and price of crochet silk. > Some work into a substance with scarcely any more gloss than cotton. In all > respectable Berlin houses, the maker's name is attached to every skein. > Pearsall's silks hold a high position, both for quality and tint." > > The hook and needle sizes used in the patterns are: > > Size 18 knitting needles, which seem to be 1.25 mm thick > crochet hook no.17 (Walkers bell gauge) - probably around 0.75 mm > Boulton's indented crochet hook No.23 - who knows what modern size that is! > > Modern doll patterns seems to use size 40 and 80 crochet thread with size 17 > and 18 knitting needles. > > So I don't think that modern knitting silk would be the correct thickness. > Probably the thickness would be one of those we use for lacemaking. Brenda, > can you suggest wraps per inch for that size of knitting needle/crochet hook? > > I've found one of the patterns I bought is on the web for free on several > sites, one being: > > http://www.allfreecrafts.com/crochet/bridal-purse.shtml > Brenda in Allhallows www.brendapaternoster.co.uk - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
