Nov 06

Hats for flower girls

About this time last year I was crocheting hats for my new baby niece Brianna and my god daughter Arianna.  For Brianna I’ve made Baby Brie hat.  Arianna also got one, but in different colors.  Who said that girls can’t wear blue?!  Obviously have not seen that!  (I am not even going to start with ridiculous selection of clothes for little girls: pink, or purple, grr)

She is still a drooler ;).

Both girls did a great job of been the flower girls at my wedding. Look how much they’ve grown:

With winter just around the corner, which nature reminded us about just few weeks ago with snow and cold, or too much cold, the little girl’s are in need of some warmth and cuteness.  This weekend I was in between deadlines so I’ve decided to make them some cute hats.  There is a possibility of those hats appearing in a publication, so I can’t show the full picture of it (teasing.. I know I am horrible that way), so here is a sneak pick of the hats.

Nov 05

And yet another blueberry…

OMG, OMG, OMG, guess what showed up in the mail today!!!

Yesterday I was talking about the fall issue of Interweave Crochet and today Accessories Issue came.  I got to tell you it’s one of the most amazing issue I have ever seen.  It contains 59 projects, 14 of which are one skein projects.  There are many hats, shawls, scarfs, slippers, mittens, bags, ohh my.  All of them without an exception will make a wonderful gift, most of them will be fairly quickly to make.

This issue is extra special to me because it has two of my patterns in.  One is the Blueberry Trellis Hat, and no I was not craving blueberry when this one was named I did not pick it either, I just find it hilarious, that 2 of my designs in a row have “blueberry” in them. The original name for this hat was Cabled Hat, which is, well, not very original.

This hat has an unusual construction for a crochet hat. It’s worked from the bottom up, starting at the cabled band which is crocheted from the point sideways. Then the hat is worked upward to the crown in the rounds. It can be a great way to start crocheting cables.

Another pattern of mine in this issue is Maxine Shawl. Funny thing is that I did not pick the name for this one either. I won’t tell you the original name thought, I like it too much and want to keep it for a future project ;). This shawl was inspired by many knit shawls that have fairly plain body and a lacy border. It’s worked in double crochet starting with just few stitches, then increased at the spine and edges, and then the lacy border inspired by a vintage magazine is worked.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blogpost: 5/30, 25 posts left.

Nov 04

Not a blueberry season

Guess who had a blond moment last night?  Yes, me, that was me!  I scheduled classes for Thanksgiving weekend because I did not remember that it was Thanksgiving weekend, whooopsy.  They’ve been pushed a week, and the post from yesterday is updated.  I also added an option to save on the price of a class by registering at least a week before beginning of classes.

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Few weeks ago a fall issue of Interweave Crochet came out. Among many beautiful designs is my Blueberry Popover.

It not a secret that its very exciting to see any of one’s creation in a magazine.  But this one is especially meaningful for me.  The idea for this pullover came to me when I was starting to knit, yes, to knit.  It was the first real thing I’ve ever knitted.  It had raglan sleeves and bell sleeves, and rolled edges.  I always knew that I want to recreate it in crochet and submitted the idea to Interweave for the fall call.  It was not originally called Blueberry Popover and wasn’t planned for a kid.  It was called Inside Out pullover to highlight the fact that after the sweater when finished has to be turned inside out to show an unusual texture of stitches.  It was also planned for adults.  When they came back to me with a proposal to design it for a kids, naturally I said, sure!   And the Blueberry Popover was born!  I absolutely love how the seater turned out.  Unfortunately, the pullover is being modeled a size too big, so many elements of the design are hard to see, like bell shaped sleeves.  It’s still very cute and the model is adorable.

Blogpost 4/30, 26 post left.

Nov 03

November Classes

As I promised yesterday here is a run down for crochet classes I will be teaching this month and next:

Beginner Crochet Class at 822 Executive Dr, Princeton, NJ

Sundays, Dec 4 and 11, 11.30-1.30pm, $52 (register online by Nov 27 for $44).

Let me introduce you to the wonderful world of crocheting! This class is designed for complete beginners. You will learn most of the basic stitches: how to chain, single crochet, double crochet. How to work flat and in the round.  We will talk about gauge, what hook goes with what yarn, how to read information on a ball band. This a crush course, to fully benefit from this class students are encouraged to practice at home.

For more details please email me at anastasia@crochetnj.com.

 

Demystifying Crochet Charts and Diagrams at 822 Executive Dr, Princeton, NJ.

Sunday, Dec 4, 2-4.30pm, $35 (register online by Nov 27 for $28).

In the past few years crochet charts became very popular and for a good reason. It is a lot easier to read and follow crochet diagrams and charts then written crochet. Knowledge of symbols will allow you to make any crochet pattern , even in foreign language, like Japanese or Russian, because crochet symbols are the same (or very similar) in any language. You will practice your new skills by making a small project from a symbol crochet chart in the class.
To bring: worsted weight yarn, crochet hook to match, pencil, notebook.
Requirements: know how to make chain, single crochet, double crochet.

For more details please email me at anastasia@crochetnj.com.

 

Open Project Classes at 822 Executive Drive, Princeton, NJ.

Wednesdays, Nov 16 and 30, 7-8.30pm, $15 each.

Bring any project of your choice to work on. Do you need help starting a new project, finishing a WIP (work in progress), some ideas to go on? Come on in, I’ll help you!

For more details and to register please email me at anastasia@crochetnj.com.

 

Something new that I’d like to try. Even experienced crocheters sometimes need little help and clarification. If you are stuck in your project, accidentally cut or messed up something, or just lost, I can help you.

Crochet Doctor is in at 822 Executive Dr, Princeton, NJ.

Sundays, Dec 4 and 11 by appointment only. For more details and to schedule your appointment please email me at anastasia@crochetnj.com.

Blogpost 3/30, 27 posts left.


Classes that I am teaching at other venues

Intermediate Crochet Class at West Windsor Art Center

Mondays, Nov 7-28, 7.30-9pm, $75.

It’s  a great class for someone who is looking to advance their crochet skills. Students will learn more advanced stitches, including but not limited to post stitches, foundation stitches, adjustable ring, and lace. We will also cover how to make a crochet hat without checking the gauge, or how to make a perfectly sized hat every time with every pattern. Students will be able to select a simple project of their choice to implement newly learned techniques.

For more details and to register, please visit their website.

 

Crochet Socks at The Woolly Lamb

Sunday, Nov 20, 12.30-3.30pm, $30.

Learn how to crochet a basic toe up sock. You will make cute baby socks that would be perfect as a gift, while learning all aspects of crochet socks: construction, customization, tips and tricks.

For more details and to register, please go to.


Nov 02

Day 2


It’s just a second day of this whole ordeal, and I am already falling slightly behind.  Who knew ?!…

My plan for today was to bring you the updates on crochet classes that I will be teaching in November/December.  There are several that I will be teaching through 3rd party, and some classes through my studio/Maksim’s office.  Alas, I will do it tomorrow.  Actually before I ame it official, how does Sunday, November 27 sounds for few advanced classes on a specific technique (like chart reading and tunisian crochet), and a crush course beginner class??

There is also something I would like to share with you.  While browsing through my patterns listing on Ravelry (yes, I stalk my own pattern page, don’t judge), I’ve noticed that number of favorites for Julia Ear Flap Hat changed from 99 to 100.  This is very exciting!  *happy dance*  It’s exciting not because it’s the highest number of favorites one of my patterns got, but because it’s a very fun milestone and that’s the first time I actually saw it at this number, and not, say, 102.  FYI, this also my most best selling pattern!

As an added bonus for tomorrow I have updated my “about” page, and tomorrow I should have a new front page and updated classes schedule.  Have suggestions, requests? comment away!

2/30. 28 posts left.

 

 

Nov 01

NaBloPoMo

I was informed that today is November 1. For the past 3 years, I’ve been waiting a roll of November 1 and every year I kept missing it, usually realizing that November been in power for at least few days. The thing is that November is a National Blog Posting Month. The idea behind it is to post something every day of November. So this year I am taking the plunge and committing to posting every day this month. I hope to get into a habit of bloging again.

And I do have a lot to share!  I have been missing in action for a while and I was told it’s ok because I got married and most of my free time (like I had any to begin with) been taken up completely by wedding planing. We got married on October 9, a day very special to me as a Beatles fan, since it’s John Lennon’s Birthday.  In his legacy we had Beatles’ songs played by violins during ceremony and my dad and I danced under Imagine. As expected of a crochet enthusiast like me, our wedding did have a healthy amount of crochet in it, which I will tell you about in my next post, I got to stretch this thing into 30 posts.

So wish me luck!

29 blogposts to go

Sep 12

September update

I hope you had a great weekend! I spend my weekend teaching Irish Crochet at Fiber College in Maine. We had a blast and I had the best classroom ever.

Fiber College

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Starting this week we are moving Wednesday night classes to 822 Executive Dr., Princeton NJ, 08540, office of Maks Financial Services. We will meet as before 7-8.30 pm.  Next class is September 14, and we will meet every other Wednesday from there.

To ensure that everyone benefits from the class, I’d like to keep chit chat to a minimum and to subject in hand.

Please bring any crochet project that you need help with. If you need help selecting your next project, please let me know and come early, and I will quid you through Ravelry to select your next perfect pattern. If you need a suggestion on yarn, please email me ahead of time.

If you don’t require help with your crochet project or just want to socialize with fiber minded people, consider joining Skein Maven’s group. They meet at Panera Bread in Nassau mall at 7pm 1st and 3rd Tuesday and 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month. I am fairly regular at that group too, and they are all very friendly. They have a group on Ravelry where you can get more information http://www.ravelry.com/groups/skein-mavens-the-njsnb