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Hello fellow and potential crochet geniuses! My name is Vanessa Johnson and I design crocheted clothing (and more). Crochet love - and bliss - began for me when I decided I needed a hobby and a few days later happened to pick up an afghan patterns book for fifty cents at a bookstand on one of the streets in Times Square New York: in homage, also, to a compulsive shameless magpie tendency. Anyway, there were two pages at the most on crochet in the book but they sparked an interest that has not waned in nearly twenty years.
An interest that has heightened into what I call a sort of Crochet Yoga (I've sort of quit doing yoga and feel bad about it so I now I try to come up with all the different ways I'm doing yoga without actually doing it.). Why yoga?
1) Because there's the hum-sa breath that I coordinate with any number of stitches, maybe breathing in for eight single crochet stitches and out for eight. Or four, or two, or one (at least, do one). Which keeps my mind from wandering and muscles from cramping if I'm in it for the long haul.
2) Then there are any number of mantras I coordinate with my stitches, coordinating the cadence of the mantra to each motion of the stitch. Such as "I am whole", "I am perfect", "I am powerful", "I am strong", "I am happy", "I am loving", "I am harmonious" (as described by Wayne Dyer, in one of his books). So that each phrase, e.g., 'I am whole', ends with a single crochet completed. Plus, I get to chip away at any negativity I've been retaining at the same time.....And if you tell yourself you're amazing you won't even hear the malice if people try to tell you you're not. They'll be like: "wonkwonkwonk". And then you'll be like: "What an extraordinary thing to say - thanks for caring so much about me!"
3) And, of course, there's music - nearly always a mood lifter. I like jazz or house because I like to keep up with the percussionist (or the violinist if it's classical, since I used to play the violin and tend to like strings - bad joke, I know) if I have a lot to do in very little time.
4) And I can't leave out my latest obsession: The Aura Cacia Aromatherapy Room Diffuser. If you love essential oils and believe in aromatherapy, this takes it one step further. It's fifteen dollars (at Whole Foods) and all you do is plug it in, put one of the included diffuser pads in place and pour your fav essential oil over it and it's like being at the spa....or you could just open a window:).
Anyway, these four components of Crochet Yoga put me in a really good place for a really long time, during and after my crochet session. Plus, I've made something; a sweater, a dress, or whatever, and new clothes really boost my spirits (ahem). Speaking of which, I want to tell you about this design I've included below that is beyond easy and could help you attain Crochet Yoga nirvana.
First of all, the yarn only cost me thirty dollars! I got the maize and white yarn Aunt Lydia's Crochet Thread, Classic 10, at Michael's craft store:
And then, technically, the "pattern" - which is really two squares of the crocheted fabric sewn together, with the black and white panels used for contour - only takes one full day of crocheting. You could finish in a weekend, or over the course of a week on the train on the way to work, or during an international flight if that's how you roll. Because you could totally wear this as a beach coverup or as an extra layer on cool nights since you can scrunch this wrinkle resistant sweater up and it only takes up a small corner of your hobo bag.
So, let me tell you how to custom design this for yourself, since that's how I spend most of my time these days:
1) First, buy about four skeins of Aunt Lydia's crochet thread (fingering weight), a skein of the white, and a skein of sport weight black cotton yarn. And make sure you have an E and an N hook.
2) Measure from one elbow, across the shoulders, and to the other elbow to obtain the width of your sweater.
3) Determine your gauge by treble crocheting ten stitches, if you're not using the fingering weight recommended. Otherwise, ten treble crocheted stitches will equal two inches using an E hook.
4) Determine the amount of stitches needed for your measurements by dividing your measurements by the gauge. For example, if your measurements are 40 inches, then you will need to chain 205 for 200 treble crocheted stitches (using the last 4 chains as the first treble crochet in your next row). By the way, 40 inches is a pretty safe guesstimate for one size fits all if you don't feel like doing your own measurements.
5) Treble crochet until piece measures the height you desire. Do this twice for front and back. To measure height, start measuring tape at your shoulders and measure down the body.
6) Partially sew the sides of your crocheted fabric together and leave 8 - 12" inches unsewn at the top to create a generous armhole. To measure armhole, start at shoulders and measure down the side of the body to desired height.
7) Using an N hook for all the black and white borders, single crochet black and white together in every other treble crochet for fourteen rows around hem of sweater and bind off.
8) Single crochet black and white together in every stitch for seven rows around the armholes (do not attach the front to the back yet), bind off. Do this twice.
9) Single crochet black and white together in every stitch for two rows across entire top of sweater - from black and white detailing to black and white detailing on the other edge. Do this twice.
10) Measure shoulder width and subtract this number from the inches of the top of the crocheted fabric. Then halve the number you come up with, and with black and white together, single crochet that number of stitches together on each edge at top of garment. So, if your shoulder measurement was sixteen inches, then you would subtract that from forty to get twenty-four inches. Half of twenty-four inches would be twelve and that is the number of inches you would single crochet on each side, starting from the outer edges and moving inward.
11) Single crochet black and white together in one stitch, then single crochet two stitches together for first row, then single crochet every stitch for fifteen more rows (sixteen total) around neckline and bind off.
So, here you have ended your Crochet Yoga session and you are now aligned with the Golden Chain of Crocheter Yogis, plus you've designed this marvelous thing you're going to have to stop yourself from wearing all the time!
For more patterns or if you just want me to make it for you, visit http://www.vannazhandz.com. or +Vanessa Johnson.
To access my blog where I often feature crochet designs I've created, it's http://jazzoftheuniverse.
Wishing you every good thing,
xoxo Vanessa
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