I’m super excited today to share an exciting new project: I edited a book of crochet accessories! Woo! Clever Crocheted Accessories, published by Interweave Press, is on sale now. My role in this project was to come up with ideas for a collection of crocheted accessories that were modern and stylish, yet classic at the same time. Then I asked all my favorite designers in the industry to contribute projects for the book, and we worked together to pick yarn and colors, and fine-tune the direction of the projects. The result is truly a stellar collection of designs by all the best names in the crochet world!

I really, really enjoyed working on this book because I love collaborating with designers on ideas and seeing it all come to life. It’s just fun to be part of the creation of so many cool designs. Want to take a peek at what this amazing dream team of designers created? Here ya go (links to all the designers are at the bottom of this post:

(Oh and make sure you read all the way to the bottom to enter to win a copy of Clever Crocheted Accessories!)

Paper tape yarn earrings by Kazekobo

 Motif neckerchief my Maryse Roudier

Twisted ear warmer by Cal Patch

Lacy crochet socks by Kim Kotary

Cabled fingerless mitts by Linda Permann

Amazing motif bag by Regina Rioux

This book really is all about the contributors who created the amazing projects, so I encourage you to visit each of their blogs (links below). Many of these folks are hosting book giveaways on their blogs this week, so go enter and you just might snag yourself a free copy of Clever Crocheted Accessories. And either way, you’re sure to see tons of amazing crochet eye candy by checking out these talented designers:

Ellen Gormley
Linda Cyr
Drew Emborsky
Marly Bird
Kim Kotary
Cal Patch
Linda Permann
Kazekobo
Faith Hale
Lauren Osbourne
Regina Rioux
Robyn Chachula
Antonio Limuaco
Vickie Howell
Amy Polcyn
Maryse Roudier
Mari Lynn Patrick
KJ Hay
Doris Chan

And if that’s not enough to keep you busy, check out this preview of the book (where you can flip through some of the pages and see even more projects). And finally, click here to buy! This book would make a great gift for any crafty types on your holiday list (or a great gift for yourself)!

I’ve got a copy to give away, hooray! To enter, leave a comment on this post and tell me which project from the book you’d most like to make. The contest is now closed. Congrats to winner Hayley!!

*****WE NOW HAVE A DEADLINE FOR DONATIONS: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16. SEE BELOW FOR MORE INFO!*****

[We also have a new shipping address for projects! See below.]

I was very lucky to make it through Hurricane Sandy without any damage to my home or myself or my loved ones. I am so grateful. It’s been heartbreaking to see images of the devastation that has occurred right here in my adopted hometown… and making matters worse, it has started to get cold in New York City this week. It’s as if winter has suddenly arrived, and that is the last thing we need right now. Many, many Sandy victims are living without power, which means no heat. Many of them have lost a lot if not all of their possessions, which means limited supplies of warm clothes.

Yesterday, Natalie from A Dose of The Delightful (another New York-based crafty blogger) and I started thinking about what we could do to help those victims without electricity, heat, or even proper shelter. We knew there had to be a way to harness the power of crafters to help–because if there’s anything knitters, crocheters and sewers are good at, it’s making warm things. So we decided to create Make It Better – A Craftalong for Sandy Relief. The goal? Rally crafters to make warm hats, scarves, blankets, mittens, socks and sweaters–and deliver them to people in need as soon as possible.

Will you join us?

I’m super excited to announce that I’ll be offering a limited edition of small-scale stitchery classes in my home studio (a.k.a. the crafty clubhouse) starting NEXT WEEK! This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time so I finally decided there’s no time like the present! If you live in the NYC area, please join me for one (or more!) of these relaxed, intimate classes where you’ll learn one-on-one with me how to knit, crochet, or embroider.

Each class will consist of two 2-hour sessions which will be held in my home on weekday evenings. I’ll serve some savory snacks and we’ll sip wine while Fifi curls up under our feet and we stitch away. These classes are beginner-level, so if you’ve never picked up a needle or hook before, no worries–I’ll take you through it from the very beginning. If you have a little experience but need a refresher that’s fine too–since the classes are small, I’ll be able to work with each student at their own pace.

I think this is going to be super fun and I’m really excited to meet some new crafty peeps from the area and spread the stitchy love just in time for fall! So let’s get started–here are the deets:

LEARN TO KNIT
In this beginner-level class, you’ll learn the basics of knitting–casting on, knitting, purling, picking up dropped stitches, and casting off–all while making a chunky cowl for fall. The class will consist of two 2-hour sessions; in the first session you’ll learn the basic stitches and begin your cowl. Then you’ll go home and work on your cowl and bring it back to complete during the second session, where I’ll help you solve any problems you had while knitting solo, and finally you’ll learn how to cast off and finish your cowl.

Class size is maximum six students and class will be taught by me. Wine and savory homemade snacks will be served!

Thursdays, September 27 and October 11, 6:30-8:30pm, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. You will be required to bring yarn and knitting needles to the first class; I’ll provide a detailed supply list with class registration. Class cost is $125.

LEARN TO CROCHET
Have you caught chevron fever? In this beginner-level class, crochet newbies will learn the basics of crochet while mastering the chevron stitch–a crochet classic that is having a major moment right now in the design and fashion worlds. I’ll teach you how to use the basic chevron stitch to make almost anything you like, from a scarf or envelope clutch to a throw pillow or baby blanket. In the first session you’ll learn how to begin your project with a crochet chain and how to work the basic crochet stitches including single, half-double and double crochet, as well as increases and decreases. You’ll also learn how to change colors to make all those fabulous chevron stripes. Then you’ll go home to work on your project a bit, and come back for session two where I’ll help you solve any problems you’re having with your work-in-progress, and finally you’ll learn how to finish your project.

Class size is maximum six students and class will be taught by me. Wine and savory homemade snacks will be served!

Tuesdays, October 9 and October 23, 6:30-8:30pm, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. You will be required to bring yarn and crochet hooks to the first class; I’ll provide a detailed supply list with class registration. Class cost is $125.

(Crochet image from postcardgraffiti)

LEARN TO EMBROIDER
Hand embroidery is a wonderfully relaxing and minimalist craft that’s perfect for chilling out in front of a movie or stitching on the subway. In this class I’ll take you through everything you need to know to start doing your own hand embroidery projects–from selecting or drawing your own image, transferring the image to fabric, and how to make several embroidery stitches including straight stitch, chain stitch, french knots, herringbone stitch, and more. We will complete a project of your choice–I’ll have some templates available for use to make monograms, or you can draw or bring your own image to embroider.

Class size is maximum six students and class will be taught by me. Wine and savory homemade snacks will be served!

Thursdays, October 25 and November 1, 6:30-8:30pm, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. You will be required to bring basic embroidery supplies to the first class; I’ll provide a detailed supply list with class registration. Class cost is $125.

If you’d like to register for a class (and I hope you will!), email me at hello [at] brettbara [dot] com and tell me which class you’d like to take. I’ll email you back with instructions on how to submit payment via Paypal, which will secure your spot in class. Class spots will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Space is limited, so I encourage you to register early.

Thanks so much–Fifi and I are looking forward to meeting you over crafts, snacks, wine and chit-chat! xo

Interested in hearing about future classes? Follow me on Twitter or Facebook.

I was super excited when the folks at Jimmy Beans Wool contacted me and asked if they could use the One Hour Skirt from my book Sewing in a Straight Line as the project for their first ever Knit-Along and Sew-Along. As you may know, Jimmy Beans is a fantastic online yarn store, and they recently started selling fabric too–as a crocheter/knitter who also sews, this is music to my ears! Yay for the yarny people and the fabric people joining together to live in fiber harmony!

So, the JB peeps had the idea to do a knit/sew along to encourage their followers to get another step closer to being able to craft an entire handmade outfit–not only a sweater, but a skirt to go with it too! I love that!

Here are a bunch of One-Hour skirts made by a bunch of cute ladies at my book launch at Etsy. Don’t you want to make one too?! Well, just pop on over to the Jimmy Beans blog to join the Knit/Sew-Along, and you can! Here’s the JB blog post where you can get all the details. And here’s the Ravelry thread where you join, too. Now go get your skirt and sweater on!

(And thanks to JB for interviewing me on their blog today! xo)

I’ve got a new project up over on my Design Sponge Sewing 101 column: how to sew a triangle patchwork!

Have you noticed the geometric triangle trend that seems to be everywhere right now? I’m seeing triangles all over the place, from art prints to textiles to housewares. And each and every time, it makes me think of quilting. So I got inspired to whip up a couple patchwork triangle pieces to frame and hang on my (still bare) pink living room walls. (But careful readers may notice the walls are now a slightly different shade of pink! I’ll share the details on that soon.)

This isn’t technically a quilting project, since it’s not actually quilted — just pieces of fabric sewn together into a patchwork. But you could quilt this piece, or take the basic tutorial and turn it into just about anything, from a larger wall hanging to a pillow or baby quilt or even a bed quilt. (I would so love a triangle quilt for my bed!)

So click on over to Design Sponge to check out the full post and learn everything you need to know about sewing a triangle patchwork. It’s crazy-easy, not to mention simple to personalize–once you understand the basic construction, you’ll see that you can modify this project and make your triangles in any size or configuration you like.

Super big or super small! So go crazy & get your triangle on!

Me and this yarn and a whole buncha books are headed out of town for a little R&R in… Mexico! Pinch me!

Fifi will be holding down the fort in Brooklyn, accompanied by a friend who will be tending to all her needs and keeping up her beauty regime (she doesn’t just roll out of bed in the morning looking so glamorous, you know).

Hope you have a GREAT two weeks and I’ll see you on the flip side–hopefully with a finished neon pink (and grey and black) shawl! xoxo

I’m spending some time with my family for a week or so, so things have been quiet here on the blog. But this is what I’m working on from my cozy position on parents’ couch, next to the wood-burning stove–thick, warm winter socks using some purty Madelinetosh Merino DK (in color Ruby Slippers). The pattern is Cranberry Tart Socks by Julie Rousculp, found on Ravelry. I love the pattern–it’s not too complicated, but has some nice cables to keep things interesting. However, I have to say that the color shading in this yarn, which seemed fairly subtle on the skein, is super pronounced once knit, making the cables totally disappear. You can barely see them in the photo above, right?

Here’s how things look on the back of the sock, where it’s just stockinette. I think what this yarn is telling me is that it wants to be knit into something very basic–so I’m going to frog these few inches and start over with a sock that’s got either a stockinette or ribbed cuff. Sometimes basic is just best, I guess.

By the way, are we Ravelry friends? If you’re a Rav member, hit me up here!

My yarny friend and Knit and Crochet Now comrade Robyn Chachula has a new book out! It is just as fabulous and inspiring as her other books, and I’m super happy to be a stop on her blog tour today.

Robyn is truly a crochet genius, and her latest book, Crochet Stitches Visual Encyclopedia, just proves that once again. This book features 300 crochet stitch patterns, with both written instructions and a stitch diagram for each and every one (love that!). She covers just about every type of stitch in the known crochet world (and at least a few new ones that she invented, I’m sure) – from basics to textured stitches, to lace, colorwork, grannies, motifs, edgings — AND even a whole chapter on Tunisian stitch patterns. Which I’m sure lots of people will appreciate, since there are still not a lot of resources out there for Tunisian crochet.

You can use this book in a million ways, whether you want to design your own simple scarf, pillow or sampler afghan, or go all the way and design your own garments. After leafing through Robyn’s book I’m inspired to make a motif afghan, something I’ve been wanting to do for years. Maybe this will be the winter I actually do it. May. Be.

Whether you’re a casual crocheter who’d like to learn a little bit more about stitch patterns in general, a total newbie who wants a good resource to have on hand for practicing and learning, or a crochet geek who likes to soak in every possible bit of new information – this book is one that’s really worth keeping on your shelf. You can grab a copy here.

Aren’t you just dying to get your hot little hands on this book? You know you are! Well, it just so happens I have one copy of Crochet Stitches Visual Encyclopedia to give away! Hooray! To enter, leave a comment on this post and tell me what you would use this book to make.

Congratulations on a wonderful book, Robyn! xoxo

EDITED TO ADD: Contest will close at 5pm EST on Monday, November 7. Winner will be chosen my random number generator.

 The winner of this contest is Jenny. CONGRATS!

How about these yarny chairs? Pretty cool. I came across this photo somewhere online and I believe (to the best of my foreign language limitations) that I’ve traced it back to its original source, a Japanese craft blog called Plain Living. The site is in Japanese, but it’s worth a visit just for the photos alone – lots of adorable crafts, beautiful food, and great photography. There’s so much amazing craft inspiration coming out of Japan right now, and this blog is a good place to start soaking it all in.

So, I think the creator of the blog Plain Living is the person who made these chairs (if anyone has any other info, please let me know in the comments). From looking at this photo, I have a feeling the chair on the left was made by working crochet surface slip stitch through the spaces in the metal chair, with roving. At least that’s what it looks like to me – what do you think? The chair on the right could be the wrong side of the surface slip stitch, or it could be that the roving is just woven in and out through the metal spaces.

I totally want to try this — all I need is a wire chair. Hmmmmm…..

How amazing would this technique look worked on one of these babies? Unfortunately these are a bit spendy for me right now, but a crafty girl can dream. 1. Eames Wire Dining Chair, $629; 2. Knoll Bertoia Diamond Lounge Chair, $988; 3. Knoll Bertoia Side Chair, $501; 4. Knoll Bertoia Asymmetric Chaise, $6,187 (I think this one would be downright spectacular with a sweater!)

But all hope it not lost. There are many knock-offs of these types of mid-century wire chairs, and even the authentic ones can often be found vintage at a reasonable price. Consider me officially on the hunt.

On today’s blog tour stop I’m heading over to my original neck of the woods, Pittsburgh PA, to visit my crochet friend Robyn Chachula (aka Crochet By Faye). Robyn and I met several years ago at a crochet industry event and bonded over being fellow Pennsylvanians, then went on to work together over the years. Robyn is one of my favorite crochet designers – she creates gorgeous sweaters, baby clothes and more, and has written a couple of truly inspiring crochet books. (She’s also one of the crochet experts on Knit and Crochet Now, so we’ve had lots of funtimes together taping episodes of the show; that’s what we’re doing in the shot above.) So head on over to her blog to read about her experiences sewing and for some crochet inspiration!

Thanks for being part of my blog tour, Robyn!

And now, giveaway time! Up for grabs today is a signed copy of my book, Sewing in a Straight Line, along with an 18-spool set of Coats Dual Duty Thread. To enter to win, leave a comment on this post!   THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. PLEASE CHECK CURRENT POSTS FOR CURRENT GIVEAWAYS!

Thanks to Coats & Clark for sponsoring this giveaway!