Category: Guest Blogger

The last guest blogger I have for you this month is Ellen Gormley. She’s one very talented designer, as are all of my guest bloggers this month! I had the pleasure of teaching Ellen how to do Bruges Lace at a past CGOA Conference and she’s really taken off with it! Go Ellen!!! I’ll let Ellen tell you all about her new Annie’s class! And don’t forget to read all the way to the bottom of this post for another chance to win the Annie’s class of your choice!

 

Hi, I’m Ellen Gormley, Editor of Crochet! magazine, and I was WRONG. I admit it. I can admit I was wrong, here among friends, right? I was wrong about the difficulty of crochet lace.

 

 

Back in my first days of crochet, way before I made it my career, I would not have ventured into Broomstick Lace or Hairpin Lace. Why expand into more lace and tools when there is so much to be done without?

 

The truth is, I think as a new crocheter, I was intimidated by Crochet lace. All that loose yarn, and the big loops that could so easily become jumbled and unruly. Simply keeping count of traditional stitches and learning shaping seemed like a big enough task.  I was wrong, it’s not that hard. The learning curve is SHORT. I’m talking like 20 minutes.  In 20 minutes of practice with each skill, Hairpin, Broomstick, and Bruges Lace, you can gain tremendous comfort with the techniques.

 

 

Why should the knitters have all the fun getting to use more than one tool at a time? And Bruges Lace, you don’t even need anything special, just ONE crochet hook. So if you aren’t ready add more tools to your tool bag, start with the satisfaction of Bruges Lace first.

 

Once a crocheter has learned the basics of crochet (Check out my Learn to Crochet online class!) and maybe learned how to crochet with beads, (Check out my Crocheting with Beads online class!) it might be fun to branch out into Crochet Lace!

 

 

In my BRAND NEW Annie’s online class I demystify the tricky juggling of a hairpin loom and the broomstick along with the winding path of Bruges lace all in one class!  There are 2 projects for each technique and many lessons for you to see exactly how to get a handle on the tools and methods.

 

 

As a designer, I learned these techniques because there weren’t many patterns for them, so I figured I could be more marketable with Bruges, Hairpin and Broomstick patterns.  As a crocheter, the three techniques are just so much fun and rhythmic that I see a whole new world of possibilities.

 

Ellen Gormley

www.GoCrochet.com

 

I’m thrilled that Ellen has done a class on Bruges Lace, Broomstick Lace and Hairpin Lace. These are all fabulous crochet techniques and I hope you’ll enjoy learning them.

 

Here is your last chance to enter to win the Annie’s online class of your choice. Just leave a comment on this blog post to enter to win. I’ll pick one lucky winner at the end of the month. Good luck everyone and happy crocheting!

 

Susan

 

I have a guest blogger again this week. It’s Jenny King, who I met at a CGOA Conference sometime in the past 12 years (I can’t remember exactly which year it was)! Jenny has a fantastic crochet class on Annie’s and I’ll let her tell you all about it! Be sure to read all the way to the bottom to enter to win a free Annie’s class!

 

 

G’day my name is Jenny King and I am an Australian crochet addict!

 

Let me come visit and sit down with you and show you just how to do Bavarian crochet. Yes, at your place. In this Annies online class you will feel like I am there. I will do what the Mother and daughter from Bavaria had endeavoured to do in Australia and that is how to create the beauty of Bavarian crochet without need for translation.  You will love it and you will become addicted.

 

I walk you through the process slowly and repeat myself so much that you may nearly get sick of hearing my Aussie accent telling you to pull through 2 and pull through 2. I am grinning ear to ear as I say this to you.

 

 

We start with a headband working in a simple strip to demystify the stitch and its 2 row repeat.  Although this class is taught in USA crochet terms I couldn’t help but tell you how to do it in the terms used by the rest of the English speaking world so no-one gets left out. So if you live in the United Kingdom, South Africa, New Zealand or Australia you will be able work along with me as well.

 

I originally wanted to call it this the Mystery history stitch as the origins of this amazing stitch eluded me for over 15 years of thorough searching. I even took samples to USA to consult with the experts. Funnily enough all searches led me back to my own state of Queensland, Australia.  You can hear all the history as I explain the stitches.

 

 

I have simplified this original Mother and Daughter design  and instead of only working it in a square  I have experimented to make all manner of shapes . Let me show you how to do this stitch in a long strip as a scarf, as a decorative edging on slippers, and finally extend your skills to create a top-down seamless baby jacket, and nearly everything else  in between.

 

I should warn you though that Bavarian crochet is just delightful and you may become addicted. It can be worked in any color combination of your choice or you can experiment with the wonderful textured stitch if it is done in just one color as in the wrap vest in charcoal.  That is just Yummy.

 

See you soon at your place. I can’t wait.

 

Jenny

 

So now you know something about Jenny’s Bavarian Crochet class. To learn more about Jenny’s class, just visit the Annie’s website here. To learn more about Jenny King, visit her website here.

 

Now, as promised, here is the information about my giveaway of a free class from Annie’s! To enter, just leave a comment on this blog post. I’ll pick the winner at random at the end of this month and will announce it right here (and I’ll send the winner an e-mail, too). There are so many great classes at Annie’s! To see all of the classes offered, check them out on the Annie’s website.

 

Good luck everyone and happy crocheting!

 

Susan