, she brings new techniques from connecting crochet motifs and new creative shapes. |
| Connecting Motifs, Connect the Shapes |
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| Shell Octagon, Connect the Shapes |
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| Inner Connectivity, Connect the Shapes |
Clever Crocheted Accessories
There are 25 projects inside that Brett culled from her crochet designer favorites. For my projects in the book, we worked together very closely to create her vision. I personally adore working that way! I love collaborating to create a project that has a bit of everyone in it. We actually hashed out the clutch on the set of Knit and Crochet Now, Season 4. I was demo'ing how to needle felt motifs to a project I made for the show, and she loved the idea. And the clutch was born from that moment! The mittens were taken from an inspiration photo she sent me and my recent obsession with post stitches. Combined with her colors and stripes, the mittens were created. Totally a collaboration, I love it! You can see my pictures of the projects before I sent them in over at Flickr (esp if you want to see the size the clutch was before I felted it).
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| Mixed Motif Clutch |
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| Stripey Mitts |
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| Diamonds and Lace Socks |
for Christmas or Hanukkah. There are a ton of projects that will keep you crocheting all year! |
| Fine Feathered Cloche |
by leaving a comment on the blog about your favorite yarn to crochet (or send me a tweet or email). I will pick a winner on Wednesday and email them (so leave a way to get in touch with you!)
Linda Permann has done it again with this great collection of crochet projects using Malabrigo yarn. Malabrigo yarn is amazingly pretty. You just want to eat it up! Adding Linda's style, the projects are just fantastic!
This book is an eBook that you can download over at Ravelry. I love paper books, but I have found that when I really want to crochet, I want it in e-form. I can never remember to grab that book or mag, but I always have my phone (which I can open PDFs on). So for me, having this book as a PDF download is great.
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| Pizzelle Beret, Linda Permann |
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| Piped Petals Cardigan, Linda Permann |
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| Cherry Cobbler Beanie, Linda Permann |
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| Tart Shrug, Linda Permann |
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| Sugar Sparkles Shawl, Linda Permann |
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| Cocoa Wafer Cowl, Linda Permann |
Look what is up for pre-order!
Have you seen the ads for the special issue of Interweave Crochet? It's all about Accessories, and I am SO excited. I LOVE the idea for this issue. It is a ton (like over 40) patterns all that you can easily stitch up in a few days. I am just itching to get my hands on a copy! See, now that CJ has joined the CBF team; my time to crochet anything large (other then for work) has pretty much left with our ability to sleep through the night. BUT, do I have time to make little things here and there, sure!
I have 3 patterns in the issue, and I will talk about them more when the issue comes out (its on Pre-Order now). One was featured in an advertisement I got the other day (It's the center blue jewelry) . And frankly, it is my favorite of the bunch I made for the issue. I can't wait. I think they come out in October, and you will want to pick one up; since I just know they will sell out fast!
A bit of crochet inspiration for everyone today...
While walking up and down the aisles at TNNA, my eye is always drawn to the companies that have unique garments displayed especially if they are crocheted. Universal was one of those companies. Their new book, Warm Earth, by Yumiko Alexander has a number of beauties in it.
Here are a few of my favorites. Stepping Stones a open vest and Cool Breeze a simple tunic.
I really like her easy style with these projects. They are all projects that you could make and fit into your wardrobe easily. She definitely gives me a smile for inspiring me for the day. I hope you enjoy them too!
While holding CJ while she eats a spoon that I am unloading from the dishwasher early this morning, my mind floated to crochet. As it does while I do pretty much anything like cleaning, showering, wiping away boogers, really anything mindless.
Lately, my brain has been firing on all cylinders with new projects I have in mind. This can be very fun and frustrating all at once. Fun that my creativity is going bonkers and my hands are itching to get moving, and frustrating since my time is about half of what it once was (and even then I always had eyes bigger then actual hours in the day).
I cracked up laughing this morning, while I was surfing for a present for a friend's new baby, because crochet was jumping out at me left and right! Here's a few that caught my eye...
Crocheted Vest at Baby Gap- this is last season's line I believe. I think I saw it in the store while I was pregnant, but I still think it is cute. And for CJ, I love vests. Not only is the layered look cute, but we don't have a fight over getting our hands through the long sleeves. (If you are interested I noticed it was super cheap at only 10$, just saying...)
Crocheted Dress at Gymboree- This cap sleeved dress I think is adorable for spring. Surprisingly for me, I actually dress CJ in dresses almost every day. Since she is a drool machine right now, I use them like big bibs/ burp clothes. When she has drooled all over it for the day, I just switch it out for a new one. She looks cute all the time, and I don't have to go running for a burp cloth ever five minutes. And if you think about it, crocheted cotton make the best washclothes. I can see a whole line of washable tunic dresses in my future. See creativity just can't stay still for a moment.
Speaking of Gymboree they had a bunch of crocheted cardigans, hats, dresses, and tops trimmed in crochet too. I know some crocheters are relucant to dress their kids in crochet that they have themselves not stitched. But think about the great topic of conversation. If an adimer says, "I love that dress, did you crochet it?" You can say, "no, but I am learning how would you like to join me in learning how to crochet?" Or "No, but I do crochet and I am working on this cute project, would you like to see it?" Just saying...
Well, speaking of babies; it is time for me to give CJ some lunch, which means I am sure I will be dreaming about more new projects...
one of my favorite gifts so far
Originally uploaded by rchach
Finding cute baby clothes can be incredibly challenging. Especially for a mom like me, that doesn't dig overly frilly, girly, cutiesy-poo baby clothes. I like baby clothes to look like clothes I would wear, yet be easy to put on and machine washable.
And that's my design mojo when I design baby crochet, as well.
So when our friend, Tiff, gave CJ this dress; I was thrilled. It is exactly what I love. So naturally, I had to run to the brand's website and check them out. Totally inspiring for me! Exactly the same style that I hope to acheive with my work.
As always, there was so much great stuff from the weekend. I decided to break it up into a few posts, mainly since my brain can only keep so much info in and I have been remembering events in waves.
First up: The goodies- so much yarn. This year I spent a good portion of my time just strolling for inspiration. Usually I have booths already scoped out that I need to visit, but this time I just let my eye wander and I strolled to whoever caught it first. Here's some of my favorites from the show:
1. Spud and Chloe- New line of washable yarn from Blue Sky Alpaca. I am in love with this line. Their patterns are adorable and their line looks fantastic. I can't wait to start swatching. (Plus, they are absolutely wonderful and gave me a ton to work with for the new book. I am just itchy to start winding.) I love their tag line "sweet yarns for real life". Totally for me. At this point, washable yarn is a must for how klutzy I am. You have to check them out, honestly their line is great. Plus, Amy's scarf is genius- back is just as cute as the front.
2. Kitchen Sink Dyeworks- Mercedes brainchild. Great line of hand dyed yarn. She's got great colors, plus a mission. Check out Kiva for more info. I can't wait to swatch something up with it. Oh, and Mercedes is a crocheter too- so she totally gets us. Just saying...
3. Twisted Fiber Art- Meg is the creator behind this super cool hand dyed yarn. She uses calculus to figure out the color changes, and can vary it for your project. Neat right. She also has a beautiful range of variegated and subtle colors to choose from.
4. Schaefer Yarn Company- This company has really great yarn mixed with a really cool color concept. Their yarn colorways are named after famous women in history. They let me come home with Heather in Elena Piscopia (mathematician from the 16th century), Nicole in Aung San Suu Kyi (Burmese advocate), and Lola in Indigo. Plus they are sending me Susan in Frida Kahlo to create something (hopefully) as creative as she. But come on, how cool it is to say I'm crocheting with Frida? Every hank has a tag telling about the woman behind the inspiration. I think these would make fantastic gifts to girls to inspire them to greatness in craft and in the world.
I love anthropologie. And getting an email in my inbox with crochet in it makes me squeal.
Here's a few from their catalog.
Sunflower Sunhat
Snowflake Necklace-- (This has been in stock for a while. I actually used it as my inspiration for a project coming out in a few months)
Hooked Yarns Tee-- I love this look. If CJ wasn't on board, this would be mine.
Sundae Best Cover-Up- How great is this neckline?
Man do I love their designers. Here's a list of crocheted items they have.
As you guys know, we are in the process of cleaning and consolidating a couple of the rooms in the house to make room for the new addition. CJ is going to pretty much have full range in my current "office" (aka the spare room). Needless to say, I have been up to my eyes in sorting through old books, yarn, proposals, swatches, and more. (My cousin will attest to this since I just sent her a box of yarn full of discontinued yarn that I know I can't swatch with. Hopefully she will love the treasures.)
But speaking of treasures, hidden behind and almost wedged in to the wall was this magazine (to the right). It's McCall's Summer Crochet from 1975. I have been going back to it at least once a day.
The garments are definitely styled from the 70's, but from my view there is nothing wrong with that. Take a look at some of my favorites (to the right). All of these, with really minimal effort easily can be updated (if at all) for today.
The hooded tunic in the magazine, I think is the whole reason I bid for it on eBay. You can immediately whip that up and wear it today. It is made from fashion thread, so it could be a great beach cover-up.
The mom's and daughter's dresses also caught my eye for easy whip up and wear. Couldn't you see them being worn to the park this summer?
My new favorite is this butterfly winged top. It would definitely need to be updated, but I would keep the style the same. I think all it needs is a new stitch pattern in the center (thus getting rid of the spider motif) and a different pattern at the arms (getting rid of the suspender effect). But in general, the lightness and flowing sleeves are totally in. You could definitely find that at Antro or Free People.
I am know trying really hard, not to go on a search for more of these magazines. All I need is more, but man am I tempted!
Speaking of, I'll be offering up a ton of magazines and book on the blog here soon. Probably in the next two weeks, just in case you would be interested.
Looking for some fabric that is totally awesome with some never before seen designs?
Well, go check out my friend Qiana's etsy shop. She is a graphic artist that turned some of her artwork into fabric. It is really modern and totally fabulous. I have been patiently waiting for her to post them, because her flickr stream was SO tempting! (Is her work just not totally inspiring? That Flickr set is so awesome!)
She's offering them in fat quarters (18" by 21"), if you want more; just email her. I can totally see these turning into amazing bags, pillows, dresses, curtains, and more and more.
There is a new activity at the Knit and Crochet Festival in Pittsburgh this year, that I wanted to tell you all about. (I forget if I told you that I will be teaching there in February again, but I will.)
Three Rivers Crochet are hosting a charity luncheon to raise money for two great organizations.
All luncheon proceeds will be benefiting Rwanda Knits and the Pittsburgh Women’s Shelter. The luncheon is being held on Saturday, February 14th, 11:30a – 1:30p, cost is 30$. (Note: One not need attend the festival to attend the luncheon, but registration in advance with the festival registration form are necessary.)
I have to give a big huge hug to Kristin and Doris (and Tahki Stacy Charles for that too) for their new booklet, Superior Crochet.
For some previews and backstories, check out Doris's and Kristin's blog.
I am a huge fan of both of them for always knocking my socks off with their incredible designs and for being incredibly great people.
This is definitely a book you will want to bug your local yarn store in getting. I for one can not wait until TNNA next week and will get to see all the projects in person and ooh and aah over them with Doris and Kristin.
Super huge mazel tov to you both!
So I have been in total Holiday gear after getting back from Albuquerque on Monday night. Everywhere you looked, there were festive luminaries lining sidewalks, building parapets, driveways, etc. And this Grinch finally got in the spirit, reminiscing with Mr. CBF my Dad's luminaries stories of putting them up on our house.
I have been contemplating a new wreath for our front door for a while. I wanted something that incorporated Christmas, Chanukkah, Winter, Snow, Yarn, and Crochet. When I got back and finally logged back on yesterday, I saw my brilliant friend, Qiana, (I know she has the coolest name!) posted new holiday cards on her etsy shop. I flipped for them (as well as all her new paper and fabric designs). Her wreath is just what I was envisioning. I am seeing balls and donut shapes with yarn wrapped around them plus crochet snowflakes sprinkled in between. I'll let you know if my idea works out, and if I find time to do it before our big Christukkah party on Saturday night.
Till then, totally check out Q. Her etsy stuff and blog are awesome sources of inspiration!
1. Robyn Signature Single, 2. Mulberry Superwash Merino, 3. Log cabin baby blanket, 4. Lime Green Window Shutter, Red Flowers and a Rail, 5. loppem I norah gaughan I berroco vol. 3, 6. Crochet hooks case and gadget case, 7. My Madame Alexander bride doll (c. 1975), 8. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher (Tyrannus forficatus) - Pelican Island, Texas, 9. BABY TOY, 10. yellow springiness, 11. babette blanket, 12. Baby on her baby
Here’s how you play: (totally taken from Kim, then changed around to be about yarn ;) )
Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr search.
Using only the first page, choose an image.
Copy and paste each of the URL’s into the mosaic maker over at FD’s image maker.
The questions:
What is your first name? Robyn
What is your favorite yarn? Superwash Merino
What was the first thing you made with yarn? Baby Blanket
What is your favorite color? Lime Green
Which crochet or knitting designer do you have a crush on? Norah Gaughan
Favorite handmade gift you have received? Hook Case
Dream project? An entire wardrobe
Favorite notion? Pelican Scissors
What will you crochet/ knit next? Baby Toy
What do you love most about yarn? It's springiness
One word to describe your craft. Crochet
Main inspiration to craft. Faye Dog
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
I got a beautiful lacy almost doily, when I did a second round of X-sts.
And lastly, I switched to cotton and make this swirling circle.
And I can't wait for what I stumble on next with these stitches!
