GO CROCHET! DO IT NOW! by Brittany Tyler

When Team Tangled was interviewed by Mary Beth Temple a few weeks ago, she asked us if we had a favorite project to crochet.  Tracy and I agreed that we both liked a good crocheted afghan.  Though I’ve never really noticed it before, I pretty consistently have a blanket project on a hook almost always, no matter what other projects I am working on (or not working on… or should be working on).  Crocheted afghans are just so satisfying.  The repetitive nature of crocheted patterns keeps a project like a blanket second-natured enough to work on it while watching a movie, talking with a friend, or snuggling with needy schnauzers – you would be surprised by what I can do with a pair of  schnauzers in my lap.  Crocheted afghans, too, work up much more quickly than knitted blankets and don’t have to fit your body in any way. Does this afghan make my butt look big? 

I recently got a copy of Ellen Gormley’s Go Crochet! Afghan Design Workbook … as if I needed more projects to add to my list.  My crafting queue has long exceeded my life expectancy and I’m only 25.  My science-minded boyfriend assures me, however, that humankind is on the brink of near immortality.  In the excited heat of trying to describe to me inevitabilities like medical nanobots (Google it), I can see the annoyance in his eyes when I interrupt him with quips like, “You mean I might have time to knit through my entire stash?!?!?  Clearly I should buy more yarn!”  But I digress…

Go Crochet! (I love the imperativeness of the title.) is an excellent reference for your crafting library with 50 motif instructions and 10 blanket patterns.  There are other books out there with more crocheted motif patterns in them, but Go Crochet! Afghan Design Workbook provides excellent instruction on how to join the motifs together and has an expansive beginning section that illustrates all of the techniques required to make the subsequent panels and blankets – great for beginners.  The photography is not only attractive, but is also very thoughtfully done.  Crocheters will really appreciate the relatively large, color photographs of each motif in addition to written instructions and a clear chart (thank you Krause Publications).  Additionally, the spiral binding is a nice touch and ensures the book will lay flat while you follow the instructions.  It’s difficult enough to crochet a blanket while two schnauzers fight for the limited space provided by my lap and I try to understand what new technological breakthrough my nerdy boyfriend is attempting in vain to explain to me – I appreciate any little thing that helps streamline the process between that initial slip knot and a finished project.  On that note, I thinks it’s great that Ellen took great care to ensure that all of the motifs have the same number of stitches on each side (with the exception of the long sides of the triangle panels), so they will fit together nicely no matter how you mix and match them and many are easy to join-as-you-go.  This combinability is most evident in the “All Call” pattern which utilizes every motif in the book at least once!  How cool!

Go Crochet Afghan Design Workbook is available through Krause Publications.

Check out these Tangled patterns by Ellen Gormley: