MFYBAL Week 4

Quick links: MFYBAL overview, weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Welcome to Week 4 of the Monster Feet Yarn Bomb Along!

This week we crochet the Leg section of the pattern. It’s pretty quick work, so we’ll spend some of this post sharing your stories from the past three weeks. Next week we’ll add optional claws or toenails.

Remember, it’s never too late to join in! Go at your own pace, fast or slow. All the resources will remain on the web! Each week is listed at the top and bottom of each post for quick reference.

Our forum is full of amazing crocheters!

Wow, we’re amazed at what a phenomenally experienced group of yarn bombers and crocheters are hanging out in the MFYBAL forum! We wanted to point this out because the forum is poised to be an excellent resource. If you have a favorite yarn bomb, there’s a good chance the person who made it is in the forum. So go wild and ask all those questions you’ve always wondered about. What are your fears about the upcoming installation? Do you have any tips for people who are doing their first yarn bomb? Nothing is off topic!

Here’s some past work by the talented members of our forum.

Installations are happening!

As we are starting to see monster feet in the wild, we wanted to give some shout outs to the interesting locations and stories you shared in the forums and on social media so far. Remember you are not behind! The purpose of our sharing these is not to stress you out or make you feel behind. Rather, it’s to provide you with some interesting tips and stories to mull over as we approach the final week’s installation. Go at your own pace and keep sharing your stories!

Pyganies found the world’s funniest bench for a pair of Monster Feet on her school campus. Someone was sitting on it waiting for the bus, but she wasn’t deterred. We are giving Pyganies a virtual Ounce of Preparation badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿ for putting a separate needle and thread on each foot so she could install as fast as possible!

A Green Toe badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿ goes out to rckh2o in rural Nebraska for getting her feet wet with yarn bombing. Because her small town lacks anonymity, she’s starting her journey toward becoming the crazy yarn bomb lady with monster feet in her own back yard garden. We think this is a great idea! Like we’ve said, Lorna over here is secretly a selfish yarn bomber and loves to put pieces near home.

If you’re still on the fence about where to put your monster feet, take a tip from Naomi. “I’m nervous about stepping out of my comfort zone… and attempt FEET aarrgh. But I know the local kids will LOVE them.” What did Naomi do with her nerves and monster feet? She secretly installed her first pair outside a friend’s office as a surprise! One is Silver and the Other’s Gold badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿ for Naomi. Now she says she’s hooked and is already hooking up some jumbo feet by holding the yarn double and using a jumbo hook. Can’t wait to see how they come out!

We love this “screech” of the record needle Lorri did upon seeing a sad bench in need of some love. “These monster feet were originally going to grace a USPS mailbox but the… bus stop looked so sad, that it got covered first. A regular rider waiting for his ride proclaimed them ‘Dope!’” Toes on Fleek badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿ for the custom tag! It looks like this was a difficult spot to sew in and we also are dying to know if the feet stretched to fit or did you adjust them for the bench?

Alex has a warning for us all: double check your bag and checklist before heading out to yarn bomb. On his way home from work he planned to install his first pair of feet, only to realize one was missing. Gah! He had to wait all night to see if he left it at work or dropped it and lost it forever. Fortunately it was hiding under a table at work, yay! Gonna hand Alex’s this chocolatey Butterfingers badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿.

Ok, last fun story. Jen has yarn bombed lots, but told us it’s with growing trepidation since several of her pieces have gone missing. For MFYBAL she asked the library if she could do the bike rack. Great idea! The more work you put into something, the more you risk by installing it guerrilla style. Getting permission not only can help your nerves but provide some reassurance it won’t go missing. In our experience, yarn bombing overwhelmingly leads to more positive things. And it did! “Amazing news. Library loves the idea. So much so they want to do a program around it!! I’m so excited. Thanks for the support guys.” Jen is saving the library for a bigger project since the risk is reduced. Smart Cookie badge (ʘ‿ʘ)ノ✿ right there. We can’t wait to see where she puts her monster feet.

Hop on over to the MFYBAL forum and let us know how it’s going for you.

Week 3 recap

Before we get crocheting, we wanted to give a shout out to all the people who shared their week 3 progress. You guys are killing us with how much fun you’re having over on Instagram with these #mfybal posts and stories. Keep them coming, and remember to follow each other too!

Week 4: the Leg Section

OK let’s get down to business with this week’s crocheting.

If you’ve always made crochet stitches in the top of the row below, you’re about to go crazy and try something new! Crocheting is so sculptural and permissive. You can put the next stitch anywhere you want, really. So let’s do it! Check out the video tutorial above or follow along here with the photos.

Notice how your flaps from last week are splayed out to the sides to wrap around the pole. Now we need to build height with rows parallel to the ground. We’re just going to pretend our work so far is one big rectangle and keep going. Yep, we can totally do this: crochet lets you do whatever you want!

How many stitches are in this new row? It depends on how big around your pole is and how big your stitches are, so the pattern can’t say. Typically you’d make a swatch to determine your stitches per inch. But that’s a waste of time because we have two swatches right here in our flaps! If you get lost with swatching, the pattern has distilled it to the essentials for you. Just plug in the numbers and you get the number of stitches in the leg rows.

Number of stitches in leg row = (circumference of the pole / width of the flap row) x 12. We got 20.

Notice in the photo below that one row is worked across the top of entire piece. To evenly space the stitches, it helps to mentally divide your work into quarters. Put one quarter of the stitches in half of one flap, and so on.

What if my pole isn’t straight?

Beth had this question in the forum because she’s doing a tapered chair leg. Since this is a small project and we don’t need to worry about wasting yarn, just make the flaps and leg to the largest circumference. When you install you can overlap the narrow areas to get a tailored fit.

So, keep crocheting until you reach your measured height and this project is almost done!

Next week we’ll be back for the toenails and claws. We look forward to seeing what you’re up to this week!

xxxo,

Lorna & Jill

@KnitsForLife

Quick links: MFYBAL overview, weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.