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Between the Covers On the Hooks: Hooking Books

Say it Rah-shay By Sep 04, 2011 No Comments

Since I’ve been working on making Rachée Crochets more than a catchy phrase I’ve been looking for inspiration by perusing a bunch of crochet books, websites, Ravelry and the like. This is to get a feel for patterns, what things people are making and buying and simply lusting after things that once seemed out of my reach as well as looking for something other than scarves to make. Way back when before Borders went out of business, Effin Guy and I went out to dinner near our local store and I forced him asked him sweetly to pop into Borders with me so that I could check out books* and such and I found some of the cutest things that I will be giving a go.

First up is Twinkie Chan’s Crochet Goodies for Fashion Foodies. This book has 20 crochet patterns fashioned after food stuffs that you can hook and wear. I’m not really into wearing a scarf that looks like an ice cream cone or cupcakes but The Bee and Arboo were tickled when I shared the book with them. (Arboo asked for the ice cream scarf, admonishing me to make time to actually complete it so that she can wear it.)

The book read like a wonderful yarn cookbook. Each pattern is treated like a recipe, with a list of ingredients. The yarn is popular yarn that can be easily bought from a craft store. There is a lovely list of resources including Crochet Spot (I wrote a guest post for Rachel once!) and other web sites and a list of items one would need in their beginner’s crochet kit**.

There are some patterns that don’t speak to me at all: I just don’t get the spaghetti and meatball scarf or the Baby Radish scarf. They both look a tad messy to me but for a book I borrowed from the library, I paid six dollars for I can say that I have gotten use out of it.

On the hooks: the Button candy scarf although the pattern is a tad more difficult than I originally thought. Oh well, it’s a scarf and good for a challenge.

Next up is Linda Kopp’s Kooky Crochet. I was looking for a pot holder after burning myself with the crappy one I made*** and loved the fried egg on the cover. Some of her patterns are, well kooky, but the instructions are clear enough and make me feel that it is actually possible to complete some of the things that I like.

On the hooks: The fried egg pot holder. Cause it’s cute and see above.



The pattern that should save my hand



When I first started my career as a library chick, I thought it would be cool to offer teens and tweens the option of a crochet kit: they would be provided with a bit of yarn, a hook and the book Get Hooked. My boss at the time, bless her, didn’t shoot the idea down but showed me that perhaps there may be issue with yarn missing, hooks missing and I eventually realized that the idea was good but coupled with the yarn bit, a bust. We HAD two copies for a while but alas someone loved crocheting more than myself and I haven’t seen Get Hooked for a while. Anywho, Kim Werker’s Get Hooked and Get Hooked Again offer patterns that will appeal to anyone, especially younger hookers. I love the tips and tricks offered between patterns as well as a visual guides to get patterns completed successfully.  The instructions are clear and well written and the projects work up quickly and, most importantly, as seen in the book.
On the hooks: Peek a boo Shrug. Cause I’m STILL trying to make one.



Stay hooked…

…and keep reading!
As a twin, I’m a tad biased, OK, TOTALLY biased when it comes to twin things so when I heard about the Double Stitch Twins I was excited. Truly this is NOT your Grandmama’s crochet but when I showed Leaky some of the patterns she seemed excited. Their book, Double Stitch: Designs for the Crochet Fashionista has some patterns that make me scratch my head but others that are so creative and kooky that I figure it’s just not for me.
I love that the yarn used is not always some unattainable yarns that would cost a fortune to use and that I can use my cool Lion Brand or Red Heart apps and find places to buy the yarn. My friend Dawn is always showing the stuff she makes from their books and it does work up just as promised.
On the hooks: Remix tee-shirt. I’ve decided I’m  tad too old to do the grunge look but these sleeves will allow me the opportunity to wear a short sleeved shirt in colder weather.
The Happy Hooker was the first crochet book that I bought. Compared to knit, some of the crochet patterns that I would see always looked like a mess of yarn. Later I realized that hook size and yarn size did make a difference but I digress. My favorite scarf (natch!) to make was the one skein scarf. It works up quickly, always looks good and uses, well one skein.

The instructions are clear, I love the personal stories shared by many of the pattern designers and the instructions for stitches and such are understandable, illustrated and written out and very, very Rachée friendly.

On the hooks: Fluffy Bunny Slippers. Cause my house is friggin’ cold!

My messy yarn bag and some of the books
I borrowed from work

What are your favorite hooking books? Yarnies will agree that they can never have too many books or skeins of yarn.

Getting hooked,
-r





*Now before anyone starts getting in a tizzy please remember that I work in a library and didn’t buy most of these books. Some were borrowed, others were things I already owned or got during Borders closing sale.
**Once you REALLY get into it, the four hooks she recommends will never seem like enough!
*** Full disclosure: It was actually a wrong sized granny square that I thought would be a good substitute for a pot holder. Boy was I wrong!
Author

I am mom, daughter, sister, yarn lover, word lover, crazy cat lady and library chick. Find me with book or with hook and a hot cuppa.

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