Let’s Crochet a Snowflake!
Have you ever crocheted a snowflake? They are my all-time favorite projects to make! Whether you’re getting ready to decorate for the winter holidays or looking for a small project to beat the summer heat, snowflakes are the perfect year-round project!
Learning About Snowflakes
Snowflakes, or snow crystals, are formed when water vapor in the air directly condenses and freezes. The complexity of the snowflake, from simple hexagonal plates to large dendrites with elaborate branches, is dependent on temperature and humidity. Since the same atmospheric conditions are experienced across a single snow crystal as it falls through the clouds, the branches grow in a similar pattern, although they are actually not perfectly symmetrical. Learn more about how snowflakes form on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) website.
Photographing Snowflakes
Wilson A. Bentley (the “Snowflake Man”) photographed snowflakes in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s using a microscope, camera, a blackboard to catch the snowflakes and a feather to select them. He meticulously studied and categorized all the snowflakes he photographed. You can read more about Mr. Bentley at https://snowflakebentley.com/.
Currently, Dr. Ken Libbrecht, a professor of physics at Caltech, has been studying and photographing snowflakes as well as growing his own designer snowflakes in a lab. To read more about Dr. Libbrecht’s work, in addition to many snowflake resources, check out his website: http://www.snowcrystals.com/. You can also watch Veritasium‘s YouTube video, Mystery of Snowflakes, to see an interview with Dr. Libbrecht and watch him grow amazing snowflakes before your very eyes!
And, if you’re really lucky, you may just catch a beautiful snowflake on your coat using only your cell phone camera … but you better be quick before it starts to melt!
Let’s Get Started
Now that you’ve learned a little bit about snowflakes, let’s get started and crochet a snowflake together! Just download my free Let’s Make a Snowflake pattern and follow along on my YouTube channel!
Happy Crocheting!
Kathy
