Happy July Fourth!

In honor of the day, we are starting our post with patriotic furry flip-flops. You can make a pair this morning and wear them to your afternoon party. My daughter made herself a new pair and will share her technique with you! I give the keyboard over to her:
Here you see the first flip-flop, finished are ready to wear. You will need one pair of flip-flops with smooth, flat straps, one 5.5mm crochet hook (or close to that) and one skein of FunFur (about 60 yards/50 grams.)

First, you want to tie a normal double knot around the strap of the flip-flop.

Next, you want to turn it so that the end is on the inside, close to the sole of the flip-flop. Then insert your crochet hook into the loop created by the yarn around the band. Create a stitch by pulling your yarn through the loop with your crochet hook.
Bring the crochet hook around the bottom of the band and bring the yarn through the loop on your crochet hook, making another stitch.

Continue to make stitches, alternating top and bottom. Push your stitches down so that they are nice and close to one another. Keep going until you reach the toe separator.

Make sure that you end with a stitch on the top. Switch to the other strap with a bottom stitch, and continue as before.

When you reach the bottom of the second strap, cut your yarn and pull the end all of the way through your last loop. Wrap your end loosely around the back of the strap and pull your end through this new loop. Trim your ends.
Go see some fireworks!!

If you click on the Furry Flip-flops label at the very end of this post, you can see more of them...

Moving on, we have our regularly scheduled post! If you are new to the Summer Sampler Study party, please take some time to review the previous posts with the Summer Sampler label and catch-up! You have plenty of time.

This week's pattern is a real change of pace from last week's. The unique part of today's pattern is that it is Purl-based. The purl background will be on the front of your work and the knit on the back. Follow the chart closely so you don't miss those few stitches that are actually knit on the front. They give the pattern depth. Unlike the pattern last week, this basic motif is a traditional one and the oldest source I found for something like it was in a vintage German book. I call Pattern Six Summer Wheat, because once I got a few repeats, it reminded me of a wheat field. Page twelve follows, and is pretty straight forward!

I'll be back next week for another pattern, and until then knit on!