As the holiday season approaches, crocheters everywhere are looking for ways to create beautiful, handcrafted items from yarn. One crocheter has discovered an easy shortcut to create a very pretty type of lace. This pattern is called “Broomstick Lace,” and it has many diverse uses. Broomstick Lace was originally called that because it was created with the aid of a broomstick handle, but this easier tutorial just requires a simple, flat popsicle stick. This is far simpler to handle, and you do not have to awkwardly struggle with a giant broomstick.
Unlike other types of yarn lace patterns, you do not need to know many complicated crocheting stitches. Broomstick lace is just made with a basic chain stitch and the single crochet stitch. These are the first stitches you learn when starting to crochet, so this pattern is perfect for beginners.
The broomstick lace pattern is always worked in rounds of five, so you need to start off with a chain stitch that is a multiple of five. Many users find that a chain of 30 stitches is the ideal width for a scarf. You start out with the chain stitches and then put the final look around your popsicle stick. Though any type of stick will work, plastic popsicle sticks are ideal because they will not snag on your yarn.
You then take your crocheting hook, put it through the yarn loop on the popsicle stick, wrap your yarn over the hook, and pull it through the popsicle stick loop. Repeat this until all 30 of the stitches have been looped onto the popsicle stick. Then insert your crocheting hook underneath the first five loops on the stick. Wrap your yarn over the hook, and then pull it through all five loops. Secure this with a basic single stitch and then slide it off the stick.
Twist them around once and do five more single crochet stitches from the center loop. Repeat this for the rest of the stitches on the popsicle stick. At the end of the row, put the loop of the very last single crochet stitch on the stick, twist your work over, and put the back loop of each single crochet onto the popsicle stick. You then repeat the whole process over and over until you have as much yarn as you need.
The end result is a beautiful, flat lace with a twisted, loopy look to it. You can make large rectangles of the lace that are then easily stitched into other items. One crocheter has even found a way to do a circular form of broomstick lace that makes an adorable beanie hat.
Broomstick lace is surprisingly versatile. The flat, open pattern makes it ideal for all sorts of attire. You can use thin yarn or thread and a tiny crocheting hook to create a delicate lace, or you can use thick yarn and a bigger crocheting to make a substantial, bulky piece of lace. This lace can then easily be crafted into scarves, hats, or sweaters, and it is so fast to make that you can have several handmade presents ready just in time for the holidays!