Learn the history of heritage crochet techniques, and how to use them to enrich any crochet project. Clear instructions from master teacher Rita de Maintenon, plus 160 photos and online videos, take intermediate-level crochet skills to the next level, allowing you to learn to crochet broomstick lace, hairpin lace, Tunisian lace, Aran cables, and thread lace such as filet crochet, Irish crochet, bullions, and picots. After mastering the basics of these often undervalued traditional skills, learn how to move between them, combine them, and--most importantly--move from pattern dependency to "pattern independence." Readers are guided in how to create their own designer projects without the need of commercial patterns. Original-design examples are featured throughout. This book belongs in every fiber lover's library as a constant resource of information and inspiration.

Learn an updated take on the vintage art of broomstick lace with easy-to-follow photo tutorials! Made using a super-huge needle (the "broomstick") and a crochet hook, this technique creates a very distinctive cluster lace stitch that's fun and fast to crochet.

Fiber artists around the world have embraced crochet as an inventive medium like never before. Expanding on the creative possibilities and using sculpture, immense site-specific installations, performance, and mixed-media objects, they have used crochet techniques to explore feminine craft and heritage, dissect gender codes, and show the primal creative expression represented by crochet. In The Fine Art of Crochet, author Gwen Blakley Kinsler looks at the art-crochet movement from 1915 onward to the crochet revolution of the 1960s, profiling twenty of the most innovative practitioners working today. Offering insight to those who may not have otherwise thought to go beyond the purely practical aspect of crochet, she features internationally known artists such as Arline Fisch, Leslie Pontz, Carol Hummel, Tracy Krumm, Bonnie Meltzer, and Soonran Youn. Gwen Blakley Kinslerthe founder of the Crochet Guild of America and a fiber-art practitioner in her own rightexamines the concepts and diverse works of these artists, in whose hands the magic of crochet creates cutting-edge art for the twenty-first century. Each artist approaches the medium with wonder and the desire to explore its full potential. This study and collection of images presents an exploration of the diverse styles, unusual shapes, and exquisite textures that characterize crocheted art today.

Granny Square Flair is a collection of 50 variations on the classic crochet square. With innovative techniques and inventive combinations of basic stitches, Granny Square Flair is an essential addition to every crochet reference library. Inside you'll find... 50 crochet square patterns in both chart and written format. At least 3 colour options for each of the 50 patterns. Hints and tips for seamless crochet and how to make your crochet sing. Joining options. 11 projects you can make with everything explained. Guidance on making your own projects from choosing patterns to planning layout as well as choosing yarn and calculating yarn requirements. Glossary of all stitches and techniques used with full explanations. With Granny Square Flair at your side as your indispensable crochet companion, you and the special people in your life will be wrapped in crochet love that is distinctly yours.

Forget those granny-square ponchos, afghans, and doilies that grandma used to make: these projects are up-to-date and in style, designed to appeal to the millions of crocheters who want to create items with a fresh young sensibility. And, they’ll be thoroughly hooked from the moment they set eyes on these sexy garments and fantastic jewelry that come right off the pages of the latest glamour magazines. There’s nothing like it on the market: pages and pages of stunning photographs showcase such trendy pieces as a little black dress with “fur” trim, a corset top, a bikini, and a faux-leather backless shirt with matching skirt. Easy-to-follow instructions by two of the best-known authors in the field will entice beginners as well as more advanced crocheters.

Every family has annoying relatives; mine just happen to be undead.My Grandmother, Agnes Bartlett, used to own Cardinal Woolsey's knitting shop in Oxford then died and left her shop to me, without informing me that she wasn't actually dead. She's a vampire and part of the world's strangest craft circle - the Vampire Knitting Club.As you might imagine, this means she's free to interfere in how I run the business that used to be hers. She's trying to teach me to knit and it's not going well. She's also trying to teach me how to be a witch, since it turns out I'm from a long line of witches. Another tiny detail about my family that no one ever told me, along with the long-lost witch cousins I recently discovered. But I'm learning. I've got my family spell book, my black cat familiar, some powers that sometimes scare me, and an interesting new group of friends. My archaeologist parents are coming to visit and bringing me a gift I could do without. So, to recap, I run a knitting shop and I can't knit. I'm a beginning witch who can't always control her cat, never mind her magic, and my love life is as tangled as the last sock I tried to knit. Oh, and for some reason, I keep getting involved in murder investigations. Good thing I have my vampire knitters to help sniff out clues. At least I've finally hired the perfect assistant, a real demon with the crochet hook. Or is she too perfect?Crochet and Cauldrons is the third book in the Vampire Knitting Club series of fun, paranormal cozy mysteries.Grab yours today!"I was up until 2 a.m. I just couldn't stop reading." ***** Five star Amazon review of Frosted Shadow, a Toni Diamond mystery."Loved it! Keeps you guessing to the end." ***** Amazon review of Frosted Shadow, a Toni Diamond mystery.

From the 2-time Tony Award-winner and the star of TV’s Younger, funny and intimate stories and reflections about how crafting has kept her sane while navigating the highs and lows of family, love, and show business (and how it can help you, too). Whether she’s playing an “age-defying” book editor on television or dazzling audiences on the Broadway stage, Sutton Foster manages to make it all look easy. How? Crafting. From the moment she picked up a cross stitch needle to escape the bullying chorus girls in her early performing days, she was hooked. Cross stitching led to crocheting, crocheting led to collages, which led to drawing, and so much more. Channeling her emotions into her creations centered Sutton as she navigated the significant moments in her life and gave her tangible reminders of her experiences. Now, in this charming and poignant collection, Sutton shares those moments, including her fraught relationship with her agoraphobic mother; a painful divorce splashed on the pages of the tabloids; her struggles with fertility; the thrills she found on the stage during hit plays like Thoroughly Modern Millie, Anything Goes, and Violet; her breakout TV role in Younger; and the joy of adopting her daughter, Emily. Accompanying the stories, Sutton has included crochet patterns, recipes, and so much more! Witty and poignant, Hooked will leave readers entertained as well as inspire them to pick up their own cross stitch needles and paintbrushes.

Crochet a variety of sweet things, including key chains, pouches, bag mascots, and more! -- VIZ Media

As a solitary young boy, Michael Sellick took refuge in the art of crocheting. As an adult, that refuge would grow into a passion. He started sharing videos to fellow crocheters in something he called The Crochet Crowd -- a far-flung group that now includes three million people around the world on Youtube, Facebook and Instagram. For Mikey the passion and joy are stronger than ever, and now he's hanging with the in crowd too: The Crochet Crowd. Packed with pictures, personality and 15 patterns, this book will resonate with first-time and experienced crocheters alike. Crocheters will be treated to an exclusive collection of patterns for afghans, scarves, hats, cowls and other items that emphasize the texture, colour and coziness that Mikey and Dan have become known for.

A guide to using handspun yarns--including such fibers as alpaca, merino, cormo, and more--features detailed instructions for twenty-six innovative projects that demonstrate how the materials' unique properties, fiber, and texture can transform a piece.