The title of this post was going to be something like, “Free Crochet Pattern for Southwestern Booties”, but while I was up at 1 am making said booties (hi, I’m and I’m a workaholic), I was also trying out a new type of stitch that I’ve never used before: the Block Stitch, also known as the Chocolate Box (thanks to this pin for the instant tutorial). I discovered that this stitch is in fact, the best stitch ever, and it needs more attention. Hence the actual title.
But don’t worry, you still get the free pattern for these easy Southwestern Style Booties, with instructions on how to make a cute tassel too!
THE BLOCK STITCH…
There are about a million things to love about the Block Stitch, but I’ll just name my personal Top Five reasons
#1. It’s super easy to do and lies flat, looking so tidy with no effort.
#2. No matter how you start a new row, it looks neat and you don’t see any obvious signs of where your row began, even when working in Rounds or changing colours.
#3. It has a similar effect to the Granny Square Stitch, but without the open gaps that the granny has. This means you can very easily work any loose ends in as you go because the high density of stitches hides those tails without a trace. That’s very good news for those of us who love using lots of colours but hate sewing in billions of threads at the end of a project.
#4. There’s something about having clusters of stitches together that is particularly pleasing to my eye, so any pattern with this feature is a winner in my books. For example, a Granny Stitched blanket with a Shell Stitched border is the ultimate classic combination in my opinion. The block stitch has little groups of 3 Double Crochets (Trebles) that are just so tidy.
#5. You get a lot of bang for your buck when it comes to being creative with colour combinations…
I love crochet. It allows virtually endless creativity and I find it fun, challenging, satisfying – but rarely relaxing.
This bootie design turned out to be so simple and therapeutic even. The only other time I can remember doing a relaxing crochet project, was when I made blocks for a Babette blanket last year (that I have yet to finish). The block stitch gives this bootie pattern an easy flow and you hardly have to concentrate on what you’re doing.
Are you feeling inspired yet? Get your pattern and go forth and Block Stitch!
In the meantime, here’s that tassel tutorial in a neat collage for easy pinning and sharing. If you need more info, you’ll get the full instructions with your pattern.
