As a designer of many crochet patterns, I’m often asked how I design my own patterns. The design process is probably different from designer to designer and there’s no one right or wrong way to design. Outlined below is what I do each time I make a new crochet pattern. My process probably isn’t as strict or structured as you may think! It is a fairly simple and easy process.
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1) WEIRD KID
Well we are doing up miss 15-year-old’s room. It’s about time. She’s been in there since she was 3. She has done her part and pulled everything out, thrown broken old things away and given a huge amount to charity. She is currently sleeping in the spare bedroom. She has been ‘saving up’ for this moment. Her 15th birthday just passed and there was no present because she wanted her room done. She will be getting a new bed, side tables and mattress from us. Presents are never that big, however, we were going to do it anyway. She has used her birthday money from others to purchase a new cover for her bed and she is going to purchase, with her own money, a glass display cabinet for her precious things. She has been using the one I had when I was 11. I’ll make some curtains and she will keep her existing floor mat.

2) GREEN ROOM
Hubby is going to paint the walls, since I am a horrible painter. My daughter wants her walls green, screaming green. I suppose apple green is the best I can describe it. For some bizarre reason hubby said YES to this green wall request. Let’s just not even discuss what’s going through my head.
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Well, it’s finally happened. I am in a crochet slump. I have enough patterns both in books and stored on my computer to start a shop. I also have ample yarn and thread of all textures and materials. So what has happened? I don’t know.

I have my standard plethora of yet to be completed projects all around me, also a basket of yarn in front of the TV. I have looked through all my patterns and poked at all the yarn. I long for something to do but I just can’t get into it all. I just can’t get motivated. Admittedly we have had a recent passing in the family and I don’t think I am very normal since that’s happened, however crochet would be very therapeutic.
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A Guest Post by Patricia Shuler.

I was talking with my mom a few days ago. She sits on the couch at night while my dad watches whatever sporting event is on. She knits, crochets, needlepoints… she does it all. I asked her what kind of mobile apps she used to help her keep track of her projects, and she gave me a whole list, but then she sighed and gave me an exasperated look – “Pattie, sitting here can be kind of like being on an island.” I immediately abandoned the idea of re-hashing another “apps list” and probed her for more.

She went on to tell me that technology has actually helped her in more ways than just the ability to manage her projects with apps, that it actually gives her a sense of community when she’s not with her knitting or crocheting group.
I know what she means. As a writer, I understand the solitude of a hobby or profession that is solo in nature. So, here are a few of the ways she connects with her hobby using technology.
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Crochet lovers and book lovers unite!!! This is for crochet enthusiasts who love to read. There’s nothing like a good book, not only during the summer time but all year long. In crochet, bookmark patterns come in a variety of designs that can help you stay on point with your reading. Crocheted bookmarks are excellent gifts as well. One of the cool things about crocheting bookmarks is that most patterns are fairly easy, so you can do them in high volume if you have the time and desire.
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The book I, and many others have been waiting for has been published! Several months have passed since 48 people, including myself, participated in the annual “Freeform Challenge”. The results are published in the book “Insipired! Music and Art in Fiber”.

I belong to a group of people who do various Freeform works of art, wall hangings, clothing, home décor or anything else you can think of. The group I am with is for discussions on crochet related Freeform only, however many practice other mediums as well.

For the last several years, the group has issued an annual Challenge. A theme is voted on and all are encouraged to participate – veteran or a newbie. There are contributions from all over the world. No language or skill barriers. The given theme is then interpreted as the persons feels inspired to do. Photos of their work are exhibited in an online gallery and published in book form.
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After the systematic pulling apart of the house for the termite inspection, of course some termites were discovered. The little invaders with an insatiable appetite have been taken to termite heaven and the rest of the house re-treated. The builders are now here to repair the damage, fortunately only a small repair in one corner of a room.

At lunch time I do enjoy my 45 minutes to sit down in the middle of the day to grab a bite to eat, make a cuppa and then crochet for a bit. I tried that yesterday and felt like the laziest person these men have ever encountered. The house does actually look like a bomb hit it and then got ransacked by home invaders. That’s because the wall that is now missing is in the downstairs study, which is the first room you come into when entering the house. Whilst it is only one wall we had to remove, the bookcase that was against the wall had to be put near the front door (where else is it going to go?). We have to paint this new wall, therefore the whole room will need to be painted as well. Yes, we could just pull the remaining desk and 6′ fish tank from the wall and paint around it however if we need to do this we are going to do it properly. So we pulled all the things out of the room and we will give the carpet a good shampoo while we are at it.
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There are several web based groups that hold friendship granny square exchanges. It is a process that is organized and moderated by some kind soul that is willing to put in heaps of hours so others can get joy out of crocheting.

Basically, you join one of these exchanges and you’re given an assigned partner and you are asked to send them a crocheted square of a certain size. The one I participated in was for 7 inch squares. You send one to your partner, let’s call her Mary, however Mary has been given a different partner and she sends one to him/her. Then another person sends one to you.
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Right off the bat, I must say, I am not talking about carry-on luggage here. I want to share some crochet ideas for the items we carry around with us all the time. What we carry around with us all day can be too heavy at times or simply not fashionable. How great would it be to create some things that will help us to carry the items we love and have a stylish look to them as well?

Here are a few ideas for carry-on crochet projects:
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Crochet as a craft is inspiring to our entire lives, yet we can find inspiration to enhance our crochet experiences. One of those inspirational places is within the pages of fiction novels. There’s nothing like sitting down with a good book allowing yourself to get lost in the setting, the people, the places, and the situations the characters get themselves into throughout the book.

I have found that there are several authors out there who not only love to write good books, but apparently they love to crochet as well. Within the pages of their novels, they have added the element of crochet. Some authors who have used crochet as a major theme in their books will even include patterns within the story or in the back pages after the story has ended.
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