Faux mink collar

Our friend Paula brought back from her last Parisian trip a very cute little mink collar, very 50s. Not liking to get quite so intimate with the beasties, we've devised this substitute. It's crocheted and fulled, so it's very dense and holds its shape as well as the original. It sports 2 levels of eyelash to reproduce the fur effect, and we took the time to push a lot of the longest bits to one side to increase the hairiness. Finally we used one of our handmade glass buttons to close it in style. Still a very easy project.

Level of difficulty

Beginner.

Size

Medium-Large, [XL-XXL)].

Finished measurements

Length: 29"/74cm [31"/79cm].
Width: 3.5"/9cm [4.5"/11cm].

Materials

1 ball Crystal Palace Iceland, 3433 tree bark.
1 ball Crystal Palace Squiggle, 9300 wood grain.
1 ball Crystal Palace Fizz Stardust, 4427 hot chocolate.
Or: 1 ball Crystal Palace Fizz, 7342 chocolate if you prefer a non-metallic option.
Crochet hook size K+ (7mm)

Gauge (before fulling)

6 sc = 4"/10cm.

Stitches used

US: Chain st(ch). Single crochet (sc).
Britain: Chain st(ch). Double crochet (sc).
Single crochet: pull yarn through work, yarn over, pull through both loops on hook.

DIRECTIONS

Row 1: chain 48 [52] for the foundation row. For once, it's a good thing if you chain not particularly loosely, so that the collar naturally acquires a bit of a curve as you work the rest of it loosely.
Row 2: ch 1, turn, single-crochet into 2nd stitch and then again into every stitch below till end of row.
Repeat 2nd row 2 [3] times.
Row 4 [5]: repeat row 2, with the following modification to make a buttonhole: about 4"/10cm [5"/12cm] from end of row, ch 1, skip a stitch below, sc in next stitch, sc as usual to end of row.
Repeat 2nd row 3 [4] times, so you have a total of 7 [9] rows of single-crochet.

Finishing

Bind off, work ends in with a yarn needle.
Pick a right side and, using a single strand of Iceland with a yarn needle, sew a button in the place corresponding to the buttonhole on the other side.
If you wish, use your fingers to work ends of Squiggle from the wrong side to the right side, so you double the squiggly-ness.
Full the collar lightly, by hand in a sink. You want a tightening in texture, not a noticeable shrinking.
Dry flat. Do not block at any point.