Crochet Lace and Low Energy

I really enjoy having lots of things to do. Resting is one thing - that’s really important, but I don’t enjoy being idle. Most of the time I have several projects going on at the same time, so I rarely have time to get bored with a singular project. Sometimes it’s craft based - sewing, knitting, crochet, and other times is home based - setting up a garden, organising a room, or refinishing a piece of furniture. Lately, I’ve had a hard time with feeling perpetually overwhelmed. Things keep happening, and it feels like as soon as I catch my breath, something else comes rolling in that takes all my focus and energy. Since these projects tend to be one of the ways I help myself recharge, this has turned into a wildly vicious cycle where I can’t seem to generate the energy to more than sit and stare at a wall.

After months of this, I figured that I might have more success trying to learn something relatively new inside a craft I already felt comfortable with - enter crochet trimmings. I’ve always loved lace, but good lace is expensive. I’m not ready to learn an entirely new skill set, but I’ve been crocheting for ages, and I’ve never delved into crochet lace past a singular instance of making lace snowflakes almost a decade ago. I started looking online for patterns, and whoa - there are a LOT of patterns available. After some digging, I found a pattern that fit the sort of trim I was looking for here. I wanted a trim that was worked across the width as opposed to the length so I could make as much or as little as I wanted. I also wanted something that had good repetitions so that I could make it wider if I wanted it to be.

I dug through my yarn and thread stash, and I was surprised that I still had a spool of crochet thread and some (read: two) steel lace hooks. So I jumped right in. I don’t like reading patterns off any sort of electronic device, so I scribbled out the pattern in my craft journal and made a small swatch so I could visualise the pattern structure and repetitions. I also wanted to see if I liked the shape and foundation row. Aaaaaand….I didn’t care for some of the small things, so I ripped out what I started, made the adjustments, and I love what I ended up with! While I was working with the trim, I started to think about what I could use it on, which is way more project focus than I have had in a really long time.

We all have those clothing pieces that sit in the back of the closet because we really liked them, or feel like we “should” have it, but never wear because it’s not quite right. I’m particular about my t-shirts, and I bought several a couple years ago when I found one that I really liked. I got to wear them once, wash them once, and holy cow, they shrunk. They still fit just fine, but I like longer t-shirts with slightly longer sleeves, but the length on the sleeves and torso got very, very short. The lace is a chunkier lace, so I figured it would be really cute on an every day t-shirt. So I measured the circumference of the sleeves and started there.

The process of making the lace itself was really relaxing. Once I got into the pattern itself, it was also satisfying and went really quickly. I pinned the finished length of lace to the edge of the sleeve and then used long, loose running stitches to secure it to the fabric. The t-shirt is a cotton blend with a fair bit of stretch, so I wanted to make sure the stitches wouldn’t pop as the shirt was worn.

When I made it all the way around, I used the ends of the lace to whip stitch the ends together for a flat seam. Since the crochet thread is also a cotton, it isn’t itchy, but the flatter the seam, the better.

Once the sleeves were done, I decided to work on the trim for the bottom. I wanted a wider version of the same lace. After some counting and then a little bit of math, I worked out a wider version. I was worried that if it got much wider the ends might get floppy, but they aren’t! I measured the bottom hem of the shirt and made two separate lengths of lace to meet the width required, pinned and sewed the wider trims into place using the same long, loose running stitches, but I left the ends open so that it would move nicely over my hips. For sewing, I like to use No. 10 sharps. I pretty much use these for just about every hand sewing project I have even though they’re a bit fiddly. You could absolutely use a larger needle, but these are what I have on on hand. I also like to use cotton thread whenever possible, and I really like the way it grips fabric with just a bit of beeswax. It’s not a necessity though, I just like using it.

And that’s it! I really like what I ended up with. The natural colour of the lace is nice against the bright white of the t-shirt, and all in all, this was a really quick project. It was probably four or five evenings of actual crochet work, and then an hour or so pinning, sewing, and finishing. I have a shirt that I can use this summer, and it has sparked a lot of inspiration for more crafting projects. What inspires you today?