July 1966 - The BBQ Mitt – finished

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About the pattern:
This looks like a pretty easy pattern and it was.  It is missing some directions more modern crocheters would expect.

About the materials:
The pattern calls for:

• 2 ounces of worsted weight in main colr and 1 in a contrasting color.   I used Lily Sugar’n Cream Cotton in Hot Pink and Cream.  This is an inexpensive 100% cotton yarn and worked well for this pattern.
• Embroidery yarn or thread.  I went with felt instead of embroidering designs on the mitt.

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How it went:
This is one of those vintage patterns that assumes you know standards and don’t waste space writing them in.  Most of the mitt is worked in double crochet but when you get to the end of a row it doesn’t say to chain 2 and turn.   Even though this is a pretty easy pattern a beginner who didn’t have someone to teach them couldn’t pick this up and know how to read it.    

After I finished the mitt and before I added the embellishments, I decided I didn’t like the ragged look of the seaming so I turned it inside out.
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A friend mentioned that this pattern could also be a hand puppet so I promised I’d put eyes on it if it won.  Once I turned it inside out it looked even more like a hand puppet so instead of the embroidered flowers it now has eyes.

​​And my husband suggested a tongue

How it turned out:
As a hand puppet I’ll call this a win.  I’m not so sure I’d count on it to protect my hands at a barbecue without some lining.  I think I'll name her Barby Q!

What I learned:
Trust your friends and family to have great ideas!   

Bonus:
You’ll notice a blue and white squarish thing in the photo below.  I was really curious about how the striped placemats worked the angled stripes so even though they didn't win I worked up a small version in Bernat Home Dec.   Home Dec is a lighter weight yarn than the pattern calls for.  The pattern gets the stripes by starting in the corner and working out diagonally.   It’s not quite a rectangle but it’s close enough for using as a hot pad.
 

Next week I'm going to give you a way to win Barby Q and then I'm off to Portland for the Crochet Guild of American conference!
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