crochet Archives - Studio Katie

Book Review- Crocheted Bears and Other Animals by Emma…

Hey y’all, Today I have another book review for you. I received a copy of the book Crocheted Bears and Other Animals by Emma Brown to review from the wonderful people at CICO Books.

Let’s start off with a bit from the publisher:

A world away from mass-produced plush toys, Emma Brown’s hand-crocheted creations live on the make-believe island of Shady Bay. The animals all have their part to play in island life. Ronnie the bear is the Ranger on Shady Bay and he takes his rucksack and cosy scarf whenever he goes on his outdoor adventures. Archie and Boris are two crafty canine brothers and together they build the homes for the other animals on the island. There’s Whimsie the bunny with a wild imagination and Breeze the owl who swoops high amongst the trees gathering the midnight fruit for the other animals. With 25 gorgeous patterns suitable for beginners through to experienced crafters, you’re sure to find a unique toy in Crocheted Bears and Other Animals that will spark a child’s imagination and become a firm friend for life.

As it says in the book description, all of the little crocheted characters live on an island called Shady Bay, and each one has a little story about themselves in the book. I think that’s so cute.

If you’ve never crocheted before, the book starts out with a little “before you begin” section that has recommendations for the bast yarn, hooks, etc. It includes a stitch conversion chart between US and UK terms.

In the back of the book it has all of the stitches and techniques you need to know explained out.

There are 25 different toy patterns in this book, and not just bears, there are also, puppies, hedgehogs, bunnies, bees, and so many more, including the owls pictured above: Breeze and Woolie, who might be my favorites.

I put this review off for a little while hoping I might make one of the critters to show you, but I’ve been a bit busy filming some online classes so I haven’t made anything from this book yet. YET. I do intend to make some of these adorable little animals!

You can find out more about the book here.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review, but all opinions are my own.

Uncategorized

Book Review- Crocheted Animal Hats Book by Nicki Trench

Hey y’all, It’s time for another book review! I want to thank CICO Books for keeping me supplied with some amazing craft books. You can never have too many.

Today I am reviewing the book Crocheted Animal Hats by Nicki Trench. First, let’s start with a little bit about the book from the publisher:

Choose from a wide variety of wild and wonderful animal hat designs; there are hats to keep little babies cosy, such as the super-cute rabbit and kitten and hats for toddlers and bigger kids such as the cool penguin, fierce (but sweet) shark and the cuddly polar bear. Most of the hats can be made in a range of sizes so adults who are young at heart won’t feel left out, and can have their very own tiger, fox or wolf hat. Each hat has easy-to-follow instructions and uses the simplest of stitches, with clear photographs to help with the all-important snouts, ears, eyes, noses and whiskers! With essential yarn information as well as a helpful techniques section, you’ll be ready to start crocheting fun animal hats in no time.

My absolute favorite thing to crochet would definitely be hats. Especially animal hats or character hats, so I was pretty excited to hear about this book.

This book includes 35 different hat patterns you can make, all of them fairly simple. It is divided up into size categories, such as hats for babies, kids, adults, etc.

There are some fun critter hats in this book that I haven’t seen on pinterest yet, so that was refreshing.

My one wish was that Nicki made all of the hats with patterns to fit all sizes, so that I could easily make some of the baby hats into adult hats.
I am pretty decent at crocheting, so I will be able to figure out the sizing myself, but it would have been handy. 🙂

Overall, This is a great new crochet book. And I have a lot of new animal hats I want to crochet now to add to my hat collection. 🙂

You can find out more about the book here.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review, but all opinions are my own.

Uncategorized

Book Review- Simple Chic Crochet by Susan Ritchie and…

Today I’m reviewing the book Simple Chic Crochet by Susan Ritchie and Karen Miller of Mrs Moon. First, let’s start with a little bit about the book:

Susan Ritchie and Karen Miller’s mission is to show you howsimple it is to create your own modern-casual crochet garments,accessories and homewares. There are easy-to-hook projects thatwill grow so fast you’ll be finished in a day and larger or moreintricate items that will take longer.

Crocheting is really only a Fall and Winter hobby for me, and I don’t share my yarn projects here on the blog much, but that won’t stop me from enjoying a good crochet book!

In the beginning of the book you have the content section, and the 35 projects are separated into different categories.

Truthfully, I wouldn’t make many of the projects in this book. Don’t get me wrong- they’re lovely!! but my crochet style isn’t very chic. I’m a nerd and I usually crochet more fun things, like animal hats or tea cup coasters.
So it’s just a personal preference of project style, if you make more stylish crochet projects, You will love the patterns in this book.

That being said, I did still love a few of the projects included, like this adorable owl.

It is nice that there are a variety of projects. Some that are perfect for beginners, and others that have more complicated stitches for more advanced crocheters!

You can learn more about this book on CICO Books, here.

*I was compensated in the form of a free book for this post, but all opinions are my own.

Uncategorized

Book Review- Crochet with One Sheepish Girl

I shared my review of the book Crochet with One Sheepish Girl on Craft Gossip and I wanted to share it here as well! I love how cute the projects in this book are, they definitely make me want to pick up a crochet hook!

Today I’m reviewing the book Crochet with One Sheepish Girl! I also have a fun little interview with the author, Meredith Crawford. First, here’s a little bit about the book:

“The popular blog One Sheepish Girl comes to life in the new book CROCHET WITH ONE SHEEPISH GIRL by Meredith Crawford – which features a vintage-yet-modern collection of beautiful crochet projects!

Meredith Crawford’s fun, imaginative projects include a vintage camera purse, a striped bow clutch, a sweetly embellished blouse, a cottage tea cozy, a tablet case, unique picture frames and gift boxes, and delightful garlands for party decorating. Illustrated step-by-step instructions cover basic stitches and special techniques, so you’ll have everything you need to pick up a hook and start having fun with crochet!”

Here are the projects I’ve made:

I love to crochet so I was excited to get a copy of this book! I got the book last week and I’ve already made 2 of the projects from it, which might tell you just how much I’m loving the patterns! So far I’ve made the Teacup Coasters and the Diana Camera Purse. Both were pretty easy and worked up fairly quick (within a few hours each).

In the beginning of the book you have the content section with photos, which makes it super easy to find whatever project you’re looking for, After that you have about 20 pages of tutorials for creating basic crochet stitches and techniques you’ll need to know to create the projects in the book. All are photographed really well and are easy to understand.

The book includes 24 gorgeous, fashionable and vintage-modern inspired patterns to crochet with sections for wearing, living and giving.

You’ll also find some free crochet edge cards and tags that you can copy/print and use.

I asked Meredith a few questions about her work as well as a fun question, which you can read below. I personally would *love* to see some Sherlock inspired patterns.

Why do you crochet/How did you get started crocheting?

I crochet because it allows me to express myself creatively. There are endless possibilities to be creative when I have a ball of yarn and crochet hook in my hands. I taught myself to crochet when I was in college. After getting over the initial frustrations of learning a new craft, I quickly became addicted and started crocheting all the time!

What is your favorite project in Crochet with One Sheepish Girl?

One of my favorite projects is the Diana Camera purse. It was inspired by my first film camera, a plastic Diana Dreamer. I love looking at an item from my daily life and finding inspiration for a crochet pattern.

What’s your favorite color yarn?

That’s a tricky question! My favorite color in general is aqua blue. I think my favorite color of yarn depends on what I am making. Bright colors make sense for certain projects while neutrals work better for others.

What is your favorite book/movie/TV show?

My favorite book is Persuasion by Jane Austen.

My favorite movie is Rear Window.

My favorite tv show is Sherlock (BBC).

Meredith Crawford is the founder and editor of the blog One Sheepish Girl and is also a contributing writer and photographer to the MollieMakes.com weekly digital magazine Gathered. She is the national social media consultant for the Craft Yarn Council and the web content specialist for Michaels.