The Crochet Architect

June 25, 2021June 25, 2021

Sign Up for July 2021 CGOA Crochet Classes!

I just love learning new things, don’t you? I’m very happy to announce that I’ll be teaching 4 online crochet classes next month for the annual CGOA Conference. I’ve taught each of these classes before in person and I’m excited to teach them online/virtually! The nice thing about online/virtual classes is there’s no travel necessary to attend the classes/conference. You can attend classes in the comfort of your own home, which saves lots of time and money! Each crochet class will be taught at Central Standard Time (US time zone) through Zoom. It will be fun to learn new things, so give it a try!

If you’ve never heard of CGOA (Crochet Guild of America), check out the benefits of membership here. I’ve been a CGOA member since 2002 and I started teaching at the CGOA Conference in 2009! It’s a wonderful organization with lots of crochet enthusiasts, including lots of crochet hobbyists, designers, editors and publishers! CGOA members enjoy discounts on classes and lots of other things.

Registration ends soon, so register today for the classes you want to take!

Below are the 4 classes I’ll be teaching at the virtual CGOA Conference next month.

Invisible Repairs: Tuesday, July 20 from 9:00AM-4:00PM CST (with 1 hour lunch break)

Click on video photo for more information

Repair torn, cut, chewed or burned projects
Replace stitches and chain spaces, locking them to bottom strands in the row or round above
Invisibly seam first and last rows in a crochet cowl
Bring damaged crochet projects back to life again

Intro to Irish Crochet: Friday, July 23 from 1:00PM-4:00PM CST

Introductory class
Learn to make basic Irish Crochet rose and leaf motifs
Learn to make a background for joining your finished motifs
Learn a simple Irish Crochet edging with picots

Reading & Understanding Crochet Patterns: Monday, July 26 from 1:00PM-4:00PM CST

Click on the video photo above for more information.

By learning how to read a pattern, you’ll be able to crochet exciting new projects
Learn the rules for reading a crochet pattern
Learn abbreviations, right/wrong side, right/left side, right/left front
Bring your crochet pattern questions to be answered
We will make some practice swatches in class

Fantastic Filet Crochet: Wednesday, July 28 from 9:00AM-4:00PM CST (with 1-hr lunch break)

Learn the basics of Filet Crochet
Learn open mesh, closed mesh, lacets and square mesh
Learn increases, decreases and diagonal stitches
Learn to read a Filet Crochet chart
We will be making a beginning Filet Crochet project and intermediate swatches

I hope to see/meet many of you in my CGOA classes next month!

Here’s a link directly to the CGOA web page to read about all the classes being offered at this year’s CGOA conference and to register for classes.

Happy crocheting to all of you and keep on learning!

Susan

March 8, 2021March 8, 2021

Learn My New REV-COM Technique

If you’re wondering if you can make your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects reversible, then wonder no longer! They absolutely CAN be made reversible with REV-COM (Reversible Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet)! And the results are stunning!

I’ve been playing around with Mosaic Crochet for several years and learning more about the characteristics of this fabulous crochet technique! I have a new YouTube video to teach you how to make your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects reversible. In this reversible technique, I’ve tweaked my Adc (Anchored double crochet) stitch a little. This small tweak has allowed me to make my Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects reversible! And I’d like to share what I’ve developed with you so you can make your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects reversible, too!

I also have a new Reversible Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet (REV-COM) pattern that’s completely reversible. It’s my “Persimmon Flower Scarf”, made with DK weight yarn and a size F/5 (3.75mm) crochet hook. This scarf is worked in short rows (the width of the scarf) so it’s easy to learn this technique with a minimum of mistakes along the way. Who wants to go back hundreds of stitches to correct a mistake in a scarf/project? Certainly not me!

I find that the reversible projects are thicker than one-sided projects, so I used a thinner yarn and a smaller hook to compensate for the additional thickness. This scarf is adjustable in width and length, so you can make your reversible scarf any size you want.

The pattern includes instructions for how to adjust the size of your scarf, full written instructions for each row of the scarf, a chart to use if you prefer working from charts, as well as instructions (and step-by-step photos) for making the FLdc, AdcRS, AdcWS and using the Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet (COM) technique.

I’d like to tell (warn) you that when you’re making a reversible project, there are more opportunities for making mistakes. Therefore, I’m making a separate video to teach you how to correct some of the most common mistakes you can make (like me) in your REV-COM projects! That video will be coming out soon!

Obviously, making your project reversible will use more yarn than if you made it one-sided, with stripes on the back, instead of the mosaic pattern on the back. I’m estimating that this reversible technique uses about 15% – 30% more yarn, depending on the number of FLdc (front loop double crochet) or Adc (anchored double crochet) in the pattern. I think the extra yarn is well worth it because both sides are beautiful instead of just the front!

If you’re an intermediate to advanced crocheter (or an adventurous crocheter), watch my YouTube video to learn how to make your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects reversible today!

Happy Reversible Mosaic Crocheting to you!

Susan

February 15, 2021February 15, 2021

Revolutionary Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet (COM) Technique Revealed

I’m very excited to reveal a new, revolutionary crochet technique that I developed several years ago. I call this technique “Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet”, or “COM”, for short! If you love the look of Overlay Mosaic Crochet, which has a gazillion ends to weave in, make into fringe or cover with a double border, you’re going to go crazy for this new technique! There are virtually “NO ENDS” to deal with in my COM technique!

I have a new YouTube video where I’ll teach you all you need to know to successfully crochet your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects with my COM technique to eliminate all those pesky ends!

I also have 2 new Overlay Mosaic Crochet blanket patterns using my new, revolutionary COM technique: my Wedding Ring Blanket (below left) and my Dueling Diamonds Blanket (below right)! These comprehensive patterns include full written instructions for each row of the blanket, a mosaic chart (if you prefer to use charts), instructions and step-by-step photos for my Anchored dc stitch (Adc) stitch and for using the COM technique, a check list to keep track of which row you’re working in the pattern, as well as the full yardage needed to crochet these blankets (including the little bit of extra yardage needed for making the blankets in my COM technique, WITHOUT ALL THOSE ENDS!).

Wedding Ring Mosaic Crochet Blanket — Mosaic Crochet Blanket patterns using my Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet technique

Dueling Diamonds Blanket pattern — Mosaic Crochet Blanket patterns using my Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet technique

In my opinion, the extra yardage that this technique uses FAR outweighs the fact that you eliminate virtually all of the ends in your project! In fact, I only had 30 ends total to weave in on my Dueling Diamonds Blanket instead of over 250 ends! That’s a huge difference!

If you’d like to use this technique in an Overlay Mosaic Crochet pattern that you’ve already purchased somewhere else, check out my Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet video to find out how to calculate the extra yardage to use the COM technique in that pattern.

The inspiration for my Wedding Ring Blanket came from the lampshades in my master bedroom. I’ve admired this geometric pattern for years and now I have a crochet blanket pattern with this lovely design in it! Here’s a photo of one of those lampshades:

My revolutionary COM technique for having virtually NO ENDS only works with my Anchored dc stitch and “Overlay” Mosaic Crochet, which is worked with all right-side rows, alternating color every row. This gives you 2 yarn ends for every row you crochet (one at the beginning of the row and one at the end of the row). That’s a lot of ends to deal with in the regular method of Overlay Mosaic! Who wants all those ends? Certainly NOT me!

“Inset” Mosaic Crochet doesn’t have all those ends to deal with because it’s worked with 2 rows of each color and the yarn is carried up one side of the project to be used again. Inset Mosaic Crochet doesn’t have as crisp of a design as Overlay Mosaic Crochet, so it’s not quite as popular as Overlay Mosaic.

If you’ve never worked either method of Mosaic Crochet, check out my Overlay Mosaic Crochet video and/or my Inset Mosaic Crochet video on my YouTube channel to learn how to do these 2 fabulous crochet techniques! There’s no changing colors across the rows of either Mosaic Crochet technique, which makes them much easier to do!

I hope you enjoy my new Continuous Overlay Mosaic Crochet technique. I also hope it saves you lots of frustration and time in your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects by eliminating all those pesky ends!

I’d love to hear your comments about this new crochet technique. Is it helpful for you?

Happy crocheting!

Susan

January 26, 2021January 26, 2021

Inset Mosaic Crochet Video & Free Charts

There are several styles/methods for doing Mosaic Crochet. In my previous Mosaic Crochet video, I taught you how to do Overlay Mosaic Crochet. In my new video, I’ll teach you everything you need to know to successfully do the Inset Mosaic Crochet method.

Inset Mosaic Crochet differs from Overlay Mosaic Crochet because Inset is worked with 2 rows of each color instead of 1. Because of that, you won’t need to finish off each row, creating tails/ends to deal with by weaving them in, turning them into fringe or crocheting a double border.

Both Overlay and Inset Mosaic Crochet are worked with 2 contrasting colors of yarn. You can use a DK weight, worsted weight or whatever weight yarn you desire.

This is a fabulous method of Mosaic Crochet! So if you’d like to learn it, check out my YouTube video. I also have a FREE download for the swatch charts that I used in the video, along with written directions for the swatch. You can find that download on my free patterns page.

Happy Mosaic Crocheting to all of you!

Susan

January 11, 2021February 5, 2021

Improved Overlay Mosaic Crochet Video & Scarf Pattern

Mosaic Crochet is one of my favorite crochet techniques. Have you heard of Mosaic Crochet before? It’s an absolutely wonderful crochet technique! With Mosaic Crochet, you can create something that looks much more complicated than it actually is! There are several styles of Mosaic Crochet. The Overlay Mosaic Crochet style is worked in alternating rows of a dark color and a light color (only one color of yarn is used in each row). Each row is worked on the right side, so each row starts and stops (joins and finishes off), creating ends/tails at the beginning and end of each row. I like to turn these ends into fringe, especially when making a Mosaic Crochet scarf. Then there are no ends to weave in on the project!

mosaic crochet video — Overlay Mosaic Crochet video on YouTube

If you’d like to learn this fabulous crochet technique, I have a new YouTube video teaching the Overlay Mosaic Crochet technique. Check it out and let me know what you think! In this video, you’ll learn everything you need to know while crocheting a swatch along with me (there’s a free chart that goes with the video, as well). Then you’ll be successful with your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects!

My style of Overlay Mosaic Crochet differs from other designers because I use an Anchored double crochet (Adc) stitch instead of a regular double crochet (dc). This eliminates gaps on the back of the mosaic piece and gives it more stability. You can learn the Adc in my “Improved Overlay Mosaic Crochet” YouTube video, as well as in my separate “Anchored Double Crochet” YouTube video for more success with your Overlay Mosaic Crochet projects.

Anchored Double Crochet video on YouTube

overlay mosaic crochet scarf — Flight of Stairs Scarf

While planning and creating this video, I decided to design another Mosaic Crochet Scarf pattern for your enjoyment. It’s been many years since I designed my first Mosaic Crochet Scarf pattern. They’re so much fun to crochet and wear! Since this new mosaic pattern looks like stairs, I’ve called it the “Flight of Stairs Scarf”. This scarf is easy to make, following the written instructions and the included charts in the pattern. It’s made similarly to the mosaic swatch in the video with a few differences. If you can crochet the swatch from the video, I’m sure you’ll be successful in crocheting this scarf!

If you’ve never done Mosaic Crochet before, give it a try! You’ll be glad you did!

Happy New Year and Happy Crocheting!

Susan

December 28, 2020January 6, 2021

Easy Rainbow Hat Pattern

I’m pleased to announce that I’ve published a new crochet hat pattern. My Easy Rainbow Hat coordinates perfectly with my very popular Easy Rainbow Scarf pattern! The hat pattern comes in 2 styles and 3 sizes. You’ll find it easy to make and fun to wear. Easy because my video tutorial will step you through the stitches. Fun because you’ll look so good in it, especially with the matching Easy Rainbow Scarf.

If you’d like to save 20% on the hat pattern or the scarf pattern (or both), watch the video to find a special discount code that’s valid on my website only until Jan. 31, 2021.

Several months ago, someone on Etsy asked me if I had a coordinating hat pattern for my Easy Rainbow Scarf pattern. I said I didn’t, but then I asked myself why I didn’t. So I got to work designing the hat soon afterward, using the same yarn that I used for my Easy Rainbow Scarf pattern: Caron Simply Soft, which is a worsted weight yarn. I designed and made the largest size first, then I thought it would be great to have 3 sizes: child, woman/teen and man.

I love the fact that you can make coordinating sets of hats and scarves now! If you love rainbow colors, like me, you’ll have some very colorful accessories, made with the 6 colors of the rainbow plus black! If you want to keep things simple, use only a dark color and a light color. Either way, the hat looks great! And if you’d like to make a messy bun hat, simply omit the final 3 decrease rounds at the top of the hat!

The pattern comes with complete written instructions, along with step-by-step photos for working in the back bump of the foundation chain, making a Long double crochet (Ldc) and starting a row (joining) with a dc.

The pattern comes with two PDF downloads. One download includes the step-by-step photos and the other download has less photos for ease of printing. Also, the written instructions and stitch counts for each hat size are color-coded to help you follow the instructions for the hat size you’re making.

Since I started a YouTube crochet channel earlier this year, I made a video tutorial teaching how to make the Long dc, working in the back bump of the foundation chain, making the sc ribbing, along with all the decreases used in this hat pattern. So if you haven’t done some of these stitches or techniques before, check out that video here.

You can find my new Easy Rainbow Hat pattern to purchase here.

I wish you all a Healthy, Happy New Year with lots of time to crochet!

Susan

December 3, 2020December 20, 2020

Stiffening Crocheted Snowflakes made Easy

I just LOVE the looks of crocheted snowflakes, don’t you? They look so pretty on a Christmas tree or as decorations anywhere in your home! They make great gifts, as well as package decorations, too! And they’re surprisingly easy to make (with a few crochet skills and knowledge)!

But how do you take a crocheted snowflake from droopy and lifeless to stiffened and lacy? You stiffen it with fabric stiffener and pin it out to dry! It’s not hard at all. Just a little time-consuming, like so many things in life! But it’s so worth it when you’re done! I have a free PDF template that you can use for pinning your snowflakes on to shape them perfectly. You can find that template in my written tutorial.

If you’ve never stiffened crocheted snowflakes before, check out my new YouTube video where I’ll take you step-by-step through the process. I also share my favorite pattern book for crocheting the snowflakes, as well as how I store my snowflakes for years of enjoyment!

So what are you waiting for? Learn to stiffen crochet snowflakes today for many years of enjoyment by you or someone you love!

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a healthy, happy New Year!

Happy snowflake crocheting!

Susan

P.S. Here’s another way to store your stiffened crocheted snowflakes. It’s a gift card tin from Amazon! I have several of these and they work great for storing my snowflakes. I can fit 4 medium size snowflakes in each tin. The tin comes with a gift card ($25 minimum card amount) that you can use or give as a gift. Then you can keep the tin and use it to store some snowflakes! Here’s a link to the Amazon gift card page with this snowflake tin (the tin is free with the purchase of the gift card!).

November 16, 2020December 27, 2020

Crochet Afghans and Rugs for Sale

Would you like to give a one-of-a-kind handmade gift to someone special this holiday season? Do you love crocheted afghans and/or rugs, but you don’t have the time or expertise to crochet them yourself? Then you’re in luck! I have 3 afghans and 4 rugs for sale in my Etsy shop. Each of these crochet afghans and rugs was expertly crocheted by either me or a talented crochet friend.

UPDATE: Three of these items have sold and are no longer available for purchase. The 3 items that sold are the Filet Bouquet Afghan, the Star Spangled Rug and the Quilt Rug. Thank you to Carol D., who purchased all 3 of these crochet items! The remaining 4 items are still available for sale until Feb 27, 2021. So get them before they’re gone!

Here are the 3 crocheted afghans that are for sale in my Etsy shop:

filet crochet flowers afghan — Filet Bouquet Afghan

Crochet Ripple Afghan — Reversible Popcorn Ripple Afghan

broomstick lace afghan — Broomstick Lace Afghan

Each of these afghans was made in a different crochet technique: filet crochet, regular crochet and broomstick lace crochet.

Here are the 4 crocheted rugs that are for sale in my Etsy shop:

Each of these crocheted rugs was made in the wiggly crochet technique.

I hope you’re inspired to decorate your home with one of these beauties (or snatch up one for a loved one)! Here’s the link to these afghans and rugs in my Etsy shop where you can read all about each of these finished items that are available for purchase, including measurements and materials used to make each one.

Happy crocheting (and decorating)!

Susan Lowman

November 13, 2020December 27, 2020

Brilliant Live Loop Cables in Crochet Book

When I saw Sue Perez’s new crochet book, “Live Loop Cables in Crochet” online a few months ago, I knew this was a crochet technique that I wanted to try! With this brand-new crochet technique, you can make cables that look like knit I-cords on the surface of your crochet project. Who would have thought you could do that in crochet? Certainly not me! But Sue has done it!

Sue is a brilliant designer who came up with a technique for making knit I-cord with a crochet hook several years ago. Sue has a series of blog posts about crocheted I-cord that you can read here. Here’s Sue’s YouTube video for making a crocheted I-cord edging. Sue even has a video for Live Loop Crochet Stitches and Cables here.

Now back to Sue’s new book! When I first starting looking through this book, I noticed that there are 174 pages in the book. Holy moly! That’s a lot of pages for a crochet book! Sue has self-published this book, so it includes everything she wanted to put into it about this new crochet technique. The book was professionally edited, so there is a minimum of errors in it. There are 21 pages of instructions for this technique, including lots of diagrams to illustrate these instructions.

Sue has included a practice swatch to learn the technique before jumping into a project. There are instructions for 25 blocks, each with a different cable (from simple to complex), and 11 projects in the book. I chose 2 projects to make after doing the practice swatch: the Chattermark Bag and the Ropeway Headband.

I have to admit that I wasn’t quite sure how to do this technique until I watched Sue’s YouTube video on “Live Loop Crochet Stitches and Cables” that I linked to above. That video helped a lot, in conjunction with the extensive instructions in the book. I learned this technique while taking a 4-week motorhome trip with my husband last month, so I had a bit of “vacation brain” going on (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it)! Plus I’m no spring chicken anymore and my brain isn’t as fast as it once was! But I stayed with it, learning this fabulous technique and finishing my 2 projects, as you can see:

I think they turned out quite well, don’t you? I lined the bag with fabric, following the instructions in the book, so it’s very functional. And I added some cute buttons to the headband to give to my granddaughter.

I’m so glad that I persevered and learned this fascinating crochet technique! Way to go, Sue, in bringing this wonderful technique to life in your new book! I look forward to crocheting more projects and/or blocks from this wonderful book!

I hope you’ll give this new crochet technique a try. You can find Sue’s book on Amazon here.

Until next time! Happy crocheting to all of you!

Susan Lowman

September 24, 2020December 27, 2020

Teaching Crochet in Alaska

A few weeks ago, I flew to Anchorage, AK to teach 4 crochet classes to 11 wonderful ladies in the Ididachain Crochet Guild! They are one of the many local guilds/chapters of CGOA (Crochet Guild of America). This was their Fall Retreat, which they held at a camp in Big Lake, AK. The area was absolutely beautiful and relaxing, right next to the lake. And each of the ladies was friendly and eager to learn what I had to teach them! The camp had great accommodations and delicious food! And the weather was perfect! I had so much fun!!!

This was my first time being in Alaska, as well as the first crochet retreat I’ve attended and the first retreat I’ve taught at! What a wonderful experience I had (except for having to wear a face mask in all 3 airports and on each of the 4 flights I took to get there and back to AZ)!

The crochet topics/techniques I taught there were:

Faux Knitting (how to knit with a crochet hook)

Irish Crochet (the basics)

Filet Crochet (beginning to intermediate)

Invisible Repairs (how to repair damage to any crochet project)

Here is a photo of all of us at the retreat:

I really enjoyed getting to know these ladies. Each of them has been crocheting for a different length of time and each has their favorite type of crochet projects to make! Some of them are Alaska natives and some of them are transplants from other parts of the US. I want to say “Thank You” to each of you for making me feel welcome! You’re the best!

I want to give a HUGE “Thank You” to Mickey for asking me to teach at the retreat, picking me up at the airport, driving me to the hotel, giving me a personal tour of the new JoAnn Fabric “flagship” store in Anchorage, helping to alleviate my fears involving the need to take a Covid test before flying to Alaska and so much more! Thank you to Debbie and Amy for driving me to lunch and the yarn shop (Fiber N’ Ice) the day before teaching. Thank you to everyone at the retreat (and everyone in the guild) for the beautiful gift of 2 hanks of local hand-dyed yarn from Denise at the Fiber N’ Ice yarn shop! I hope you each learned a lot and will use some of what you learned in your crochet projects (and/or repairs).

Here are photos of the yarn/fiber I bought, along with the 2 hanks of yarn that the guild gave me as a thank you gift:

This sparkly yarn is gorgeous! The color is called “Aurora” for the Northern Lights! I’m not sure what I’m going to make or design with it yet, but it’ll be something substantial, since each hank has 400 yards of superwash yumminess!

Here are photos of the students’ class projects/samples and the other projects they were working on in the evenings:

Here are photos of the beautiful lake:

This was a trip that I won’t forget! I’d go back to Alaska in a heartbeat! It’s gorgeous there, especially since I live in a desert state with lots of brown instead of green!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this update and the eye candy!

Happy crocheting,

Susan