Expert: Marla - 4/20/2011

Question
QUESTION: I am trying to start a vintage baby bootie pattern. Unfortunately all it gives is the type of thread to use--1 Ball Royal Society Crochet Cotton, Size 5-- no hook size is given. I tried using size 10 thread with a size 7 hook and it seems the booties would be very large for a baby? Then I tried a size 20 thread with a hook size 9 and they still seem large. Any ideas of what a good thread size substitute would be?

ANSWER: Hi Patricia!
Thanks for asking! It is pretty bad when a pattern doesn’t give the crochet hook size. They should at least tell you what the gauge is. I found a ball of size 5 crochet thread amongst my crochet threads. I compared it with my size 10 thread, and the size 5 is just a little bit thinner than a double strand of size 10. and a little thinner than baby yarn if you stretch the baby yarn tight. I checked out a couple of sources on the Internet and it said to use a size D hook. If you wanted to use the size 5 thread, you should be able to get it at a craft store. A size 7 hook with size 10 thread is what I use when I make doilies, so I'm sure you are right with that part. But if the booties are still too large with smaller thread, then I think there is something wrong with the pattern. Did you get this pattern from a book or from the Internet? If you got this from the Internet, let me know where so I could look it up, or let me know where you got this pattern. Since I have a lot of old books, there is a slight chance I may have it, too. I’ll look forward to hearing back from you.

Marla


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The pattern is on the antiquecrochetpattern.com site and is called "High Top Booties" I guess I was wondering if the sizing of thread has changed over time? If I use a size 5 thread with a D hook the booties would end up fitting about an 8 year old.
Thanks for your help

Answer
Hi Patricia!
Thanks for getting back to me. The thread size designation shouldn't change, but here is a thought. Maybe it is a typo. Perhaps they mean size 50 thread. But I'm not sure if they even make that size anymore. The smallest I've used is 30. It is possible that is the size they use in tatting. If they do still make this size, a doily pattern I saw using this size thread used a size 12 hook. If stores don't carry it, you may need to order from a catalog. Hope this helps. good luck!

Marla