Colorful Crochet - Book Review
Jun 06, 2017
Colorful Crochet by Marianne Dekkers-Roos
How lucky am I to have been asked to review the latest crochet book by Marianne Dekkers-Roos (aka @marretjeroos on insta)?! Of course I leapt at the chance to drool over a book filled with exciting and colourful crochet projects! I have enjoyed following Marianne on Instagram for a couple of years now and have much admired her crochet talent and her playful use of colour. If you don't follow her yet, you really should!
As the book was coming from the other side of the world, I knew it would take a little while to arrive, however this did not stop me from goose-guarding the letterbox and stalking the postman. One morning when returning from dropping the young ones at school, I spied a book-sized package in the mailbox. Sure enough, it had arrived, and I proceeded to spend the next hour or so sitting in the car thumbing from cover to cover, oohing and aahing over all the amazing things inside.
Of course I wanted to create many of the projects immediately! I found it VERY difficult to choose from all the fantastic designs on offer. Some of my favourites were the Sunshine Blanket (in the most excellent canary YELLOW), the Cobblestone and Striped Baby blankets for their delightful texture, the Flower in a Field Cushion (oh the colours!!), the Geometric Triangle Blanket for it's cool factor, & the charming Hexagon Blanket in all it's beautiful pinks! These have definitely gone on my wish list for the future.
I settled on making the fabulous circle wall hanging (there are also instructions for turning it into a bag), as I had a good stockpile of metal rings in my stash and have been meaning to add to my collection of mandalas hanging outside in the trees. So out came the acrylic yarns (they're great for being bomb-proof outside in the weather) and my trusty hook, and I managed to whip it up in one sitting! Isn't it wonderful? I'm loving it!
There are patterns to suit a range of abilities & helpful Designer's Hints on each pattern too. One thing I love about this book (and there is plenty to love) is the inclusion of charts. Being a highly visual individual (now that's a mouthful), I made the mandala almost entirely from the chart and referred to the written instructions (which are also very well written & easy to follow) only in the last couple of rounds. The charts are clear and great for getting an instant overview of the design.
Another thing that made me chuckle was the advice given on the 'Before You Begin - Things I learned (the hard way)' page. I'm sure I'm not alone in rushing into a project with sparks flying off my hook, only to find myself knee deep in frogging a short while after! The tips given here are wise indeed, and worth a read, especially for those people newer to this crochet lark.
There's something for everyone in Colorful Crochet. Many of the projects lend themselves to playing with colours (if that's your thing), and many would also make perfect gifts. It's definitely recommended reading (and drooling) from me!
{{- GIVEAWAY -}}
I was super lucky to receive an additional copy of this splendid book to give away to one lucky crochet lover. If you'd like to go in the draw for the prize please leave a comment below and message through your email address to me (privately) here. Entry is open to everyone (worldwide). Good luck!
Alia xx
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