Carroway Crochet

carrowaycrochet

Two Crochet Books I Found at My Local Library that Inspired my First Crochet Books Review.

One day I decided to check out my local library and see if they had any crochet books there. I was really pleasantly surprised to discover they had quite a wide selection of crochet books, as well as knitting and other fibre related books on their shelves.  I signed out ten and took them home to look at them in more detail. I finally decided to  keep it simple and only do two crochet book reviews. These two books were especially inspiring and definitely worthy of being my first crochet books review blog post.   Reviewing more crochet books might actually be something I can do more of here in the future.  Let me know in the comments if you have found any favourite crochet books in your travels.

The other thing that happened was I was motivated to try out some of the great patterns and crochet ideas in these two books and I will share what they were and how they turned out.

So here goes with the first of the two Amazing Crochet Books that were my favourites from my trip to the local library.

 

All About the Book, “200 Fun Things to Crochet”.

The official description of 200 FUN things to Crochet explains it all very clearly.

“If you ever find yourself wondering what to crochet next, then just open this book, and you’re guaranteed to find the answer. 200 Fun Things to Crochet is an irresistible collection of cute little crochet projects for all levels of ability. Containing a mix of beautiful projects inspired by nature―crochet flowers, birds, bugs, leaves, and even sea creatures―as well as a collection of charming floral squares, you’ll want to pick up your hook, sort through your yarn stash, and get started right away.”

The 200 projects are quick to make, use hardly any yarn, and are perfect as stylish embellishments, to give away as a gift or to keep for yourself!

 

I found this book in my local library but you can find this book online on many of the well known crochet sites, such as Knit Picks and Ravelry. Click on the Ravelry link if you’d like to see some of the projects made up by Ravelry members. It was great to see what actual makers created from the pages of this book.

I checked 200 Fun Things To Crochet out on Amazon when I first decided to review it. I like all the information you get as far as personal reviews that really help when trying to decide whether to purchase a book or not.

 

Lots of Beautiful Crochet Flower Patterns to Explore.

The fun part of a crochet book is all the great ideas that you get to try out. I especially enjoyed making the Little Gems Flower pattern. There are so many flowers to choose from besides this one, but I though I would share my Little Gems with you. They are meant to be strung together to form a garland and they really are so joyful and spring like.

There is so much imagination at work in the creation of the  flower types and variety of leaves. The patterns are well laid out and there are even diagrams for those who love to follow crochet charts. There are also details on how to follow crochet charts with explanations of what the symbols mean that are used in the crochet charts.

Also there are so many  patterns for sea creatures, insects and  three dimensional vegetables, many of which  employ amagurumi techniques. This book has a little of everything.

Granny Squares and More.

Then to top things off they have an extensive section on granny squares and unique diamonds, hexagons, triangle and circles shapes for you to try your hand at. This Geranium Triangle is quite beautiful.

There are written patterns as well as crochet charts for these pieces. The sky is the limit for what you can choose for your next afghan project. These triangles would make great bunting.

What if I am a Beginner at Crochet?

There is a guide to crochet techniques and equipment, with visual tutorials oh how to do the slip knot and foundation chain.

There is also a basic stitches section in the back explaining crochet abbreviations and charts. It is a very comprehensive guide to ensure that crocheters of all levels can be successful while using this book.

My Personal Reflections on 200 Fun Things To Crochet.

One feature I really liked in this book was they had a visual pattern selector in the front of the book so you could choose your pattern by perusing the images and finding what page they were on quickly and easily.

One thing I found unusual in this book was to see patterns written out without specifying the hook size. I have never seen this before.  The rationale behind that decision is included in the text as an explanation, but it would be helpful to beginner crocheters especially to have the hook and yarn specifications explained more clearly.

With the fantastic variety of patterns and ideas offered in this book, along with the granny squares and so much more, as well as the technical information on stitches and general crochet information regarding abbreviations and how to read charts, I have to give this book a big thumbs up. I loved so many of the ideas and hope that you seek out this book and see what you think.

Now on to the second great Crochet Book I found while browsing in my local library. It was hard to choose my second favourite book, but this one made the cut because of the wide variety of patterns created with a baby and a baby’s world in mind.

Crocheted Gifts for baby, 30 Colorful Garments, Toys , and Must Have Accessories for Ages 0=2. My Second Crochet Book Review.

All About Crochet Gifts For Baby.

Crochet Gifts for Baby, 30 Colorful Garments, Toys and Must Have Accessories for Ages 1-2 is a book packed with amazing patterns and crochet ideas.

If you are looking for clothes, toys, or ideas for the nursery, the projects in this sweet crochet collection for babies and toddlers up to 24 months make the perfect custom treasures! From classics like the first little pair of shoes, the first cozy crib blanket or cuddly animal friend, to trendy new ideas like picture frames for the nursery, a fun rattle, or Baby’s very own tiny hat. Dive into this charming mix of ideas for delighting little ones and filling their nurseries with warmth, comfort, and love, and crochet your own favorite gifts for Baby.

This video from the publishers site is a great wrap up of what you can expect from this inspirational book for crocheters interested in baby projects.

I especially loved the Baby Hat pattern with the border of tiny hearts. It was easy to follow and I learned a new way to make hearts.  In this photo I paired it with some of the beautiful flowers I made form the 200 Fun Things to Crochet book mentioned above.

 

 

I also loved all the soft furnishing items for the baby’s room or nursery found in Crochet Gifts for Baby. There is a storage basket pattern for holding toys, as well as pretty smaller baskets for storage of smaller items. There is even a pattern for making a cute scatter rug.

Easy Chapters and Lay Out To Find the Perfect Crochet Pattern

Crochet Basics

Then the final chapter called Crochet Basics has so much rich information about how to crochet special stitches and how to decrease and increase using the various popular stitches, such as sc, dc and hdc. There is too much to mention here, but there is all you need to know to successfully create the beautiful items in this book. The section on how to read crochet patterns and charts, with clear explanations and a list of crochet abbreviations is especially useful.

Degrees of Difficulty

In each pattern the  Degrees of Difficulty are clearly outlined.

About The Publisher, Trafalgar Square Books.

My Bella B Shorts Pattern

Please follow and like us: