Overlay Crochet

I ordered Melody Macduffee's Overlay Crochet correspondence course from the CGOA (Crochet Guild of America) sometime last week, and this week the invoice showing payment arrived with the note that the instructor had been notified and that I could expect delivery in 6 to 8 weeks. All I could think was "quel(le) horreur"! Was it even possible that I would truly have to wait an additional 6 to 8 weeks after having spent much longer than that overcoming my personal inertia and finally ordering the course?

In a bit of an existential panic, I got on the computer, located a current email for Ms. MacDuffee and sent a polite (I hope) but pleading email asking her to say it wasn't so. She did and replied with a sweet email telling me that they [the course materials] were going out in "today's mail," today now being yesterday.

I was elated to get the email and ever since, I have been contemplating yarn combinations: do I use black as a background and go for a Notre Dame stained glass window color scheme, or do I do yet another piece in homage to Dunkin Donuts making use of Red Heart Super Saver brown, shocking pink, and pumpkin? Maybe I should use black, but find slightly grayer colors and draw on the box the Tivo was shipped in for inspiration. Decisions, decisions.

In any event, to anyone who might be interested in checking out overlay crochet Melody MacDuffee's work can be found at melodysarts.com and instructions for ordering her overlay crochet course can be found at crochet.com under Resources. If joining the CGOA is beyond your budget or interest, Melody also has an instruction book for overlay crochet that has been published by Kooler Design Studio and is being distributed by Leisure Arts. The ISBN is 160140888. If you plug this number into your favorite search engine, it will bring up several places for you to purchase the book .

Crochet Update

A couple of weeks ago I made a pineapple skirt from a pattern in Doris Chan's book, Amazing Crochet Lace. I found the skirt to be exactly that: amazing. I liked it so well, I am making another. It works up quickly and can be worn over jeans, another skirt, or a slip.

I have used the suggested yarn for both skirts (Paton's Grace, a mercerized cotton), if not the suggested color (the first was ginger -- a light green, the second is tangelo -- a varigated yarn with orange, ecru, and beige), and I even managed to get the gauge right with my new Clover 4.5mm hook.

( Tangent: I had resisted purchasing a Clover crochet hook, but there were no other hooks easily available that were the 4.5mm size. Once I used the Clover crochet hook, I became a convert and have been looking for excuses to purchase an entire collection since I used it. I would probably like them better if they came in shocking pink, lime green, and lemon yellow, but I have to admit that they are a wonderful tool despite the drab color.)

While I have read some less than flattering reviews of Doris Chan's book, I found it to be at least as good, and better than many crochet books that are published, and completing the pineapple skirt has infected me with a joi that is the whole reason I crochet.

In addition to the patterns which I find eminently adaptable, it is really inspirational. The story of how she came to create "exploded lace" as she calls it, was worth the price of the book as far as I'm concerned.

Finally, if you do decide you want to tackle any of the projects, make sure you read and understand how to make the single crochet base stitch as given in the directions Chan provides. I am the sort of person who is usually in a hurry and skims over things in order to get to the making of the project. That said, I cannot stress enough how important it is to understand and practice the SC BASE stitch before you begin the project. This stitch makes it possible to get the skirt over your hips, and it would really suck to do all that work and not be able to get the skirt on.

What I liked best about Doris Chan's approach to crochet is that once I got going on the project, I got more excited about it. Apparently Ms. Chan has a new book due out September 18 of this year titled "Everyday Crochet: Wearable designs just for you." I'm betting that I have it before summer officially ends.

Mr. Funky's Super Crochet Wonderful

is just exactly that: super crochet wonderful.

Last week I found myself at Barnes and Noble while my nine-year-old was at sailing lessons. I had stopped in for reasons unrelated to crochet, but I cruised past the craft section, just in case there was something new that I hadn't seen. How fortuitous for me that on this particular day I took the time to peruse the crochet/knitting section despite the fact that I had done so at this very Barnes and Noble within the previous seven days. There on the shelf, beckoning to me, was a predominantly purplish maroon book with limey green letters that proclaimed "Super Crochet Wonderful."

I can't really describe the feeling that washed over me when I looked over the book, but it only took me a few seconds to determine that I was going to buy it. The book was so cute, I would have bought it even if I didn't have a 10% discount card.

I like everything about the book:the amigurumi that populate the cover and the first half of the inside of the book; the way the author, Narumi Ogawa, encourages the reader to expore all the possibilities of crochet; the impeccably clear directions and cool charts.

So, is the book as great as it looks? I set out to test the patterns myself this afternoon as I said lakeside at sailing lessons. Armed with my 3.75mm Skacel crochet hook and a skein of Red Heart Supersaver worsted weight warm brown yarn, I tried out the pattern for "Sebsastian le Hamster." I am happy to report that the directions were easy to follow, and had I remembered to bring along stuffing, eyes, a nose, contrast yarn for the hands, feet, and muzzle, as well as a jaunty orange for the beret, I would have been able to complete the hamster with time to spare. Not being that organized, the hamster is in my bag and mostly done.

I will definitely be experimenting with more of the patterns in this book. If you want to check out the author's website, she can be found at http://misterfunky.com/index.html