Crochet Coalition

New stuff from ARNie and ChezCrochet.com!

2010-01-07T09:27:00.000-08:00

I have finished the patterns and instructions for the Shoulder Shawls & Capes that I blogged about at Facebook.

You can see the photos of the pieces as you scroll down.

I'll be loading the booklet onto the ordering page at ChezCrochet.com in the next week.
http://chezcrochet.com/page92.html

UPDATE! Dora at Crochet Insider just let me know that she has the newest edition of her magazine online, and it includes an article by me!

You can find that new edition here:
http://www.crochetinsider.com/

Feather and Fan Wrap and Scarf

2010-01-07T09:25:00.001-08:00

Sun Rays Yoke with Diamond Eyelet Drape

2010-01-07T09:23:00.001-08:00

Sun Rays Yoke with Strectch Ribbing Drape

2010-01-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Tunisian Simple Stitch Cape in Bernat Boucle

2010-01-07T09:19:00.000-08:00

Centennial Hat Photos

2009-12-16T08:03:00.000-08:00

This shows the hat finished.

In this view, the hat is turned sideways and the tail is outstretched to better illustrate the decreases on the Ends and in the Middle.

Centennial Hat Instructions

2009-12-16T07:53:00.001-08:00

One of the members of my Yahoo Group wanted to adapt a hat she saw in a Mini Series Centennial (from the late 1970's.) One of the characters wore this hat, and her friend wanted something like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=du5DW0nBHy4
Robert Conrad is wearing the hat... a dirty orange/red stocking type hat.

I created these generalized instructions for this hat, using Tunisian Simple stitch.

My hat is based on the average head size of 22 inches. I'm using Red Heart worsted weight yarn with a K sized hook. This is one size smaller than what I normally use with Worsted Weight yarn, but I wanted a stiffer fabric than normal... and yes, it is curling, but that will be conquered later. It took all of a 7 oz skein, and since it needed to be bigger, I’m going to suggest you have 8 oz of yarn on hand to finish this hat, if you use a K sized hook. The larger hooks won’t require as much yarn.

1. With your chosen Yarn and Hook, stitch a swatch to determine your Stitches Per Inch. A swatch is a piece of fabric worked in your chosen stitch, that is 4 inches square. Most experts recommend measuring from the middle of the swatch for a more accurate stitch count.

2. Measure the circumference of the head this hat will cover, and if you can get them to sit still long enough, measure from the bottom of the ear to the crown.

3. Multiply the number of ‘Stitches per Inch’ by the ‘Circumference of the Head’ measurement to determine the number of chains to begin with.

Row 1: Forward- Pick Up loops in ea ch. Return as you normally would.
Row 2: Forward- Tss in ea st, work last st. Return.
Repeat Row 2 until it is about half the length of the width, or the measurement from the bottom of the ear to the crown.

I’ve noticed that with most head measurements that the height of the head is a little less than half of the circumference of the head. If the head is 22 inches around, then stitch the fabric until it measure 11 inches.

IMPORTANT: Stitching the height of the body of the hat will look huge! But go ahead and stitch until it is half as tall as it is wide. For this 22" hat, it should have been 11 inches tall, not the 8" that I stitched. In my sample, the tail wasn’t long enough to reach the brim, and I had to make the brim much taller than normal.

If you do NOT want to stitch a Ribbing for the brim of the hat, continue stitching this section until it is 2-3 inches longer than ½ of the width. For my 22 inch hat, that would mean stitching the height of this section to 13-14 inches tall.

Once you have stitched the main body of the hat, you will begin decreasing on both ends AND in the middle to create the ‘stiff’ crease in the front and back. If you want a more relaxed looking hat, just decrease on the ends.

For Odd Numbered stitches- find the 5 stitches in the middle of the row, and mark them with a thread.
For Even Numbered stitches- find the 4 stitches in the middle of the row, and mark them with a thread.

For Odd Numbered stitches- Tss2tog, then Tss up to the marked stitches. Tss2Tog, Tss, Tss2tog, then Tss across the rest of the row, work last st. Return: Yo, pull through 2 loops (decrease made), then continue Return as you normally would.

Next Row: Tss2tog, then Tss up to the Center Stitches. Tss2Tog, Tss, Tss2tog, then Tss across the rest of the row, slip hk under both threads of the last st (Decrease St). Return: Yo, pull through 2 loops (decrease made), then continue Return as you normally would. Repeat this row to desired length for the top of the hat. Single Crochet in each stitch for the last row. End off.

Stitch back seam together, weave tails.

For Even Numbered stitches- Tss2tog, then Tss up to the marked stitches. Tss2Tog, Tfs (in between the stitches), Tss2tog, then Tss across the rest of the row, work last st. Return: Yo, pull through 2 loops (decrease made), then continue Return as you normally would.
Next Row: Tss2tog, then Tss up to the Center Stitches. Tss2Tog, Tss, Tss2tog, then Tss across the rest of the row, slip hk under both threads of the last st (Decrease St). Return: Yo, pull through 2 loops (decrease made), then continue Return as you normally would. Repeat this row to desired length for the top of the hat. Single Crochet in each stitch for the last row. End off.

Ribbing Section:
Turn the hat over and work from the back of the hat. Attach yarn to beginning chain of hat.
Pick up loops in ea ch st across row, Return as you normally would.
Rows 2+: Forward- (Tps, 2 Tks,) Repeat across row, working last st as you normally would. Return.
Repeat this until brim is desired height, then Single Crochet in each stitch for last row. End off.
Stitch back seam, and weave tails.

New Page at FaceBook!

2009-10-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

Well, I am slow on the uptake with a lot of these technological things... but I've added a page for ChezCrochet.com at Facebook.

I would love to see photos of the things you've stitched from the patterns at ChezCrochet.com or from the pattern booklets I've written. And you can add them to the page at Face Book.

You can also become a Fan of ChezCrochet.com at Facebook and that link is at the bottom in the Right hand NavBar

Selling Patterns Online

2009-10-18T09:41:00.001-07:00

We've had some discussions on how to sell your stitching patterns online, instead of trying to sell them to a publishers.

I thought this would make a good post for this blog. These are a few things to consider when investigating hosting services that sell your patterns for you.

1. Make certain that you have all of your notes, and any previous attempts that were not so successful. This helps document your development process and that you did create this on your own. This is a copyright protection measure.

2. Investigate EVERY venue that you are considering selling your patterns through.

Identify their Seller and Buyer Protection policies
What are their Dispute Resolution Protocols
How good is the Search Engine
How easy or difficult it is to find your products in their system

It won't do you much good to list a product, if folks can't find it.

3. Weigh the Good and Bad of using a service that MEMBERS ONLY can purchase your products. Not everyone is willing or ready to JOIN a community, just to buy your pattern.

There is nothing more frustrating to a customer to Google an item; find exactly what they want, and then can't buy it right there.

You risk loosing numerous customers by forcing them to create a new account with a company that might use their information in ways the consumer doesn't want... or the hosting site offers no solid protection for that private information.

Self Publishing- The Most Rewarding Slavery You'll Ever Know

2009-09-05T11:54:00.000-07:00

I whine all the time that all I can do is work at home, because of my health issues. Then I sit down and realize ALLLL the 'jobs' I do to Run that business.

I am the Designer- I must have the imagination to envision a product.

I am the Author who must write instructions so that ANYONE can understand them.

I am a Stitching Editor who must make certain that the mechanics of the pattern are intuitive and not convoluted and too complicated.

I am the Editor who must read and re-read those instructions so that ANYONE could understand them, and that the instructions flow easily.

I am the Proof Reader who must make certain that the grammar & spelling are correct.

I am the Laborer who must follow the instructions, to generate samples of the pattern and/or test the written instructions.

I am the Photographer who must ascertain the best setup to highlight the features of the finished product and/or capture instructional photographs to better illustrate complicated or detailed instructions.

I am the Creative Director who must combine the Instructions and Photographs into visually pleasing format.

I am the Formatter (typesetter) who must translate the instructions of the Creative Director into a computer language that the Printer can understand.

I am the Printer (for my booklets, but the large book I contract out to a large printing service).

I am the Marketing Director who must determine the angles, themes, of how best to promote my products, and the best venues of where to ‘advertise’ my products.

I am the Advertising Director who must take the ‘thoughts’ of the Marketing Director and generate working advertisements for the products.

I am the Webmaster who must build and maintain the site, where the Advertising and Selling is done.

I am the Networking Specialist who must spend time in chat rooms, message boards, etc to increase interest in the Web Site where the products are advertised and sold.

I am the Shipping clerk.

I am the Bookkeeper.

I am the Inventory/Warehouse Director.

I am the Negotiator who secures the Best Price for the Best services in printers, delivery, or any other service.

I am the Office Manager who must answer correspondence, purchase supplies, pay the bills.

I am the Salesman who must talk to folks about the products and website to Sell the Products.

I am the Wholesale Accounts manager.

I am a Research Specialist who must compile information to help the Designer, Editors, Author, Marketing Director, Advertising Director, Webmaster, Teacher, and Business Owner.

I am a Teacher, so that I build my consumer base.

I am a Small Business Owner, and with all this work, it is much like being a Slave to My Business... and the most rewarding thing I’ve ever attempted.

Symbols for Tunisian Crochet- Not Practical

2009-07-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

A member of the Yahoo group I co-own, recently asked about Symbols for Tunisian Crochet. So, I started compiling my answer to her... only to realize that it would make a great Blog Post.

I have seen some publications use symbols for Tunisian Crochet, but they tend to be based on the concept that there are only 3 or 4 stitches in TC. Those who have been in our group for a while, or have my book- know better.

When I was writing my first book, I realized that with Tunisian Crochet, there needed to be a 'distinction' for the concept of Stitches, since so many stitches could be created from a few basic mechanics. My decision was to label the 'basic stitches' as Foundations, since many stitches could be created from one 'beginning step,' the Foundation of the stitch.

I've found at least 6 Basic Foundations (Knit, Purl, Reverse, Simple, Full, and Reverse/Purl).
http://chezcrochet.com/page17.html

When you start twisting threads or pulling them to the opposite side of the fabric, you add even more individual Stitches, not just stitch combos. I labeled these stitches based on the Mechanics of creating them: the Front Purl, Back Simple, Twisted Simple and Twisted Purl stitches.

There are 2 Cross Bar Foundations- in which the hook is inserted into the Cross Bar/Horizontal Bar. http://chezcrochet.com/page23.html

Also, there are 2 Post Foundations which are worked just like classic crochet Post Stitches.

Now add to that, you can Extend each Foundation with a chain stitch, know as Extended Stitches. http://chezcrochet.com/page18.html

Also, each Foundation can be worked with Double and Treble Crochet mechanics.... ALL OF WHICH, CREATE A UNIQUE, INDIVIDUAL STITCH.
http://chezcrochet.com/page12.html
http://chezcrochet.com/page13.html

I did a quick count: there are 56 unique, individual Tunisian Crochet stitches...and probably several more, since I didn't include those mechanics I believe are so difficult that most folks would never try them. These are individual stitches, not stitch combinations.

The challenge becomes: How to create a Unique Symbol for 56 Different Stitches.

Theoretically, one could create a symbol for the Basic Foundations; plus, the Post and the Cross Bar Foundations, since these are the beginning step for all Tunisian Crochet stitches. That is a total of 10 symbols for the Foundations, alone.

From there one could add an extra symbol for all of the extra mechanics. This means that there would need to be an extra symbol for each of the following: Twisting a stitch, Backwards stitches, chain extensions, AND symbols for Dc and Trc mechanics.

Now, with all these extra symbols tacked on to the Basic Foundation Symbol, it will be difficult to ascertain, from stitch to stitch, what mechanics should be used for each stitch. In the printing, these symbols could run together so easily, that it would be a nightmare to interpret.

I'm not convinced that the needleworkers in their own homes would invest the time and effort to learn all these symbols. If I thought it could be done easily, I would have done it already.

I'm sure some enterprising soul could accomplish this, but I'm not convinced the average needleworker would use them. The parameters and additional mechanics are simply too large to invest the time learning symbols, instead of actually stitching.

ARNie's Resource Library for Tunisian Crochet

2009-07-17T09:44:00.002-07:00

I'm posting this here, until I can get it up at my website: ChezCrochet.com
It would take me at least a week to type in ALL of the books in my resource library, but for Tunisian Crochet, this is the majorty of them.

*Materials used for Encyclopedia of Tunisian Crochet

Stitch Guides and Technical Manuals:

*"300 Crochet Stitches" London, England: Collins & Brown Ltd., 1998. (Originally published as The Harmony Guide to Crochet Stitches, Lyric Books, 1986.)
*"220 More Crochet Stitches" London, England: Collins & Brown Ltd., 1998. (Originally published as The Harmony Guide to 100's More Crochet Stitches, Lyric Books, 1992.)
*"Complete Guide to Needlework" Pleasantville, NY: Reader*s Digest Association, 1979.
*"Tricot Crochet: The Complete Book" Jones, Rebecca. Berkeley, California: Lacis Publications, 2000. (Originally published as "The Complete Book of Tricot." Australia: The Kangaroo Press Pty. Ltd., 1991)
*"Complete Stitch Directory" North, Patsy, ed. NY,NY: Crescent Books, 1982. (Originally published as *Millepunti,* Milan:Gruppo Editoriale Fabbri S.p.A., 1982.) My 'rosetta stone' for Tunisian Crochet, the book that launched my passion for this needlework.
"Creative Crochet Handbook" Palfy, Christa. Australia, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1976.
"Lee Ward's Complete Library of Needlecraft" Houck, Carter, ed. Montgomery, AL, Fuller and Dees Publishing, 1985.
"A Treasury of Crochet Patterns" Blackwell, Liz. NY, NY, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1971
"The Encyclopedia of Knitting and Crochet Stitch Patterns" Mariano, Linda. NY, NY. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co, 1976.
"The New Crochet Dictionary" Goldberg, Rhoda Ochser. NY,NY. Crown Publishers, Inc. 1986.
"The Time-Life Book of Needlecraft" Donovan, Hedly, ed. NY, NY. Time-Life Books, 1976.
"McCall's Needlework Tresury" NY,NY. Random House/McCall's publishers, 1964.
"Good Housekeeping's Complete Book of Needlecraft" Guild, Vera P. Garden City, NY. Doubleday & Co, Inc. 1959.
"How To Crochet" Turner, Pauline, London, UK. Collins & Brown, 2001.
"Teach Yourself, Step by Step Guide: Tunisian Crochet" Nehring, Nancy. Little Rock, AK. Leisure Arts, 2004.

Carolyn Christmas' Easy Tunisian books:

"101 Easy Tunisian Crochet Stitches"
"Cable Hook Afghans"
"Sampler Afghan"
"Cable Hook Fashions"

Historical Reproductions

*"Knit, Net, Crochet, and More of the Era of the Hoop" Marsh, Heidi, ed.Davenport, Iowa: Amazon Drygoods, Ltd, 1993
"Needlecraft Practical Journal No. 61- New Crochet Stitches and Garments" The Manchester School of Embroidery, Augsta, ME, 1907 (Reproduction purchased from http://www.ivarose.com/)
"The Dictionary of Needlework" Caufield, Sophia Frances Anne & Saward, Blanche 1882; Reprint Edition- Arno Press, Inc. USA, 1972.
"The Complete Encyclopedia of Needlework" de Dillmont, Therese, 1886; Reprint Edition- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1972.
*"Victorian Crochet" Weldon & Company, et. all. NY: Dover Publications, 1974. (A compilation of crochet patterns published by Weldon's Practical Crochet magazine published from 1875 through the 1930's.)

The number of Project Pattern books that I own is huge, so I will put those in another post later on.

Tunisian Crochet: The Look of Knitting With the Ease of Crochet

2009-07-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

Most folks know that I have researched Tunisian Crochet for close to 20 years, both in modern and historical resources. I have lamented about the lack of information, and everyone has lamented about the lack of patterns available.

It is my great pleasure to tell you about a new book: Tunisian Crochet: The Look of Knitting with the Ease of Crochet, by Sharon Hernes Silverman. This 115 page large paperback is a welcomed addition to my own Tunisian Crochet Library, and I gladly recommend it.

Employing line drawings, detailed photographs, and step by step instructions, Ms. Silverman provides an excellent overview of the mechanics of Tunisian Crochet to help the beginner; plus new stitch combinations and project patterns that will thrill the experienced crocheter. The 16 patterns include a wide range of projects: home decor, things for babies, clothing for adults and children; she even includes a felted purse.

My particular favorites were the Sweet Baby Dreams Blanket- which combines Front Crossed Simple Stitches with Knit Stitches to create wonderful texture; and the Frosted Stitch Afghan, which uses ‘Shells and Columns’ or what the Victorian’s called The Double Gobelin Stitch.

I truly appreciated the ‘extras’ that Ms. Silverman included: schematics with every clothing project, several pages of body sizing and general measurements for patterns, and a yarn weights table.

The drawbacks in the book are minor: the adult clothing patterns go only to a size Large (No Plus Sizes); and some of the stitch names she uses are different. Most Tunisian Crochet enthusiasts won’t find this a major issue, because we are accustomed to different names for stitches, and she clearly defines the mechanics for all of the stitches she uses. An example: the Tunisian Full Stitch (worked between the stitches) is what she calls the Net Stitch.

Ms. Silverman states that Tunisian Crochet is "designed more for the experienced crocheter," and that is the only statement that I took exception with. From my own experience teaching both classic crochet and Tunisian Crochet, Tunisian Crochet is much easier to learn and master. When I have students who struggle with classic crochet, I can put a long hook in their hands and in two hours they are happily stitching. So, if you find this book in a bookstore near you, and you don’t know how to do Tunisian Crochet, don’t be afraid to try. This book can get you started and provide you with enough projects to get you 'hooked.'

Read more about the book at Sharon's Site:
http://www.sharonsilverman.com/books.htm

Instructions for the Scrap-A-Nator

2009-05-19T11:09:00.000-07:00

For a short, quick, easy Tunisian Crochet ALong (at our Yahoo Group), I'm offering the instructions to stitch your own Scrap-A-Nator- a pattern designed to use up scraps... so that nothing goes to waste. An Ultimate Yarn Recycling pattern.

At least, 2 pounds of Scrap yarn
6.5mm up to 10mm hook (US size K up to N)
The K sized hook makes a denser fabric better suited for a Bath Mat or Rug.
The larger hooks make a more fluid fabric well suited for a lap throw.

Dimensions will vary:
Size K hook 24-26" wide, the length is determined by you.
10mm Hook 30-32" wide by 40-44" long

Special Instructions:
++RETURN: Yo, pull through 2 loops. (Yo, pull through Connecting Chain and 1 loop off hook) Repeat instructions inside ( ) until there is 1 loop on hook.
This type of Return will help to make a more solid Return edge. On the Forward of each row, you must work into the Hidden Stitch beside the last stitch, or this will decrease one stitch on the Return Edge.

HIDING TAILS ON THE RETURN:
Since this uses scraps, there will be numerous knots and tails to hide. I’ve had good results by stitching these into the fabric on the Return.
Return up to the Knot. Lay the Tails over the yarn, moving towards the Hook hand. Yo, pull through the stitches. Lay the tails over the yarn, moving towards the Yarn hand. Yo, pull through the stitches. Repeat this process, laying the tails- back and forth- over the yarn until they are too small. Later, you can use a smaller hook to pull the remaining tails into the Connecting Chain stitches to secures them.

The Scrap-A-Nator using ARNie’s Favorite Stitch

Holding 2 strands of worsted weight yarn together, chain 66-76.
Row 1: Pick up loops in ea chain, using the Camels’ Hump on the back of the chain stitch. Return, using the Special Instructions above ++.
Row 2: (Tss, Tps) across row, including Hidden St. Work last st, and Return using the Special Instructions.
Row 3: Tss, (Yo, sk 1 st, Tks in next st) Repeat across row, ending with Tks, Tss in Hidden St, & last st. Return using special instructions.
Row 4: Tss, (Tfs in Yo Sp, Yo, Sk Tks) Repeat across row, ending with Yo, sk Tfs, Tss in Hidden St, & last st. Return using special instructions.
Row 5: Tss, (Yo, Sk Tfs, Tfs in Yo Sp) Repeat across row, ending with Tfs, Tss in Hidden St,& last st. Return using special instructions.
Repeat Rows 4 & 5 to create pattern and work to desired length.
Last Row: Tss,(Tfs in Yo Sps, Tks in Stitches.) Tss in Hidden St, last st. Return using Special instructions.
Bind Off Row: Single Crochet in each stitch. End off and finish hiding tails.

For photos, look at posts from earlier this week.
Pattern Copyrighted by Angela 'ARNie' G. 2009.
For copyright permissions, click here:
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

UFO CAL

2009-05-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

For the last few weeks, our yahoo group has been doing an informal Crochet Along, where we worked on our individual UnFinished Objects.

The shawl is one of my UFOs, and is Tunisian Crochet Feather and Fan. I'll be working more on the instructions, and hope to publish it later this year. This shawl was made with Homespun in various shades/ombres of Gray and Tan.

The colorful blanket is another Scrap-A-Nator, but is 3 feet by 4 feet, instead of just a lap throw.

The Scrap-A-Nator

2009-05-11T13:12:00.001-07:00

In the process of choosing which project I could work on, I found the blue and lavender lapthrow that was half finished.... I was fighting migraines again, so that project would be easy to stitch.

I finished it in 2 or 3 hours... so I started another one. Finished it and started another one... I think I have 5 of them now, in just over a week. A larger version is in another blog post this week.

These are roughly 30 inches wide and 42 inches long, based on dimension my local needlework group uses for their charity lapthrows to local nursing homes. These throws are worked holding two strands of yarn together, using a 10mm hook, and MY favorite stitch. http://chezcrochet.com/page18.html

I will be doing a short TCAL (Tunisian Crochet Along) with our yahoo group starting May 18; using this pattern. I will provide tips and tricks, as well as, detailed instructions, yarn requirements, etc. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/tunisiancrochet/

The lap throw itself was an effort to use up a bunch of scraps and still have something visually appealing. Although I can't call this a Stash Buster, like the Stitch Diva's blanket, it does provide a great way of using up scraps.

Tess D'uberville Shawl- over view

2009-01-21T09:39:00.000-08:00

There have been several interesting conversations about how to create a shawl seen in the BBC production of Tess of D'uberville.

That shawl was knitted, and since my knitting skills are rudementary at best... I never tried to knit it. I did look carefully at the photos and decided this could be done in TC, but put the project on the back burner.

Well, several days later someone asked this very same question: could this shawl be done in Tunisian Crochet... so I experimented with it and in only a few minutes had the answer.

First of all, the piece is a Mitered Corner Shawl in which the stitches run in the opposite direction of Mitered corner shawls that are more common place. It is this Stitch Direction that has caused all the commotion.

I could find no other way to duplicate this method, without first working a Square; then working the two Ends separately. Each end forms a Triangle that continues working rows of stitches from the square, but each row decreases along the top edge of the shawl.

Now, if you work all Tks, the stitch direction will look very similar to the more common triangle shawls. The opposite stitch directions will be more obvious with the Pronounced Ridges on the back of the piece.

You can work alternating rows of Tks/Tps (like in my sample), although with the Pronounced Ridge on back, you don't have to.

My instructions (in the next post) are written in such a way that you can insert any stitch you prefer, to create a shawl of your very own.

Check back here, or at my site: ChezCrochet.com for upcoming pattern booklets where I will offer variations on this shawl, with detailed stitching instructions.

These instructions and Schematics are Copyrighted by Angela 'ARNie' Grabowski 2009

Tess D'uberville Shawl

2009-01-21T09:17:00.001-08:00

A. Ch 3.
Row 1: Forward- Yo, pick up a stitch, Yo, pick up last st. Return.
Row 2: Forward- Tfs- in Yo Sp, Yo, Tks, Yo, Tfs-in Yo Sp, last st. Return.
Row 3: Forward- 1 St. Yo, Tks, Yo, 1 St, last st. Return.
Row 4: Forward- Work chosen stitches up side, Tfs-in Yo Sp, Tks, Tfs-in Yo Sp, then work chosen stitches down the other side. Return.

Repeat Row 4 to create length.

B. These instructions create a Mitered corner square, as seen by the white lines.

C1. Once the Diagonal measurement of the square equals the length of the shawl (from your neck down). Stitch Up this side up to the 1st Yo Sp. Return.
Subsequent Rows: Stitch up side to last 3 sts. Tss2tog, last st. Return.

C2. When you have only 1 loop remaining- DO NOT END OFF. Remove the hook and put a Work In Progress (WIP) Clip into the loop. This can be a paper clip, pinch style clothes pin, a file clip (bull dog clip.)

D. Attach a new ball of yarn into the empty Yo Sp.
Stitch down this side and Return.
Next Row: Stitch normally- following your chosen stitch pattern. Return as you normally would until you have 2 stitches left (3 loops.) Yo, pull through all 3 loops (Decrease made- Dec).
Subsequent Rows: Ignore the Stitches within the Dec. Stitch down side. Return following instructions in previous row.
When there is only 1 loop left, End off.

E. Go back to other End, and removed Wip Clip. Insert hook and work classic crochet Single Crochet stitches or Slip Stitches across the top edge of the shawl.

Peaches & Creme Yarn in Tunisian Crochet

2009-01-09T09:06:00.000-08:00

A member of my Yahoo group and Ravelry was asking about TC with Peaches and Creme... a worsted/aran weight cotton yarn.

This is one project I used TC with a lacy open stitch Arrowhead Netting.

The pattern for this blanket is in the booklet: Arrowhead Netting, that includes instructions for one method for creating Round objects.

You can order the book here:

http://chezcrochet.com/page92.html

You can see Arrowhead Netting instructions here:

http://chezcrochet.com/page18.html

TCAL Inspiration

2009-01-08T11:31:00.000-08:00

I will be doing a Tunisian Crochet A-Long (TCAL) through my Yahoo group starting January 18, 2009.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/tunisiancrochet/

This is the inspiration for the upcoming piece.

It is a Knitted Sweater pattern produced by the Reynolds Yarn Co, Townsend, Massachuesetts, 2004. The title of the pattern is Rapture #82287.

Now, my piece will be done in Tunisian Crochet, and will look much different, since I will be using different stitch combinations and adding some cables to the design....

However, this is my inspiration for the TCAL.

The TCAL will be designed so that you can create a piece to fit your needs, using yarn from your stash.

I will be creating a piece that will eventually become the back for a sweater coat similar to this sweater.

Tunisian Crochet Dishrag or Washcloth

2008-10-14T13:56:00.000-07:00

A conversation on crocheted dishcloths came up again the other day, and I thought I should share mine. Since it is so super easy, I'm posting it here.

You can find stitch instructions here at my site:
http://chezcrochet.com/page17.html

Tss & Tps (K&A Purl) Washcloth

I used an old worsted weight yarn that was really scratchy for the sample. I've also used Aunt Lydia's Rug yarn with great results.

Your yarn and hook choice will affect the overall size, but I use an L or 8mm hook for these.

Ch 20.

Row 1: Forward- Pick up loops in ea ch st across row. Return, Drop Loops off as you normally would.
Row 2: Forward- Tss in ea st, work last st as you normally would. Return.
Row 3: Forward- Tps in ea st, work last st as you normally would. Return.
Repeat Rows 2 & 3 to desired length... sample has 15 rows.
Last Row: work Sc or sl st in ea st across row. End off and weave threads.

For copyright permissions, click here:
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Crossed Tss, or Diagonal Plait stitches from history

2008-07-27T08:38:00.000-07:00

Some of my friends at the 'tunisiancrochet' group at Yahoo, were trying to understand some stitches found in various places. The stitches in question were originally published in1886 by Therese de Dillmont in her massive book: The Encyclopedia of Needlework.

Rebecca Jones included these stitches in her book: Tricot Crochet-The Complete Book (Lacis Publications 2000).

Both of these books contained instructions that were vague and difficult to understand, but I have generated more modern instructions.

Front Crossed Tunisian Simple stitch- FXTss this offers instructions on the easier stitch to understand- what Ms. deDillmont called Straight Plaited Tunisian Crochet. Scroll to bottom of the page.

Giving the Diagonal Plait stitch a more modern name... would be Diagonal FXTss. My modern isntructions for this stitch are:

Row 1: Forward and Return- Pick Up loops in each chain and Drop Off as you normally would.

Row 2: Forward- ignore outer loop. Tss in 1st st. *Sk 1 st. Tss in next st. Cross in front of st just formed and Tss in skipped st. Repeat from * across row, work last st as you normally would. Return as you would for any TC st.

Row 3: Forward- ignore outer loop. *Sk 1 St. Tss in next st. Cross in front of st just formed and Tss in skipped st. Repeat from * across row. If needed, work Tss in next to last st and work last st as you normally would. Return as you would for any TC st.

Repeat Rows 2 and 3 to create pattern.

General Notes:

If working with Odd numbered stitches, you will have 1 Tss to begin Even Number Rows, and 1 Tss to end all the Odd numbered Rows.

If working with Even numberd stitches, you will have 1 Tss to Begin and End all the Even Numbered Rows; but no extra Tss on the Odd numbered rows.

Photo was taken from The Complete DMC Encyclopedia of Needlework, page 297 - Running Press, Philadelphia, Penn. 1978. This is a reproduction of the original book.

What uses more yarn?

2008-07-24T10:09:00.000-07:00

I recently was directed to a blog that had an experiment to 'scientifically' determine which needlework style uses more yarn: Knitting, Classic Crochet, or Tunisian Crochet.

The blogger's group of friends stitched several swatches with worsted weight yarn, and 6mm sized tools. Their conculsions were that Knitting and Crochet used about the same, but TC used significantly more yarn.

I believe the experiment was flawed for the following reasons:

To accurately compare the yarn usage, an experiement should create comparable fabrics; consequentially, the swatches must stitched using different tool sizes for the various needleworks. Eva O. did this when she was at Bella Online, but that experiment was pulled offline when she left. Eva's results reflected my own, and what many TC stitchers in the industry have experienced: Classic Crochet uses the most yarn, Tunisian Crochet uses slightly less than Knitting.

Actual yarn amounts are extremely varied depending on individual tension and gauge, so saying that Knitting uses 3 times or 1/3 less yarn is grossly over stating the facts... unless the yarn useage was determined by crocheting the piece with a hook size that is appropriate for knitting needles and way too small for crochet.

Mechanics dictate that Knitting will use less yarn, because all of the stitches are interconnected to one another. The extra steps in forming stitches of Classic Crochet and Tunisian Crochet dictate that they will use more yarn. How much more is determined by individual tension, gauge, size of hook/needle, etc.

Using larger hooks for Tunisian Crochet will actually lessen the amount of yarn you use, because it loosens up the stitches to create a fabric closer to Knitting and Classic Crochet accomplish with smaller tools.

Trying to use one size of tool for all the various needlework styles will create different fabrics: a J sized hook with worsted weight yarn would be much too loose for most crocheters, same with the 6mm needles. A J sized hook with Tunisian Crochet will create a fabric so dense you could use it for a rug... if you could control the curl.

In other words, the 6mm hook is a one size too big for what most stitchers use for classic crochet, and it may be up to 2 sizes too big for what most yarn lables recommend for knitting. For Tunisian Crochet, that 6mm hook is two to three sizes too small.

All of these will skew the final results, because the appropriate sized stitching tool wasn't used for each style of needlework.

I would be interested in seeing what results her group gets when they use the size of tool that is more appropriate for the worsted weight yarn...

Such as.... a 5.5mm (size I) hook with classic crochet; 5mm needles with knitting and an 8mm hook with Tunisian Crochet.

http://thing4string.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html Scroll down for Unraveling the Truth, to see the whole blogpost.

Entrelac with Texture

2008-07-20T14:44:00.000-07:00

This is the photo shot with a flash to more accurately illustrate the aran color of the piece.

Entrelac with Texture

2008-07-20T14:18:00.000-07:00

The Yahoo group I own with Kim Guzman was discussing Entrelac... again...
And I suggested that they try working each block with a different stitch.

This is a sample of what I've done with Tunisian Crochet Entrelac and Textured stitching.

This photo is underexposed, to highlight the texture.

XO Cables

2008-04-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

Again, this one will need a extra stitch in the middle of the O, to prevent huge gaping holes.

Mixed Stitches Cables

2008-04-30T15:56:00.001-07:00

One of the Joys of Tunisian Crochet is the various Basic Foundations and how combining them creates such diversity and variety.

These Cables are made by combining Tunisian Knit, Simple and Kim & ARNie Purls.

TC Banjo Cable in Knit Stitch

2008-04-30T15:52:00.001-07:00

For those who are trying this on their own,

I've come to realize that there must be a stitch

in between the two sets of cables, or there is a huge

gaping hole, big enough for a golf ball to pass through

in the middle of the cables.

More Tunisian Crochet Cables

2008-04-30T15:48:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm still at it, although research is showing that some cables are not the best in TC.

This is similar to a Banjo Cable from knitting and is done in Tunisian Simple Stitch... the basic Afghan Stitch.

So You Want to Teach Crochet....

2008-04-24T05:23:00.000-07:00

With actresses like Julia Roberts, Tyne Dailey, and Alyssa Milano actually stitching on camera, this has encouraged others to learn how to knit and/or crochet. Yes, you can make money teaching crochet, but there are some steps I recommend you take beforehand, to insure a better sucess.

I strongly suggest that you use a facility or organization or business that is already established to host your classes.

Being associated with an established business will insure a better success rate, and lend important validation to your credibility.

By having your class in a public building, this eliminates certain safety risks and that awkwardness of trying to host classes in your home.

Possible hosts include:

Local Yarn Shops
Retail Chains like Michaels, or Hobby Lobby
City Recreation Departments
YMCA
Continuing Studies Departments of Colleges or Universities
Art Museums (listed as Fibre Arts classes)

I’ve heard one experienced designer convinced her college to let her teach a class in crochet. If I were to teach a class at a college, I would approach these departments:

Art
Psychology- emphasis on stress management and the altered brain waves of needleworkers
Fashion or Interior Design
Physical Education- emphasis on Eye/Hand coordination
Physical Rehabilitation- teaching medical professionals how to crochet, so they can teach their patients how to regain their coordination and hand strength

The flollowing organizations probably won’t be able to host ‘paid’ classes, but you can volunteer your time to gain experience in teaching.

Senior Citizen Centers
Boys & Girls clubs
Boy/Girl Scouts or other Service organizations (I don’t know of any Rainbow or Camp Fire Girls clubs still in existance.)
YWCA (the only one I know of is now a ‘home for troubled girls’)
4F clubs Group
Homes for troubled youths Women’s/Family Shelters
Church Groups (to crochet for charity)

Once you have located businesses or organizations that would be appropriate to host your classes, now you must...

Get organized and Create a Class Curriculum

Whether you are approaching a Local Yarn Shop (LYS), a major hobby store, or an education facility, you must have an organized plan of action.

These are the things I recommend you take with you to the meeting with the class coordinator.

An Outline of each proposed class, and what material will be covered each class meeting
All of your lesson sheets or booklets that will be used in your classes
A list of tools and supplies that the students will need for your class.
The number of hours for each meeting and the number of times you will meet
The Maximum and Minimum number of students you prefer
The Days/Nights and times you prefer to teach, or better yet, those times and days you absolutely cannot teach. Give the organization as much leeway as you can in choosing when to host your classes.
And finally, provide possible marketing descriptions for your classes to be used in catalogs or in-house posters

This level of preparedness clearly illustrates your level of professionalism.

Professionalism helps to overcome a business owner’s or class coordinator’s trepidation of investing time and money to host classes of an ‘untried’ teacher.

Maintaining this level of organization even when you are seasoned veteran teacher will allow you to see what was successful and what wasn’t.

I will NEVER try to teach Granny Squares to a Beginners’ Crochet Class ever again! However, offering a 1 Night Intro to Tunisian Crochet has shown more success than a 4-6 week class.

Make an appointment with the business owner, class coordinator, or programming director and bring all of the Class Curriculum information you have created in the previous section.

DO NOT BE LATE to this appointment, but I don’t suggest you arrive much more than 10 minutes before the appointment. Your time is just as important as theirs, so don’t make it look like you have all the time in the world for this appointment.

Points of Negotiation

When I approached the Continuing Studies Department of my local university, they told me what they could pay me per hour and that was twice what I was expecting. It sounded great on paper, but there are other ways of making more money with the time and energy you invest into a class.

I have used an ‘X amount per Student’ style of payment with recreation departments. I actually make more money that way. If you have more students, you make more money.
For a senior citizen’s jewelry class, I charged only for the supplies, and not my labor.
I would recommend that you open the negotiations by taking ‘$X per student per class meeting,’ so that your classes are 100% self funding. That will then allow the class coordinator to either counter with something better, or at least see that you are willing to share the risk in these new classes.

Registration deadlines are wonderful- if you can convince your class host to use them. The folks in my town will wait until the day of class to sign up, and I never know what to expect.

However, I started including the statement, ‘class size is limited, so register early,’ in all of my class descriptions and most of my students would sign up early.

I have provided the Syllabus I use when I teach classes here:
http://crochetcoalition.blogspot.com/2008/03/arnies-beginning-crochet-classes.html

Also, this blog post details my theory on teaching crochet to modern stitchers.
http://crochetcoalition.blogspot.com/2008/03/arnies-theory-of-teaching-crochet-for.html

©Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved.
For copyright permissions and more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com

Tunisian Crochet Woven Cables

2008-04-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm obsessing on Aran Cables right now... I'll probably be post several of them in the days to come.

Yes, this will be in Book 2.

Tunisian Crochet Braids

2008-04-16T15:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I was so excited at how well some of the Aran stitches are coming along for Book 2, I thought I would share them with you here.

Tunisian Crochet Braids

2008-04-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

Homespun Scraps Lap Throw

2008-04-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

I received some Lionbrand Homespun scraps at a yarn swap with my local needlework group. For fun, I worked them up in Tunisian Simple Stitch and a size M hook.

I really like the 'self-stripping' that the newer Homespun colors achieve.

This is Tabby Mom and one of her kittens.

Homespun Scrap Lap Throw

2008-04-06T16:23:00.000-07:00

Pattern Notation Polls- Results

2008-04-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

I ran numerous polls a few weeks ago to see what folks are wanting in their pattern instructions & notations. Although these are not scientific, and they only represent the opinions of about 150 people, they do seem to accurately reflect what we are hearing on message boards.

The vast majority who responded are seasoned crocheters. These numbers do not reflect the voices of newbie crocheters who may not have learned how to read patterns, yet. Also, 70% of the respondents either learned to crochet first, or crochet is all they do. These numbers do not accurately reflect the attitudes for those who learned to knit first.

There were some points of interest; one that shocked me was that folks who took a class to learn crochet, did not learn how to read patterns in their class! Heads up, teachers, this should be something to include in your crochet classes.
See my blog post:
ARNie’s Theory of Teaching Crochet, http://crochetcoalition.blogspot.com/2008/03/arnies-theory-of-teaching-crochet-for.html
and my syllabus-
http://crochetcoalition.blogspot.com/2008/03/arnies-beginning-crochet-classes.html

Another fact, that I really caught my attention is that the vast majority of folks- 77%- had to learn how to read patterns on their own! If the vast majority of folks are having to use nothing but their own skills to understand pattern notations, then yes, publishers must include more words than the simple stitch counts.

My results on several of the questions reflected a standard bell curve: a few advanced stitchers didn’t need many or any words at all, a few beginners wanted it all- words, pictures, graphs, schematics, but the majority of folks were satisfied with the current methods of writing crochet pattern instructions.

31% prefer either less words, or no words at all ie, symbols, charts and graphs. What surprised me was the high number of people - 21% - who prefer a pattern to read like a book, ie, lots of words to describe what to do.

However, a large enough number of crocheters preferred Schematics, charts and graphs with their patterns, to indicate that these could be something to offer, perhaps for an extra fee. This is one of those instances where I’m seeing that crocheters are recognizing the value of various pattern elements and are showing a willingness to pay more for them. Yet, when given a choice, they are still careful with their spending; those who responded to my polls, preferred to choose which various pattern elements they purchase.

Charts, graphs, and symbols appear to be ‘alien’ concepts to crocheters. A little less than half of the people (who responded) actually preferred symbols; yet, most of those that couldn’t read symbols- wanted to learn. Over half did not know how to read or just didn’t like graphs and charts.

One point showed some change from my polls two years ago: this time, more folks had learned to crochet from someone close to them- like a friend or family member; a smaller number were self taught. Now combine this with the fact that most of the folks had to learn to read patterns on their own, bolsters my belief that the reason crocheters need more words in their pattern instructions is because their stitching skills progress faster than their pattern reading skills. How can people learn to read patterns, if the person teaching them to stitch, had to learn on their own how to read patterns?

Another point that could substantiate this belief, is the fact that 71% of the respondents would take extra steps to work a pattern, no matter how difficult it was to read and understand. This could simply mean that crocheters are tenacious. It is more likely that crocheters would attribute their lack of understanding instructions to be their own weakness, and not that the pattern instructions were badly written.

The remaining poll questions were for the benefit of indie designers and publishers, and the statistics were so close, that I posted the numbers for everyone’s personal interpretation:

What patterns need Stitch Counts for each row?
Afghans & Blankets-complex or simple 42 (36%)
Straight Stitching Garments 26 (22%)
Complex Stitching Garments 69 (60%)
3 Dimensional projects 38 (33%)
Doilies 45 (39%)
I won't work a pattern without row counts. 26 (22%)
Althought there is a majority for Complex Stitching Garments, the remaining results are all so close in stats, that any one of them can't really be 'eliminated' from the list; which makes me believe they are all about equal in importance.

What should ‘Skill Level’ on a pattern designate?
Stitching Skills 40 (34%)
Pattern Reading Skills 32 (27%)
Complex pattern construction 70 (60%)
I hate those insulting labels. 20 (17%)
Although there is an obvious majority for Complex pattern construction, Stitching and Pattern Reading Skills are both individual crocheter's skills. When you add those two together, it does appear that a slight majority believe 'skill level' should reflect the crocheter's skills.

Aran/Fisherman's sweater is Finished!

2008-03-18T09:27:00.000-07:00

Well my quick photography leaves much to be desired.

It isn't blocked, because I'm probably going to dismantle this sweater and I may use a different stitch and will definitley need a shorter length for the sleeves for this particular size.

I'm not disappointed in the finished results, but I will need to do a lot more R&D on this before I will feel comfortable in publishing the pattern.

Oh, FYI, I this will be marketed as an oversized sweater, and I'll probably only have 3 sizes that will 'fit most.'

I will announce at Ravelry and the 'tunisiancrochet' board at Yahoo when the finished pattern will be available for sale.... probably late summer... just in time to have it completed for those cool fall nights.

Fisherman's Sweater- Finished Photos

2008-03-18T09:26:00.001-07:00

The Fisherman's Sweater- Finished Photos

2008-03-18T09:23:00.000-07:00

The Sorting Hat says I belong in Ravenclaw!

2008-03-16T16:46:00.000-07:00

The sorting hat says that I belong in Ravenclaw!

Said Ravenclaw, "We'll teach those whose intelligence is surest."

Ravenclaw students tend to be clever, witty, intelligent, and knowledgeable.
Notable residents include Cho Chang and Padma Patil (objects of Harry and Ron's affections), and Luna Lovegood (daughter of The Quibbler magazine's editor).

Take the most scientific Harry Potter Quiz ever created.

Get Sorted Now!

Tunisian Crochet Fisherman's Sweater- Back

2008-03-12T16:20:00.001-07:00

I have cropped and touched up the photos just a bit.

Tunisian Crochet Fisherman's Sweater- Front

2008-03-12T16:12:00.000-07:00

No sleeves, yet.

Not fully blocked.

Tails still waving...

I have cropped and touched up the photo a bit, since first posting it.

But this is the front of of the TC Sweater I'm designing.

I had to cover the flash with my finger so that the texture would show up better.

ARNie's Beginning Crochet Classes Syllabus

2008-03-07T07:24:00.000-08:00

Supplies Needed:
Size H or I Crochet hook
Scissors
Red Heart Yarn pastel or medium dark colors. Very pale and very dark colors are difficult to see and makes the learning process troublesome. Variegated yarns are also recommended to better see where to stitch.
I strongly suggest you purchase only the Red Heart for this class. The more expensive, textured yarns and threads are much more difficult to work with. You can get very discouraged trying to learn with these yarns.

Lesson #1- Getting Started
We will cover the very basics of Regular Crochet including
Techniques: How to get started, & how to end off.
Stitches: Slip Knot, Chain Stitch, Slip Stitch, Single Crochet Stitch
Projects: We’ll complete at least one Lace Coaster, using the stitches covered in the class.

Spider Web Coaster Instructions
Ch 6, connect to form ring.
Round 1: (Ch 4, Sc into ring) 8 Times. Sl st into 2 chs of 1st Ch4Loop.
Round 2: (Ch 4, Sc into next Ch4Loop) 7 times. Ch 4, and sl st into base of 1st Ch4 Loop. Sl st into 2 chs of the 1st Ch4 Loop.
Round 3: (Ch 5, Sc into next Ch4Loop) 7 times. Ch 5, and sl st into base of 1st Ch5 Loop. Sl st into 3 chs of the 1st Ch5 Loop.
Round 4: (Ch 6, Sc into next Ch5Loop) 7 times. Ch 6, and sl st into base of 1st Ch6 Loop. Sl st into 3 chs of the 1st Ch6 Loop.
Round 5: Ch 1. 3 Sc into this loop. 6-7 Sc in next Ch6Loop, and every other Ch6 Loop. 3 Sc into 1st Ch6Loop. Connect to beg ch, end off and weave threads.

Lesson #2- Working with Rounds
Techniques: Some basic rules when working with round objects, how to attach new colors, and how to weave loose threads, Crochet abbreviations for reading patterns.
Stitches: Double Crochet Stitch
Projects: 2 coasters- Spring/Fall/Winter Flower Motifs,
The following is a tutorial I have that offers some of the finer points on working in rounds. I present a printed version of this for my students.
http://chezcrochet.com/page58.html
http://chezcrochet.com/page59.html
Flower Project Links
http://chezcrochet.com/page86.html
Celtic Ring Granny Squares
http://chezcrochet.com/page40.html

Lesson #3- Plain Ol’ Crochet
Techniques: Crocheting into a chain, Crocheting into a stitch, crocheting around a block, practice reading patterns.
Stitches: Half Double Crochet Stitch
Projects: Ice/Roller Skates, and 1 block with a decorative edging that can be used as a coaster or wash cloth.
HOMEWORK: Crochet 2 blocks like the washcloth for the next class.
Online Pattern links
http://chezcrochet.com/page76.html scroll down for ice/roller skates

Lesson #4- Connecting Blocks, Stars & SNOWFLAKES!
Techniques: How to connect Patchwork pieces together, more practice reading patterns
Stitches: Treble Crochet, Picot Stitch
Projects: Hot pad made from homework blocks, Stars for your Christmas tree or for your Patriotic projects, and Snowflakes (winter or summer- these are so much fun for the students and a great sense of accomplishment.)
Links to online patterns:
http://chezcrochet.com/page74.html Stars
http://chezcrochet.com/page71.html Snowflakes page 1

Lessons #5 & 6- Diagonal Stitch
http://chezcrochet.com/page31.html
Diagonal or Corner to Corner Stitch: A nifty way to create afghans that builds from one corner and decreases into the far corner; creating a perfectly square piece with nice, even edges.

©Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com

For a complete description of my Copyright Permissions click the link below, then click the Back Button on your broswer to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

ARNie’s Theory of Teaching Crochet for a Modern Stitcher

2008-03-07T06:36:00.000-08:00

So many factors affect a modern person’s ability to learn to crochet, and most of them are not conducive for learning this or any other needlework.

Time Shortage- they simply don’t have a lot of time to sit and practice at home.
No one to help- if they are paying to take a class, that means they have no one to help them at home.
Rewired Eye/Hand Coordination- it has been my experience that working with computers: typing, video games, spread sheets, graphics programs... all of this is a completely different type of Eye-Hand Coordination. Spending a lot of time in front of the computer will ‘rewire’ the brain’s Eye-Hand Coordination, so that these folks will truly struggle with manipulating tools.
Instant Gratification- with today’s fast paced lives, they are trained to expect results quickly, and if they don’t get those results quickly, they believe they have failed or this is too difficult for them to continue wasting time on.

Consequentially, I don’t teach crochet classes in a traditional progression of skills. I want my students to feel a sense of accomplishment after every class session; which encourages and empowers them to practice more at home.

I explain the Eye-Hand coordination theory to them, and continuously tell them to be patient with themselves: they are training their brain to do something completely alien. Give it time to learn.

To accomplish these goals, I have designed a curriculum that allows the students to focus on only one thing during a session.

Traditionally, we were taught to crochet into a chain the very first thing. This forces the student to learn the mechanics of the stitching, as well as, stitch placement all at the same time.

Or, we were taught a granny square, which seemed to be one of the most simplest things to learn... unless you have never seen one before, and then it becomes a maze of where to put the hook-when do I chain-which stitches do I skip-where is that stupid corner....

I believe this is too much to learn all at once, especially since folks who take classes usually don’t have anyone at home to help them with finer details, such as recognizing the various parts of the stitch to identify where the hook must go.

Consequentially, my first lessons are all worked in rounds and I don’t focus too much on ‘connecting to the beginning stitch of each round.’ The first stitches they learn are Chains and Single Crochets, and slip stitches.

The mechanics of these are fairly intuitive: the hook grabs the yarn and pulls it through the loop on the hook. The hook goes into a stitch, grab the yarn, pull it through the loop on the hook. Then the next natural progression: the hook goes into a stitch, grab the yarn, pull it through, then grab the yarn again & pull in through to connect it all.

By allowing the student to work with Chains and Single Crochets in rounds, it allows them to focus more on their mechanics and they don’t stress out over finding where the hook goes next.

It's been my experience that this breaks down the various elements of crochet into separate lessons:

First, conquer the Physical aspect of how to manipulate hook and yarn, plus how to get both hands working together in concert
Then, learning the Visual aspect- how to identify the various parts of a stitch and where to place the hook within those parts- is much easier

Separating these skills, and allowing the student to learn one first, allows the Modern Stitcher more success early on. At the end of a two hour session, they can take home a lacy coaster (that won’t look half bad) to show their families. And I can’t tell you how many of these students bring back numerous ‘lacy coasters’ that they worked on over the week.

The next lesson I teach the Double Crochet stitch, since that is the one stitch used most often. I continue to work in rounds, but not working into stitches. I designed a few flower motifs that still work into chain spaces, that will allow students to focus on the mechanics of forming the Double Crochet stitch.

In this lesson, I also teach how to attach new colors, so that they will have colorful Flower coasters to take home. Again, that sense of accomplishment- really caters to a goal oriented person, and if they are paying for a class, they are goal oriented. They won’t have to hide their first crochet projects in a drawer because they look so awful; they can proudly display them to say look what I accomplished in only my second lesson!

This sense of pride and accomplishment does more towards the success of students than anything a teacher can do. No amount of patience, persistence, or tenacity on the teacher's part can compare to the encouragement of the student’s own success; so I give them that success from day one, and every day they leave my class.

After they have learned the Double Crochet stitch, the students are familiar enough with the mechanics that they can focus on the visual aspect of crochet: recognizing the various parts of a stitch to learn where to put the hook in forming new stitches.

The next two classes they learn: Half Double and Treble Crochet stitches, plus picots, how to crochet into a chain- individual stitches, how to crochet two blocks together & how to crochet around a block.

Each lesson has a specific project to further the sense of accomplishment and success. I use Star motifs to teach Trebles, and Plain Ol' Crochet row by row to make a simple washcloth to teach them the Half Double crochet. In these lessons, I also give them some of the snowflake patterns at my site. These are super quick and give my students an enourmous sense of pride in such a short time.

Finally, I spend the last two lessons working on the Diagonal Stitch or Corner to Corner stitch. Yes, this seems like a very complicated technique to teach beginners, however, I had such horrible results with granny squares and mile a minute strips that I will NEVER teach them to a beginner’s class ever again.

The Diagonal Stitch offer students a method of building blankets that will always have a nice straight edge, lots of texture, endless potential for color variation, and allows them to work into a Chain Space, instead of individual stitches.

Even with folks who have been crocheting only 1 month, they learn this method in 2 classes or 4 hours. I encourage them with the words: once you learn this method, you will never want to make blankets row by row. Be patient with yourselves, this is a little complicated, but I would not teach it, if I didn’t believe you could learn it. And for beginners, it offers the best method for creating perfect blankets every time.

All of my tips and tricks for teaching & learning the Diagonal Stitch are in my booklet
Diagonal Magic Primer.
http://chezcrochet.com/page97.html

Finally, if I have a student who continues to struggle after the second week, I put a long hook in their hands and teach them Tunisian Crochet. In my years of teaching, Tunisian Crochet (aka Afghan Stitch) is much easier to teach and to learn. I tell these students that my goal is to teach them a stitching hobby that they can love and have fun with. That does not necessarily mean classic crochet- for them. After they have mastered Tunisian Crochet and trained the mind and hands to work together, then come back to Classic Crochet... if they want to.

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

What your needlework Publisher isn’t telling you....

2008-03-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

All the time, folks ask: how to get into the Crochet Designing business, or how do I get my designs published, or what did I- ARNie- go through to publish my book?

Most folks would think that Needlework Publishing is just like Prose Publishing with all the built in protection of various Intellectual Rights: copy rights, foreign copy rights, multiple printing revenue, revenue if the copyrights are sold to another company, media rights {tv, film, internet}, where do the copyrights go after the publisher takes the book out of print.

In mainstream publishing there is a generalized pay scale based on experience and talent. Each periodic publication states up front what they will pay for a piece, and what steps to follow in submitting a work for publication.

Magazines state up front that they will not pay the author for a piece until the piece is actually published, but the time limit on keeping that piece without paying for it is only a couple of years.

Book publishers negotiate with agents on what the author gets paid or what level of rights the author keeps in exchange for a smaller payment, including royalties or a per centage of future revenues.

Book publishers offer advances or ‘good faith’ payments to authors that they purchase a finished product, but can’t actually pay the full price until the book is actually printed.

Most folks believe that Needlework Publishing is just like Prose Publishing... right? They are both Publishing industries....

Most folks believe this, and I was one of them. The simple fact is that None of this is true for needlework publishers.

Designers get paid one time for their project: no foreign publishing revenues, no revenues when the copyrights are sold to another company, no revenues if the project is used in numerous publications. Only in the last few years have needlework publishers offered royalties for multiple printings of a leaflet/booklet... but it is solely the discretion of the publisher when and if they do a second printing.

Designers loose all Intellectual Rights to the piece: no ‘creative rights’ over changes in the design or instructions, no rights if the editor or publishers would rather market this Man’s sweater as a Plus Sized Woman’s sweater, no rights or revenues if the project is posted on a website or used for other marketing purposes.

There is no standard pay scale for experience and talent; designers must negotiate with each publisher for each design submitted. And no, you can't let a literary agent negotiate for you, because literary agents don’t represent needlework authors or designers. Needlework Designers and Authors don't get paid enough money for literary agents to work with them.

As in mainstream publishing, needlework publishers can ‘accept a design and put it under contract,' but won’t pay for the design until it is actually published in a book or magazine. However, needlework publishers can and do keep those designs under contract for years... 5 years is a general time limit when the publisher will return the copyrights to the designer along with a small compensatory fee, but the publisher is under no obligation to do so, unless stated in the contract.

If a publisher offers revenues or royalties for multiple printings, and then just doesn’t print anymore until the contract runs out with the designer... there are no agents or lawyers involved to hold the publisher accountable.

There are no agents involved to make sure publishers actually use and pay for designs in a timely manner.

There are no business managers to keep track of numerous contracts and the individual details of each contract of all the projects under contract, that haven’t been paid for.

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Conclusion: Selling Finished Crochet Pieces

2008-03-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

In Home Parties
I've had folks in Florida tell me that they host in-home parties (like Tupperware) to sell their finished crochet pieces and they do just fine. However, I did not hear them say they were making a living at this; just pleased with their results.

This sounds like a fabulous way to sell crochet... if you live in a community or apartment complex where you know your neighbors... or if you work in a large office building where folks know each other... This would work, but only if you have a large list of potential clientele that you don’t mind bringing into your home.

You would need a quiet isolated room in your home, where the rest of the family would not be tempted to intrude. Your party room, kitchen, and bathroom would need to be very clean. You would need to have refreshments, and games for ‘ice breakers’... basically, you would need to organize and host parties in your home- quite often to make your crochet pay for itself AND the expenses of hosting frequent parties.

I work out of my home; my husband is a territory sales rep, so neither of us know lots of people that we would want to invite to our home. Also, I have an open floor plan where my ‘entertaining room’ is my tv room and connected to my dining area. And I have a cat who would make the party miserable if he were locked out of that room, and make a nuisance of himself while he was in the room.

Nope, in-home parties would not work for me.

Portfolios & Contract Crochet
I had one lady tell me she created an 'artist’s' portfolio of her finished pieces and took them to local interior decorators. Her services were stitching pieces in the colors/yarns/patterns that the decorator and client chose.

Other ladies have told me they use the portfolio concept to sell their services for stitching samples for several Local Yarn Shops.

At least with this concept, you can create a finished piece ahead of time for the portfolio, and not include those projects/yarns that you absolutely hate to work with. You can also gently guide a customer into what will or will not work with the yarn they’ve chosen.

This could be a viable option, if you live in an area that has the need for a lot of interior decorators/designers. Not so in my little town in the Middle of Nowhere, Texas.

This would be great, if you live in a town with numerous independent yarn stores.... but our Local Yarn Shops have all closed, and they were primarily needle point and cross stitch shops that tried to branch out into knitting and crochet.

I love this idea of a Portfolio, but to be a successful stitcher, you would need to invest in that portfolio as much as artists, actors, & models invest in their portfolios... in other words... you really should let a professional put it together.

You would need to pay a professional photographer for the photos of your designs... and preferably one with experience in photographing things like this. Your ‘professional portrait photographer’ at Sears or WalMart is not a good option.

A top quality portfolio could make you look like a true professional worthy of top pay, but portfolios like that are expensive... and like a high priced craft show... still offers no guarantees at selling your stitching services.

Don’t misunderstand my cynicism here, I think this is a fabulous idea to crochet for pay; but as with any business; you must do your research in order to be successful. And you must be a top notch sales person with this marketing plan; because if you can’t sell the concept to Interior Designers or Yarn Store owners, you won’t have any business.

Contract Crocheting for Publishers...
I have heard that some folks do quite nicely as contract crocheters for publishers. However, I've heard complaints that an editor can dump 3 huge projects in your lap (lace table cloths, queen sized bedspreads with detailed graph work done in sc), and then they get angry when the crocheter couldn't finish all three huge projects in a week or two.

This is where you must be able to meet strict deadlines or have the time to work 8 hours a day crocheting. And your stitching must be perfect and fast, so that you can make a bedspread in a week.

Pattern Tester for Designers & Publishers....
As a pattern tester, you need to be an intuitive crocheter, so you can correct mistakes or ascertain that this is a mistake and how to correct it.

There is ok money in this from major publishers/designers, IF you can convince them to use you.

The biggest problem with contract crocheting and pattern testing is getting your name into the hands of those folks who need those types of crocheters. And honestly, I have no information on how to do that.

Before you approach an interior decorator, or a publisher for contract crocheting, chart available time that you can dedicate to crochet. Interior designers & publishers will have strict deadlines that you must meet, or they can cut your pay, or not pay at all for pieces that are excessively late.

As you can see, there are many many options of getting paid to crochet, but each avenue has it’s pitfalls and risks. Only you can determine what is the best avenue for you, and knowledge is the first step. Research, Research, Research. Armed with enough research and proper planning, you can be successful.

One final option is Designing and Publishing your own projects, and I will cover that in the days/weeks to come.

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Diagonal Stitch in a Circle

2008-03-02T08:35:00.000-08:00

I love the Diagonal Stitch.

I love working from the center out with projects, because that allows you to use what you have on hand... when you run out of one color, you tie on another.

These are patterns I created using the principle mechanics of Diagonal Stitch, but work them in a circle.

http://chezcrochet.com/page97.html Pattern and Booklet Details
http://chezcrochet.com/page92.html ordering instructions

More Diagonal Around the Block

2008-03-02T08:33:00.001-08:00

More examples of working the
Diagonal Stitch Around the
Block... these all start in the
center of the piece and stitch
outwards.

Diagonal Stitch Around the Block

2008-03-02T08:21:00.000-08:00

I love the scalloped edge that Diagonal Stitch creates, so I created a technique that leaves that scalloped edge intact, for instant edgings!

This is also a great technique for using up scraps, or onesies and twosies skeins of yarn.

http://chezcrochet.com/page97.html Pattern and Booklet Details
http://chezcrochet.com/page92.html ordering instructions

Diagonal Stitch-Mazes

2008-03-02T08:16:00.000-08:00

I’m posting some photos of projects I’ve done in Corner to Corner or Diagonal Stitch.

These projects are in Diagonal Magic: Connect as You Stitch

General instructions are located here:
http://chezcrochet.com/page32.html

More Fun with Corner to Corner

You can find more information here:
http://chezcrochet.com/page97.html Pattern and Booklet Details
http://chezcrochet.com/page92.html ordering instructions

ARNie's Diagonal Stitch Projects & Techniques

2008-03-02T08:10:00.000-08:00

Well, I’m taking a break today and posting some photos of projects I’ve done in Corner to Corner or Diagonal Stitch.

All of these techniques have instructions at my site, or can be purchased in booklets at my site.

This is from Diagonal Magic Primer but you can find

general instructions here:

http://chezcrochet.com/page31.html

So you aren't ready to do craft shows...what else is there?

2008-03-01T19:18:00.000-08:00

My area of Texas is inundated with folks who crochet themselves, so I bombed when I tried to sell my finished pieces, but don’t let my disastrous results at craft shows or other sales events deter you from even trying to make your crochet- at least pay for itself.

I’ve heard crocheters all over the US have great success in selling things at craft shows. Keep in mind that their Success, could be less money than I made in my Disasters. Here are a few other ways folks are making money with crochet.

You will get those folks who claim the ‘quality machine made crocheted things in stores’ are much cheaper than what you are asking for your products.
You can explain, that the mechanics of crochet are impossible to recreate with a machine; every piece of cheap crochet you find in a store was crocheted by hand, by ‘slave labor’ in a third world county.

Unfortunately, there are a gazillion variables that can determine your chances of making money with crochet: your locale, the demand & appreciation for hand made goods, the time you can devote to your work, your abilities, your cash flow management as an entrepreneur, your ability to work under a deadline, etc.

These are my experiences, or what folks have told me they do, and I include the negatives I considered when making my decision on how to be profitable with crochet.

Special Orders....

I did crochet a few special order pieces for folks, but have since stopped. When folks pay even a little extra for something that is specially designed for them, they expect nothing less than perfection... even if their idea of perfection is impossible to attain.

When customers asked about my doing a special order blanket, they would choke when I wanted $200 for a large piece, not including the yarn. They could buy the same thing at Wal Mart for $30. (not really, but that was their attempts to shame me into lowering my prices).

I would then offer to teach them to crochet so that they could spend 60+ hours crocheting their piece and only pay $50 bucks for the yarn. At this time the tension would be so high, that they would leave muttering that they would get their grandma to do it and she wouldn't charge them at all, not even for the yarn!

My thoughts were: if you would do that to your grandma, then I don't want to do business with you...

I’ve had folks write to me from all over the country saying they are pleased with their special order business, and I’ve had just as many folks tell me they refuse to do special orders any more.

Those that do special orders, these are the limits the place on their services:

They do only certain projects: like baby blankets or other smaller pieces.
They have a product list and offer to stitch in different colors or different types of yarn/thread.
They place a reasonable delivery date for the special order: 2 weeks or more for blankets.
They set their price, and terms ahead of time, and do no negotiate. I want $XX to stitch this baby blanket; you buy the yarn; I keep the leftovers.
They DO NOT stitch anything and everything folks ask of them.

The one time I did a big special order, I lost money on the deal. I spent hours working with Boucle yarn, mailed the piece to her, it wasn't exactly like she wanted, so she mailed it back and I had to carefully frog half the piece in Boucle yarn and then re-stitch it. Did I mention that I frogged Boucle yarn? yeah, it was that nasty. :-P

I have crocheted a few other special orders, that weren’t as painful as this, but with none of them did I make enough money to cover the amount of time I spent.

This is the one important aspect of Special Order crochet: you get no choice on what you are crocheting- even if the yarn and design are not working together, you still have to finish the piece. (boucle yarn comes to mind.)

Some folks have told me they are pleased with their 'special order' crochet sales, but that they had to limit the types of projects they do or they would be overwhelmed with projects.

Which made me think: If they are turning customers away, they were undervaluing their labor in their pricing. Yet, if they go up on their prices, they would loose many of their customers.

Also, many of the ladies who do Special Order crochet were retired with social security checks, so their crochet was supplemental income. It paid for their hobby.

I have never heard the Special Order Crocheters say what happens to pieces that they work up and then the customers turned down. My 2 dozen shawls comes to mind, that I'm sure I made some battered women and their daughters quite happy, but I made no money on the deal.

Tomorrow’s Post: Parties & Portfolios

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

CP- Pattern Notation and written instructions

2008-02-29T16:07:00.000-08:00

Howdy,

If you don't mind or have a few minutes, would you click on the Comments section and tell me what is the single most important thing to you , when looking at and reading the pattern instructions. What element helps you to determine: Oh, I just gotta make this pattern; or I'll never try this pattern.

The polls are designed to let you -the average crocheter- give a Designer your thoughts on what is great about current pattern instructions and what makes you so angry you could scream.

I'll be posting the results in two weeks.
ARNie

Part 8: Bells, Whistles and Signage

2008-02-28T15:25:00.000-08:00

Both my Husband and my friend Beverly preach Signage Signage Signage. In their retail training, they were taught to put a sign on everything; signs will draw folks to a product.

The key to signing your booth is simplicity. I always had fun with fancy fonts and graphics and it usually was a waste of supplies. I have learned to keep things very simple: Name of Product and Price. In Big Bold Lettering. Black lettering.... and a few colored graphics or borders around the lettering... can't help it; I love color. And those signs must be at eye level... my mistake was trying to put the signs at My eye level... I'm 6'1"... I tower over most of my customers, so I've learned to keep my signs at their eye level. Eye level is Buy level.

I also have chosen to Price Point my products instead of trying to tag each individual item. Hot pads are one price, wash cloths are one price, coaster sets are one price.... everything on this table is one price.

This became my number one labor saver. Some items sell better at different times of the year, so I could mark them a little higher. The customers at some shows prefered multiple piece gift sets with a different pricing structure. It things got dusty at an outdoor show, it was no major chore to drop them in a washer, since I didn't have to remove tags.

Price Pointing your product- instead of tagging every individual piece- allows you more freedom in providing what a clientele wants at any given venue. And you don't have to spend the money on purchasing little tags... that can make your merchandise look shop worn, when those tags get dirty.

I’ve had great success with Assortable or Multiple selling. Buy 1 for $5, 2 for $8, 3 for $9, 5 for $10. This puts money in the cash drawer, and draws people into the booth to look.

Every Crafter has told me to have some cheap little item, to ‘pay the booth rent.’ I have put that inexpensive item in the front of the booth to act as a Bell and Whistle. The sign with a small price can draw folks into a booth just as easily as the colorful blankets/afghans that line the walls.

Bells and Whistles (something my husband preaches) are those unique aspects to your booth that will draw people in from the aisle. You can’t sell merchandise unless folks come into the door of your ‘store.’

Signs are an excellent way to draw folks into your booth.
The Multiples Discounts/Assortable Pricing have been a big success with me, but your Signs-detailing these discounts- must be easy to see from the Aisle.
Offering a Free Gift with $XX purchase is another trick.
Having a ‘clearance’ section in the back corner of the booth will also draw folks in.
I have tied bunches of helium balloons to the corners of my booth to make it stand out... but the only people who saw them were kids who wanted to buy them.
Shiny- sparkling things will draw folks in, so I used ‘remnant’ squares of sparkly fabric as table skirts.
Again, the only people who were drawn to the sparkly fabric were kids... who would drag mom into the booth.
I have used portable stereos with ‘soothing’ music (which is why so many stores used to pipe in Muzak: studies showed that people spent more when they were relaxed.) But most craft shows are now banning portable stereos- if everyone has music playing, it becomes noise.

I don’t pay extra for electricity and lighting, since it never paid off for me....not even with my jewelry.

My most successful Bells and Whistles were Assortable Discount Signs, my room dividers with colorful crocheted blankets & the tall bakers' racks with my pattern books on them.

When you are visiting craft shows and other sales venues; look at the booths that are getting the most attention, and also look at those booths that no one seems to even notice. What is catching attention? What is it about the 'invisible' crafter that no one wants to visit their booth? Sometimes you learn more of what 'not' to do, and that information is just as valuable.

Tomorrow’s Post... ARNie’s experience has convinced me not to do craft shows... what else is there?

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Part 7: The Nuts and Bolts of Booth Design

2008-02-27T07:00:00.000-08:00

I have two people in my life that are ‘Retail Lifers’ and both have had extensive training on product presentation and how to ‘sell’ anything.

My husband believes that a craft show booth should have the front of the booth lined with tables, so that the products are ‘front and center’ and I sit behind the tables talking to customers... He prefers a Trade Show setup.

This is drastically limits the space you have for displaying products, but certainly allows plenty of room for you and any backstock.... just remember to leave a hole/door for you to leave the booth for restroom breaks, etc.

My Good Friend, Beverly, prefers to line the outer edges of the booth with product and allow the customer to step into the booth to shop without being jostled by the traffic in the aisle. She prefers a Country Peddler Craft Show set up.

Beverly is always telling me that folks will want to touch and closely examine all of my finished crochet items. They can’t really do that if they are being jostled by other shoppers, while they stand in the aisle.

However, you must invest in a double wide booth, if you are going to allow folks to step into your booth. Nothing kills sales quicker than claustrophobia- yours or the customers.

Either one of these- in general- is perfectly sound marketing... depending on your product.

My husband’s training has taught him that the color Red catches folks’ eyes the quickest and will sell products faster. Which explains the cover of my book, despite all other needlework publishers choosing to use pastel colors on the covers of their books.

However, it’s been my experience that lots of color will draw folks into the booth... if they are neatly displayed in rows and columns. Having lots of color that is scattered around, just makes a booth too busy to look at and see anything.

Nothing screams ‘amateur’ like a card table without a floor length skirt.

Amateur screams ‘shoddy construction and low quality products.’
Always, Always, Always, cover your tables with skirts that reach to the floor.
This also allows you to hide your travel trunks/boxes and back stock, ice chests for your lunch and snacks, thermoses, or travel mugs.
I prefer to use Black Cloth to skirt my tables, since this is a technique Artists use on paintings. Dark colors in the ‘background’ make all the lighter colors really stand out and catch attention. I have about 24 yards of fabric I bought at a thrift store. I have left the fabric in this long length, and I use packing tape to 'affix' it to my tables. I then put another cloth on top to hide the tape. This allows me to change the configuration of my tables from year to year.
Remember, you are selling Merchandise, not fixtures, so make the fixtures as invisible as possible.

The best display piece I’ve seen (and used myself) for displaying blankets is a free standing Room Divider. (Actually, my fixtures were designed to be towel holders in a bathroom- a Hobby Lobby find).

These can easily be used as your Booth Boundaries, instead of having to invest in special apparatus that supports a curtain, or a collapsible tent. Keeping your Costs down helps keep your profits up.

Also, by using display fixtures to create your booth boundaries, you cut down on what must be stored and carried to sales events. KISS... Keep It Simple to Store!

Room Dividers are easy to carry, set up and fold up; they collapse into an flat space, so they don’t take up a lot of storage space; they keep colorful blankets in nice neat rows/columns to make their colors easier to see... and they can be very inexpensive- compared to other traditional display fixtures.

Watch the hobby store adds for 40% off coupons and clearance sales of their furniture/ room dividers. You can also use gardening Trellises for this purpose; just connect two or three matching trellises together with strap ties or links of chain. You can get these on clearance at the end of your growing season at national home supply stores.

OH, not every room divider will work. It must have horizontal rungs that extend across the width of the piece, to make it easier to hang blankets. I have seen woven wicker room dividers, that with a lot of work to remover the wicker, would reveal the horizontal rungs for blanket display.

Now, room dividers with numerous compartments or grid-work can be ideal for scarves and towel toppers.

If grid work trellises/room dividers are all you can find, you can use clothes pins or bull dog/pinch clips (office supplies) to hang smaller blankets on them; that technique is not as professional looking, but will work in a pinch.

For space management and effective shopping, use tables that are only 18-24 inches wide. Trust me, trying to put more merchandise out on wider tables, does not sell it better. Folks can’t reach things across a wider table, and they just can’t ‘see’ everything on a 3 foot wide table.

This also frees up space inside your booth.

Every square inch has display potential. You’ve paid for that space, USE IT. This is why so many crafters are going with the ‘wire grid’ system for their walls: it allows them to display merchandise all the way up the walls.

However, so many cafters are using this system, that your booth could melt right into the booths surrounding it. You always want your booth to be unique, so it will entice folks in. Also, that grid system requires support mechanisms that require tools and do you really want that much work in just setting up display fixtures?

I have used collapsible Baker’s Racks in my booth to utilize that ‘upward’ display space. Again, they can certainly act like a boundary or wall for my booth, especially when I use clothes pins or pinch clips to attach a colorful blanket to the back of it. They are easy to fold up and store, or, set up and use them to house the craft show inventory at home.

Best of all, they have a value of their own, if your situation changes and you don’t need them, you can sell them and recoup your costs. Only professional Crafters will want to buy a grid-wall system, or a collapsible tent.

OH, I don’t recommend using a collapsible tent for indoor craft shows. The lighting is bad enough without having a canvass ‘roof’ blocking out that light. Don’t think that adding ‘lights’ under that tent will help either; they trap a lot of heat, and when combined with body heat from lots of customers... you are setting up a situation where folks will not take time to shop.

Where to put your ‘office or cashier area’ , ie, where you sit...that is your choice, and I’ve seen it two different ways that seem to work the best for my area.

Some vendors- who buy double or triple booths- will line the boundaries with display fixtures and put themselves in the middle of the both-front and center- at a table. That allows shoppers to walk in behind the vendors as they shop the walls.
The drawbacks to this set are: it can get very tight behind that table when you and customers are trying to squeeze into only 4-5 feet of space. With you sitting at the front of your booth facing out, and your product behind you, you cannot watch for shoplifters, and you cannot see if customers are needing assistance. You make more sales if you can easily and quickly offer to show a customer something you have in back stock.

The other method that works well in my area is to put you and your office- either in a back corner or down one side of the booth- always behind a table. This allows you ‘personal space’ that customers can’t get to- especially your cash box or register. Since you are facing the product and customers, it will help deter shoplifters and will allow you to easily address your customers.

I have put that table at the back of a single booth, to allow my customers to step out of the aisle to shop. I couldn't afford a double booth at this show, and putting the table and the office at the back of the booth was the best option. However, there wasn't much space for us vendors and the back stock, and the table had to be moved every time my partner or I had to leave.

Tomorrow’s Post: Bells, Whistles and Signage

Part 6: Nooks, Crannies & Niches

2008-02-26T08:43:00.000-08:00

Finding that Niche of Profit

When I first started attending craft shows, I tried to carry a little bit of everything I did: jewelry and crochet from small to large, cheap to pricey. I thought that might be the best way to see what would sell and a general price range...and my success was dismal; I almost always covered my booth rent, but rarely made more than the expenses of the entire weekend.

So I began to study all of the ‘professional’ craft show vendors; first of all, they attended a craft show every single weekend.

I discovered that they all had one thing in common: they had one thing or one category of things they sold.

The leather worker didn’t sell gold and silver jewelry; he sold hand tooled leather pieces.

The man who hand worked exotic woods, didn’t sell hand stitched dish rags; he sold hand crafted wooden bowls, pens, and such.

The couple that worked together: he sold his photographic art, she sold her knitted wash cloths and slippers- not blankets or baby sweaters... just wash cloths and slippers. The photographic art took up most of their double booth, and she had a table with all her knitted products.

From my experience, you must find a niche and do nothing but that niche to be profitable with crochet at craft shows or other sales venues.

I know of a family that does nothing by crocheted towel toppers, and wash rags. That’s it. But they have hundreds of sets of these on hand at all times. They have more variety of towel designs than most retail stores in our area.

They took their little niche, and they fill every nook and cranny of their double booth with a variety of that 'niche product.'

And they make enough money at it, that they have been doing it for years.

The key is: to have numerous copies of that one thing... in every color of the rainbow and every color for every style of stitch you do.

Inevitably, if you make a washrag in a shell stitch with blue yarn, someone would claim to want a dozen in yellow... if you had them right now. You will always have someone wanting a pink baby blanket in the same stitch of this green one- but they don't like the stitch of the pink blanket you do have... or they'll want this baby sweater in a different color and a larger/smaller size.

OH, and never commit to fulfilling these requests unless they are willing to put half the money down that day... or it is something that you normally carry and will sell another day. Rarely do these kinds of customers return to buy that item you rushed to finish over night.

Unfortunately, in my part of Texas, only a few crochet things sell very well: baby stuff and kitchen stuff and -later in the year- Christmas decorations. These are generally smaller items that can be sold at a smaller price and still make a profit.

In today's market, customers are accustommed to variety, and as merchants, we must supply that variety, or we won't sell what we do have. Whatever your research tells you is the niche of crochet for your area, you must have a large selection for folks to choose from. At least, this is what the most successful crocheters in my part of Texas are doing.

I finally realized that I simply could not handle the high level of repetitive stitching to sell finished crochet items, so I chose to do what I’m best at: writing books on crochet and designing for patterns. My book sales have been successful: I sold through the first printing of the book in 18 months, and I’m partially through the second printing that had 5 times the number of units from the first printing.

Now that I’m adding more pattern booklets, my sales for those are increasing... but these are all online sales. I sell enough online, that I don’t take the risk for doing a lot of craft shows in my area... yet. (I do have plans to start doing more sales events in the future, but my health/allergies tend to limit what I can do out of town.)

Finally, when you are writing up your pros and cons of trying to sell your finished crochet pieces, there are some basic things to consider:

Do you have a monthly sales event where you can develop a return customer base? Constant exposure is critical to developing a profitable crochet business. If they don’t want it now, they know they can buy it from you when they do need it.
Can you devote every weekend or at least twice a month to doing sales events?If not, you probably won’t be successful, and you should consider other ways of selling finished crochet pieces.
Can you afford to pay for the gas, lodging, and food to travel out of town to shows? Is the booth rent and other expenses (food & lodging) cheap enough that you can afford to loose that money? No matter how well the organizer advertises, there are no guarantees you will sell your crochet.
Is your family financially sound enough to cover potential losses for the first few years, until your business develops a steady clientele?

Tomorrow’s post: The Nuts and Bolts of Booth Design

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Why I Sneeze...

2008-02-25T15:43:00.000-08:00

I had a migraine yesterday, which told me that the weather was changing.

This afternoon, I began to sneeze my head off, and when I looked outside... the color of the sunlight was gray... and I knew we had a dirt storm blowing in.

This shot was taken at 5:30 pm CST, Feb 25, 2008.

The red tint of the sky is good ol' west Texas dirt.

The bright thing in the middle is the Sun.

No, there are no clouds.

Part 5: Why is that kitten sleeping in a Muffin Hat?

2008-02-25T10:02:00.000-08:00

Answer.... because I had dozens of them and didn’t know what to do with them. No, not really, but a good title catches the attention.

Don’t make my biggest mistake: crochet a lot of things ahead of time, that you cannot give away as gifts.

I had wanted to take advantage of our active historical re-enacting community and a local Renaissance Faire, so I made dozens of crocheted shawls, & sewed muffin hats from satin and plaid flannel.

While I was busy crocheting all these shawls and sewing all those muffin hats, the Renaissance faire in our area had an embezzler keeping their books and they went bankrupt. I never got an opportunity to sell my crocheted shawls and muffin hats to their targeted audience. I didn't have enough merchandise to try for a larger RenFaire in a big city, and couldn't afford to travel 5-600 miles round trip every weekend for 2 months.

In my college days, I was marketing director for a Science Fiction/Fantasy Convention, and I remembered that the convention had a huge SCA attendance, as well as D&D gamers in costume.

I decided to take my products to the SF convention and sell them to the Fantasy and SCA people. However, I failed to ask about that SCA element before I paid my rent... only to find out that this convention had been taken over my combat video gamers when their local Convention went under.

The SF Convention organizers didn’t bother to ask the SCA to participate at the convention, and they weren't interested in D&D-so they didn't schedule matches...so the customers who would have bought my hats and shawls...didn’t come.

I tried to sell my shawls at another Old West Rendezvous and to online sutlers, but the Civil War and Frontier re-enactors didn't want my shawls in man made fibers, nor the muffin hats.

After storing these for several years, I gave the muffin hats to our local Cancer Society for chemo caps, and the shawls to our battered women's shelter... only to have shawls and ponchos become all the rage 6 months later.

Trying to keep up with trends is a very difficult thing for a small business owner. You can drive yourself crazy trying to ride the waves of the Fads, that are usually gone, before the average crocheter can catch up. You can also create serious financial hardships, if you spend serious money on supplies for finished items you can’t sell.

I got extremely lucky (depending on who you ask) when my local Hobby Lobby had a management turn over and they marked half of the yarn department 75-90% off. I bought $300 worth of brand new yarn, for $75.

I made all those shawls, from that yarn; plus towel toppers and hot pad/coaster sets, and gazillion other little things. I could afford to give those shawls away, because I had very little expense in them.

Do your research before you invest too much time and money in crocheting your items to sell at various venues in your area. At the very least, crochet those things that you can use as gifts for family and friends.

Tomorrow’s Post: Nooks, Crannies & Niches

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
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Crochet Partners: Yardage vs. Ounces

2008-02-24T19:08:00.000-08:00

Howdy, folks, excuse me for a minute while I post a response to some dialog going on at Crochet Partners Yahoo group.

The original post complained vehemently that designers should be considerate enough to post 'yardage' requirements for their designs instead of generalized ounces. Others chimed in with similar complaints: why not use the number of skeins- instead of ounces; why do designers use the most expensive yarns for their cutest designs; why use yarns that aren't 'excessively' available and affordable.... yada yada yada... we've all heard these complaints a million times.

Rather than create more tension at CP, I'm posting my thoughts here....

A. Don't blame the Designer; their hands are chained. (okay so I couldn't resist that pun. ;-)

You can trust me on this one: all Crochet Designers would much rather use yardage requirements than ounces-simply because that is more accurate, but if a yarn is sold in ounces, then that is how we must 'measure' the usage.
The common crocheter will not understand how to compute yardage into ounces, and ounces into yardage.
I've worked with Jan Q. Public, and you can never underestimate the stupidity of Jan Q. Public. When selling merchandise to the public, you must cater to the least intelligent, because they can't do it for themselves.
(just ask the lawn mower company who had to pay millions in damages to a family who tried to trim their bushes by turning the lawn mower on its side. Now the lawn mower company must include instructions that 'the lawn mower' cannot be turned on its side to trim hedges and bushes.)
Trying to use a formula that computes ounces into yardage, is not the best, either. If a yarn is measured in ounces, a skein can be off by a few grams, and still be within accepted weights, but the yardage is way short. I cannot tell you how many times I've run out of yarn on a project, because not all skeins have the same yardage-when they are measured by the ounce.
Designers can't use the 'skein count' for patterns, because the yarn manufacturers are changing the size of skeins so often. You look at older patterns that use a skein count, and if you are lucky, they will tell you how much the skein weighs. 5 skeins of yarn, can have a radically different amount of yarn from just a few years ago, and in a few more years.
Since most designs are- in some way or another- supported by a yarn company, then designers must use the types of yarns that yarn companies want to promote.
If you are designer trying to make a living, you must design what a publisher will buy.
If you are a publisher, you must publish designs that will cater to your largest advertisers: yarn companies.
Designers don't always get a choice in what yarn is used in their designs after they sell it to a publisher- whether that is a periodical publication that must depend on yarn company ads to survive, or a yarn company using the design for a marketing tool.
Make no mistake, most patterns are designed to sell yarn, not the other way around.

B. There are numerous reasons why the industry -as a whole- treats Crocheters like Foster Kids; and folks, the problem is largely based on how we shop. We have no one, but ourselves to blame.

More and more, I'm seeing crochet designs using minimal instructions, much like Knitting instructions or some publishers are using more graphs.
This is much easier for the designer to write; the publisher to print; and greatly reduces the final cost of a design because less labor and supply costs went into that pattern.
This would make Crocheters appear to be 'lazy,' since most crocheters want pattern instructions that explain stitch by stitch, row by row, what to do... like spoon feeding information to school children.
Knitters don't use row by row, stitch by stitch instructions... the designer and publisher expect the knitter to be (dare I say this...) smart enough to be able to figure out what to do on their own.
We just finished a conversation at Crochet Partners about who does and doesn't like 'symbol' crochet notations... and from my imperfect memory, it seemed like most folks don't like symbol notations.
Crocheters want pattern notations that are more expensive to produce, but then they purchase the least expensive thing they can find.

I did a survey two years ago, asking Crocheters various questions on their spending habits and what they prefer to crochet. The results validated most of what I suspected:

The Majority of Crocheters prefer to use inexpensive yarns, simple classic designs-if they crochet clothing- and stitch utilitarian projects more than anything else.
They don't keep their finished projects, they give them as gifts to family and friends or to charity groups.
They crochet more items in a year than knitters, and because crochet uses much more yarn than knitting, crocheters feel they must use inexpensive yarns/threads.

You probably won't believe, this, but my sister and I had this conversation this morning: If Crochet uses more yarn than knitting, and crocheters finish more projects than knitters, then why won't yarn companies cater to us Crocheters? Why won't they supply what we want? My sister doesn't crochet, and she had the answer:

Because Knitters spend more money than we crocheters do.

I offer my humblest apologies to those who don't fit into this next statement:

If you don't like the way things are, whining about it won't help. You must actually DO something, to make a difference.

If you prefer yardage measurements, then buy only those yarns that provide that information on the label; and yes, you will need to pay more for that yarn.

If you want top quality patterns that use yardage measurements, instead of generalized ounces, then you will need to pay more for them.

If you are angry that this cute design uses a yarn that you can't afford, and why don't they make that cute design in a cheap yarn... then you will need to learn how to design your own things, or how to translate other patterns with your yarn of choice.

If you want someone to tell you stitch by stitch how to create this cute/hip/trendy design, then you will need to pay more for it.

As a whole, we crocheters need to stop relying on designers to spoon feed us stitch by stitch instructions, and learn how to 'figure some things out on our own.'

Understand, folks, that I am one of you. I buy Red Heart, because it was cheap and with my allergies I couldn't work with animal fibers. I buy yarn at thrift stores, and yes, two days ago I bought an 8 oz skein of unmarked yarn-probably Red Heart- for 50 cents. I learned this from my grandmother, who never bought 'new' yarn- she crocheted the scraps that friends would give her or what she could find at garage sales.

I rarely buy new patterns, because they are the same pattern on the clearance table as they are hot off the press. The single most important reason I don't buy new patterns is because most patterns don't fit a woman who is 6'1" and a plus size. For me, I will spend more on Red Heart to crochet a sweater than what I could purchase a completed sweater at Wal Mart... yes, even I have said those dreaded words.

I am finally learning that Crochet is an Art and my work deserves better quality supplies.

Until we all believe that we are Artists who deserve top quality supplies and be willing to pay top dollar for those supplies, we must accept our place as Foster Kids in the needlework industry.

The simple truth is:

if we want the industry to treat Crochet and Crocheters with the same level of respect as they do Knitters;
if we want the industry to invest in our hobby as much as they do knitting,
then we will need to spend more money.

Money talks, and if you don't like the status quo, buy the things that knitters buy... or learn to design your self with the yarns you can afford.

Oh, the article I wrote from that survey can be found here:

http://chezcrochet.com/page87.html it is a lengthy article... 4pages long.

Sorry, folks, I offer my humblest apologies, but I fought a migraine all day, and I really got cranky at all the whining. Get real. You cannot expect Champagne Quality for the price of tap water. I've been one of the cheapest crocheters on the planet, but I accepted that fact and learned how to cope. Now, I'm learning how to cope in a different way: if you are going to put that much work into something, then it is worth quality supplies.

Part 4- You get what you pay for- right?

2008-02-24T17:14:00.000-08:00

In this series of blog posts, I’m offering my experience on trying to sell finished pieces at craft shows, so you can learn from my mistakes.

Don’t base your decision on whether to do a craft show/flea market/ art show, etc...based solely on the cost of the Rent. I’ve done some really cheap events, that had great turn out, and lots of folks buying merchandise.

Although I’ve never done a really expensive show, I have attended them as a customer and crochet vendors were only selling enough to cover expenses.

Don’t forget to include the other expenses for a weekend show like lodging, food, gas to-and-from the event. An inexpensive show that forces you to ‘live out of a hotel room’ for a weekend, makes the cheap booth rent no so cheap.

Is the booth rent cheap enough that you can afford to loose that money?

Expensive booth rent isn't always a sign of a good show. A lack of advertising can completely kill a show, and expensive booth rents usually mean lots of advertising.

As I mentioned in "You be the Judge', lots of advertising for the event cannot guarantee a good turn out, nor can it guarantee that actual buyers will show up (instead of Look Lous), nor will it guarantee that they will buy your crochet instead of the tacky bird house made from milk jugs.

You need to be prepared to loose that money should that be the weekend customers decide to spend their money elsewhere or spend their money on other things besides your crochet.

We have a 'juried' craft show in my hometown that gets tons of paid advertising and local media coverage, because the craft show is part of the winter Rendezvous hosted at our local Frontier Fort. All entry fees into the compound support the restoration efforts of the fort. The Rendezvous is the first weekend of December, the height of holiday buying season.

This is a huge weekend affair with historical re-enactors in costume and chuck wagon cook-offs, and cannon's shooting and buffalo soldiers, all of the Forts on the Texas Forts Trail bring living historians in military costume and they all do flag raising drills and horse maneuvers.

This craft show has everything going for it: entertainment for the kids- while mom shops, lots of vendors with lots of products, it’s at the height of holiday giving season...but too much activity can distract shoppers from actually buying things.

I usually visit this show, simply because there are so many other activities going on. I've heard folks say they sold out on the first day of this show, and yet, I've been there (more times than not) when you could fire off a 21-gun salute and not hit a single customer.

Even though the organizers claim that 30,000 people come to the event, $450 for an 8x10 foot booth, is not worth the risk for me, especially when the building is not climate controlled and does not have indoor plumbing... remember this is in an Old Frontier Fort.

I actually participated in this show as a ‘sutler’ in the historical re-enactor section ($75 rent & you must supply your own tent). A friend brought her tent that we set up by ourselves. The weather was beautiful on Saturday, and the customer traffic was the best I had seen in 10 years.

Sunday, we had the worst winter storm in 5 years hit, which killed all potential sales that day.... the day when most folks with money like to shop.

My friend made about $300 with her historically accurate jewelry, that she sold mostly to re-enactors. I barely covered my costs for the weekend selling my crochet books to customers. For the amount of work I had put into that show... I considered it a dismal failure.

Even if you have done your year of market research, it is still a gamble; and you must be prepared to loose that money. Only you know what your financial situation is and whether a high priced booth rent is worth the gamble.

Tomorrow’s Post: Why is that kitten sleeping in a Muffin Hat?

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
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Part 3- Cottage Industry Espionage

2008-02-23T17:57:00.000-08:00

Cottage Industry is a fancy term for small, home-based businesses, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t use a little 'recon' to ascertain what would be good for our business.

Ok, so maybe espionage is a bit strong... doing research on what to sell, where to sell it, and any tips seasoned veterans will share... you can't really call that espionage.

Once you have an idea of who shops/attends a sales venue, and what folks in your area like to buy, next look at the vendors at the various venues.

How many other vendors in the show are selling crocheted items? Don’t make my mistake: just because a show has no crochet vendor, doesn't mean that you can step in to fill that niche and make lots of money. The lack of crochet vendors could mean that crochet vendors couldn't sell at that show, so they don't return.

Approach the director/organizer of the venue- like you are a customer- and ask if they have ever had any crochet vendors, because you were looking for a baby blanket. Ask this question, and he might give you an answer that is more than a half truth.

DO NOT approach the director as a potential vendor and ask why there are no crochet vendors; he will give you an answer designed to secure your booth rent the next time they host an event.

Are there numerous vendors with the same type of merchandise? Too many vendors selling the same basic items can drop the value, by offering too much competition for a specific item.

Is there a wide variety of products offered; lots of products will draw in larger crowds, because there is something to appeal to everyone. The larger the crowds, the more potential customers for your product.

What types of crocheted items do you see vendors offering?

You must be cautious in how you approach vendors; commiserate with them how people love your crochet, but your family and friends don’t want to pay you for the work it involves. If you start with something like this, most of the time, crochet vendors are polite enough to talk to you.

They will generally talk about the current show, and their favorite shows in the area and even the types of things they sell. They probably won’t tell you what they sell the most of, because they don’t want you to become a competitor, but they will give you some valuable information.

The one thing most folks won’t talk about: what is the Dollar Amount they consider a Success. For some folks, that means covering booth rent and a few dollars extra. For some folks, leaving a show less that $5000 was a disaster.

About the only thing I could get folks to tell me was, if they covered booth rent, and what sold best: big ticket or small ticket items.

Now that I am an established vendor at the largest craft show in my area, I do go around on Sunday and openly ask vendors, "Are you doing well this year? Have you had a good show?" And I openly tell them how my sales are doing. Again, I commiserate with them, and I gain valuable information... but I also share valuable information.

It is my opinion that if you improve a venue in general, everyone can benefit. If we all understand why type of merchandise and what price range the customer base wants, we can all gain more sales if we deliver what the customers want.

Taking time to learn the customers and vendors at various sales venues, will save you money, time and effort when you do start selling your crochet. Knowing this information will allow you to better choose which events/venues will garner you better results, as well as, what merchandise to take to various events.

Tomorrow’s Post: You get what you pay for- right?

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
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Part 2- You Be The Judge and Jury

2008-02-22T06:27:00.000-08:00

In this series of blog posts, I’m offering my experience on trying to sell finished pieces at craft shows and other sales venues, so you can learn from my mistakes.

Research the craft shows, craft malls, community art shows, and open air or flea markets- BEFORE you pay rent; this means you should spend 1 entire year visiting every selling venue you would want to attend as a vendor, and visit them all at different times in the year.

As I said yesterday, When you visit these venues is important, too.

It’s been my experience that Craft Malls and Flea Markets do the majority of their business on the First Saturday of the month. That is when folks have the most money to spend, since they tend to run out of paycheck before the end of the month.

For Craft Shows, Saturday is usually the best shopping day. Friday afternoon shows, don’t get the professional folks who must work; Sunday afternoons between 2 and 4 have their own type of shopper that knows what they want-how much they can spend-and don’t waste time browsing.

When you visit a selling venue, you want to take note of:

How many folks are walking around with bags of merchandise they have purchased?
Did the majority of visitors leave their purses in the trunk of the car?
How many visitors are in small groups of ladies that are carefully studying merchandise, but not buying?
How many visitors have numerous children buzzing around them getting into trouble?
How many folks are aimlessly walking and carrying food?
What is the noise level?
Do the organizers make loud announcements every 10 minutes making it almost impossible to speak to customers?
Do they have a live band near by with amplifiers that, again, make it impossible to talk to customers?

For your own financial well being, and the safety of you and your product, you need to ascertain if this venue:

is truly a 'buying event' for the community
or a place for the Looky Lous to steal your ideas (Looky Lous are folks who look, but don’t buy)
or {shudder} is this a carnival type of event where parents drop kids off, while mom spends her time and money elsewhere.

Look at the attire of the customers:

Are they well dressed, or at the very least, neat and tidy?
Do they look interested in the products?
Or do their eyes look glassy and glazed over from boredom?
What age groups are represented?
Does it seem like one age group has more people than other age groups?
Does it seem like many of the customers all work in similar jobs?

If they are all retired folks, that could mean limited income. Older, limited income folks only purchase small ticket items, and more times than not, they are looking for things for their grandchildren.

Young professionals generally want more home decor type items OR very chic fashion items; but in my part of Texas, young professionals with money don’t shop at craft shows or open air markets or craft malls.

Teenagers usually want trendy fashion items, but don’t usually have the money to pay for things... so watch them carefully; they aren’t afraid to us a ‘five finger discount’ (shoplift).

A customer base of families will generally buy baby items or things for toddlers, and inexpensive kitchen items. Do you see see a lot of Dads and adolescent boys trudging around behind Excited Moms and Sisters? You can cash in on this market by having hats, neck warmers & wrist warmers/fingerless mittens, in these colors: camo- that is apporpriate for your areas, local schools, area colleges, and pro sports team. These will catch the eyes of dads and sons and possibly garner a few sales from them, as well as, causing the ladies in the party to stop and look at your merchandise.

Each Socio/Economic group will tend to have totally different wants in products and price ranges. This is true for the various geographic areas: in the north they want winter hats, mittens, ‘muffler’ scarves, sweaters, etc. Some places can sell trendy accessories ; some places can sell high fashion... you must research your area to see what customers want and how much they are willing to spend on those wants.

Oh, and if the customers don’t have money to invest in decent attire and personal hygiene, then they can’t afford the luxuries of your quality hand made products. Too many of these types of visitors to a sales event tells you that this venue doesn’t draw the type of customer you want: ones with money to spend.

I hear you...ARNie is telling us one of those Texas Tall Tales...

Believe me, I have paid booth rent at shows where the customers couldn’t afford a cup of coffee, but came to the craft show for cheap entertainment, and brought numerous children to play with toys they could not afford to pay for.

I’ve paid booth rent at shows where the majority of customers would stand in the door of my booth-preventing anyone else from getting in. They stand there counting stitches in a little crochet motif that had a pattern page - priced 25 cents... and they wouldn’t buy the pattern, nor the motif.

I’ve paid booth rent to shows where the vendors would come look at my jewelry designs and take notes on the type of gemstone beads I used and my bead counts, as well as pricing, but not pay for anything. I greeted this mother-daughter pair who where carefully studying my jewelry, but they were 'only looking.' When I began to identify each gemstone bead they were looking at, they replied, 'Oh, we know. We're jewelry designers, too.' After they made that announcement, they began to quietly discuss everything I had on display... I was so surprised and mortified at their gall, that I couldn't say anything... and I should have asked them to leave.

I’ve paid booth rent at shows where the only people in the building were Kids and Teenagers, because there were a few ‘carnival’ type things out front, so paying customers wouldn’t brave the chaos outside to come indoors to shop.

I’ve spent an entire day at ‘free outdoor markets’ where the only people there were vendors, because the organizers forgot to pay for ads, or only paid for a short line ad in the classifieds.

And I keep it a general rule of thumb: if you are afraid to leave your car in the parking lot of a venue, or are in fear of your life to walk to and from the selling area, or if everything that isn’t mobile is covered in gang graffiti.... I don’t care how cheap the booth rent is; it won’t draw the kinds of customers you need: those with money to spend.

It has been my experience that advertising is important to announce an event, but advertising does not guarantee a good turnout, nor paying customers.

I served as the advertising director for a local crafting group, and I carefully saturated a local network whose audience were 20-45 years old... instead of the retired crowd we normally had at our shows. I even invited our locally based 'Meals for the Elderly' group to join us at the show (which got me double the number of ads), and we did a raffle for them from merchadise donated by the crafters.

The end results were dismal, for everyone by the charity org. This crafting group had been around for so long, that everyone knew their shows and what merchandise would be there. Paying customers had stopped coming, because the show always had the same ol' stuff. Which proved to me that no amount of advertising can draw in paying crowds if the show/venue has a bad reputation in the community.

Save Your Money, invest a year in researching the various selling venues in your area, before you pay rent at one. One show may be the absolute best at selling holiday motifs and decorations. Another may sell only small ticket items. Another venue could have the dream customer for all crocheters: someone who knows how to crochet, but doesn’t have the time, and has the money to pay what a piece is worth. And all of these may sell absolutely nothing, at other times in the year.

Know the customer base of the venue, before you pay rent to sell your crochet.

Tomorrow’s Post: Cottage Industry Espionage

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
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Selling Crochet Part 1-Cart Before the Horse

2008-02-21T11:33:00.000-08:00

For the next couple of weeks, I'll be sharing my experiences and suggestions on how to sell crochet for a profit.

First off: Craft Shows, Art Shows, Outdoor Markets, Flea Markets and Craft Malls...

Too many people believe they should try to sell what they like to crochet, only to discover that they don’t crochet what other people want to buy.

Research your area first and see what will sell.

You can’t give scarves away in my part of Texas- ok so that needs some clarification... I know lots of ladies who stitched thin little scarves from fuzzy, furry, sparkly yarn to give as gifts, and the recipients all loved them. But the stitchers gave them away; they did not try to sell the scarves.

For my part of Texas, all winter hats must be in camo colors for the hunters or local school colors, or college team colors or the Dallas Cowboy colors. Yes, I know we have several other professional sports teams but the only colors I see folks wear are the Cowboys Colors. Texas professional sports teams colors... Spurs... Black and Silver/White. Rockets.... Red, White and Black... OH, like the Texas Tech Raiders.... nope sorry, the Blue, silver-gray and white of the Cowboys is unmistakable. I digress....

Other small pieces do sell, but only if they were the same as Wal Mart's prices, and only if you have such a huge assortment that they can eventually find one the in color and style they like.

Baby blankets sell well, but only if you have one of every color, in every style of blanket you make, and you sell them for a price that barely covers the cost of the yarn.

See, in my part of Texas, just about everybody crochets, knits or knows someone who does. Most folks have seen so much crochet, that it has no ‘value’ to them... most folks have given more than one afghan to the pets that great aunt martha or granny crocheted for them, and they still have a piece of crochet on each bed and on a rack in the living room for watching TV.

How do you find out what will sell in your area?

You have to go to events, look at what folks are buying, and carefully talk to buyers to ascertain their general 'price range.'

Look at numerous craft shows; numerous craft malls; look at flea markets, too. I have had the best results when I visit these places on their Busiest Shopping Days. You will get the most information on what is selling, only when the place is busy.

It’s been my experience that Craft Malls and Flea Markets do the majority of their business on the First Saturday of the month. That is when folks have the most money to spend, since they tend to run out of paycheck before the end of the month. The one monthly Art Show my town has, is held on the 1st Saturday of each month. The gargantuan flea market in Canton, Texas is held the weekend before the First Monday of the month... which usually includes the 1st of the month when all government support and military checks are issued.

For Craft Shows, Saturday is the best day to talk with customers and see what they are buying. Friday afternoon shows, don’t get the professional folks who must work; Sundays tend to be when folks are resting or doing the family thing after church.
With that said, Craft Show Sundays do have a specific type of shopper: they come after they have had lunch following morning church service. They know what they want, what they can spend, and don’t waste time browsing. You can easily spot them because they are in Church clothes and they walk purposefully, quickly giving each booth a ‘once-over glance.’ If this is a good Craft Show, these folks will leave with several bags of merchandise from several vendors.

Spend several hours at a sales venue; this will give you a better idea of how strong a following it has; ie, how many customers will visit each time the show/market is held.

Do you see customers leaving a Crochet Booth with a purchase, or do they just look and walk away? Do you see a particular booth with lots of customers looking, or waiting to enter because it’s so crowded? When you see a busy booth, check it out.

First of all, what item is generating all the interest? Maybe it is something that you can create using crochet, or add crochet to it for a unique twist.

What are the crochet booths offering? What is their price range? This vendor may be selling lots of crochet, because their prices are artificially cheap. They are not making it themselves; they are importing it from a third world country whose peasants are paid pennies for each piece they complete.

Talk to customers at these places, You can hold a piece and say, ‘Isn’t this just lovely?!’ And usually the other customer will say, yes, and then offer their personal opinion: it’s too expensive or I have too much crochet.... regardless what they say, you gain information and knowledge.

Don’t be afraid to be friendly and talk to folks, that is the best way 'subtley discover' what they are buying and how much they will spend on it. Act like a fellow customer, and most folks will tell you anything you respectfully ask them.

I’ll offer more techniques on what to say to folks at craft shows, to get the information you want, in the next few days.

Tomorrow’s Post: You Be The Judge and Jury

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
For a complete list of my Copyright Permissions, please click the link below and then click your browsers Back Button to return here.
http://chezcrochet.com/page9.html

Conquering the Obnoxious

2008-02-19T19:48:00.000-08:00

I’ve been talking about what to do when someone asks you to crochet something for them...
how do you ask for compensation and get what you are worth,
are there times when should you do it for free,

Now I’ll deal with those folks we would rather not talk to at all.

Someone once complained that her cousin was so selfish that she demanded the crocheter 'invest in a pattern, so it could be made for the cousin free of charge'...

ok, so these types of folks really do need a whack upside the head, or a reality check at the very least.

However, if one of my cousins had demanded I buy an expensive pattern and make the project for them... I would be tempted to make the very thing she asked for and donate it to the auction at our family reunion.

I would make a big deal of asking her, 'is this what you wanted?' and gleefully explain that it is my donation to the auction... that way, if she truly wants it, she will have to bid on it.

If it is truly stunning piece, others will run the bid up... if no one but her wants it, I'd run the bid up, and back out when you get her to her top bid.

No, I haven't had to deal with cousins like her... ;-)

Yes, this is Passive-Aggressive at its worst, but these types of people can’t be dealt with rationally or logically.

If your family doesn’t have an auction at their reunion, you can donate your piece to another charity auction.

Tell the obnoxious cousin that you thought the piece was so nice, and could truly be a big money maker for your chosen charity. Thank her profusely for convincing you to buy the pattern and work it up, and include the date the bidding closes, so she could bid on it, too!

Hopefully, she will get the idea that she was was rude and hateful for making such a demand... unless she is a true narcissist, and believes you owe her that project, because she is so special in this world... in which case... I would just walk away. You truly cannot reason with a narcissist. I digress.

I’ve heard more folks say that no matter what technique they used, they still had one person who persisted in wanting the crocheter to do a project completely for free-they won’t even pay for the yarn. I've had customers like this at craft shows.

These kinds of people like to use guilt trips:

this is stress management for you
this is a hobby
you do this while watching tv
I’m an important person in your life {hack cough, choke and puke... since when?! is the typical answer to this ploy}

For those folks, I offer to teach them to crochet, after all:

this could be stress management for you
this could be a hobby for you
you could do this while watching tv
I’m an important person in your life, & I’ll graciously and generously teach how you to crochet.

And then I have fun {she says maliciously grinning.}
I thrust yarn and a hook into their hands and 'genuinely' show them how to crochet.
After twenty minutes of them fumbling around, while I gracefully manipulate hook and yarn... then they either give up disgusted and appreciate my talent, or they are 'hooked' and I truly enjoy teaching them more.

As the Animaniacs are fond of saying: The Moral of the Story Is.... don’t discuss Money when someone asks you to crochet for them. Instead, let them buy the yarn and Barter with Time or some service they can do for you.

And if that doesn’t work, teach them to crochet.

I can get that at WM for half that much!

2008-02-19T19:25:00.000-08:00

My last post discussed what to do if a cherished family member asks you to crochet for them.

Today I discuss a way to be compensated for your work and not offend an acquaintance or co-worker.

"An acquaintance got angry when I asked to be paid for my labor to crochet something for them!"

This is another complaint I’ve heard numerous times.

It’s been my experience that people’s attitudes about Needlework break down into these groups:

Those who know someone who does needlework or they themselves do a different type of needlework and appreciate the amount of time and energy that goes into the creative process.
Those who know so many people who do needlework and have seen so many ‘plain old afghans or doilies’ that needlework is common place and worth less than something store bought.
Those who have never seen someone do needlework, and believes this is just a hobby you do at night in front of the tv; therfore you shouldn't be paid -because this isn't work.

Because of these attitudes, I don’t recommend you try to discuss money for your labor to crochet something.

Let's be honest, trying to charge by the hour can make a piece so expensive that nobody will pay for it. Yet, how do you help someone to understand that despite crochet (or knitting) being a passion and a hobby, stitchting for someone else- on command- makes this work, which demands payment.

Instead of money, I suggest you barter your time and talents for their time and talents.
If the lady at work wants you to crochet baby blankets for her, then estimate the time it will take you and see if she would be willing to spend that same amount of time doing something for you; whatever her hobby/talent is.

Maybe she could bake a dozen loaves of bread for you, or 12 dozen cookies.

Maybe she could babysit for you the number of hours it takes you to crochet her blankets.

OH, and remember: regardless if you want compensation for your labor or not, always, always, always, make the person requesting the project -pay for the yarn. It is your choice whether you keep the leftovers or not- as payment for your time.
Yes, you can barter the yarn for baking ingridients, just make sure you get enough baked goods to cover the cost of the yarn.

Tell the ‘customer’ that they will need to go to the store and buy the yarn they want you to crochet. Give them specifics such as brand names, yarn weights and the amount they will need, but make them actually go out and buy the yarn.

Of course, we know that they will probably look for the yarn, not find all that they need at WM and have to go to HL, Michaels' or ACMoore or Big Lots to find enough to finish their project. The customer will have to invest their hard earned money in that yarn, and most likely, a sizeable chunk of time, and this helps them to understand your time and talent are worth something.

I’ve heard stories where a Spouse asked the crocheter to make a hat for someone at his work. The spouse didn’t ask for any type of compensation, and had only the basic idea of what the co-worker wanted.

If I remember correctly, the poor woman had to make 3 different hats to suit the co-worker and then when she asked the woman to pay for the yarn, the co-worker became irate! One week's worth of stitching and $7 of yarn and the woman thought she was entitled to the hat free of charge!
Oh, the nerve of some people!

In cases like this one, you can respond, "Sure, I’ll crochet a {small project} for them free of charge, but they need to buy XX oz of 'this brand of yarn’ in their choice of color."

The next day, the spouse can say, "My spouse will make the {requested project} for you, if you buy the yarn." This clearly establishes that the customer will need to pay for something, without actually discussing money.

Let your family members know that if they volunteer your services like this, then they will do chores for you while you crochet the project. That is only fair, since you are doing something for them, they must do something for you... yes, even the spouse. This will help your family understand the value of your Time.

If it takes you 2-3 hours to 'whip up' that hat, then they can -for example- clean the house for 2-3 hours.

Now a days, putting a monetary price tag on your work will only insult folks who don't do needlework... you will get that familiar: "Well I could get that same thing at WM for a fraction of what you want!"

When you barter TIME with folks, you force them to to put a price on THEIR time, and if they can't afford the terms, they can bow out gracefully or offer monetary compensation.

Time is money, but it is easier to politely discuss Time, than it is to discuss money.

Tomorrow's subject...Truly annoying, obnoxious and insensitive jerks....

Crochet For Free? Are you nuts?!

2008-02-19T18:58:00.000-08:00

From time to time, I’ve heard folks comment or complain on how rude co-workers or other acquaintances can be when asking you to 'whip something up' for them and then not want to pay for it.

OR that dreaded quandary: a family member asks you to make something for them to give as a gift or give you such lovely compliments on a piece and ask you to make one for them.
Questions like those always spawn more questions.....

How should you respond, so that you can convey your feelings without causing any tension?
What should you charge for something that you do while watching tv at night?
Should you ask a family member to pay for something that you would probably give to them as a gift?
How do you respond to an acquaintance or distant cousin who selfishly believes that you should create a huge project for them out of love, when they wouldn’t give you the time of day on the street?

I’ve gathered my responses over the years to these questions into this series of blog posts....

The first decision you have is: Do you want to be financially compensated for your work? If a cherished family member asks you to make something for them, or to create a piece for them to give as a gift... most crocheters don’t want money for their labor.

(My responses to ‘less than cherished family members’ will be given in a different post.)

So you've decided to be generous and not charge them for the labor, but what about the cost of the yarn? Some pieces can need upwards of $75 in yarn, that isn’t fair for you to foot the bill, especially if the other person is using your work as a gift to someone else.

My suggestion is:

Regardless whether you expect payment for your labor or not, when someone asks you to crochet something for them, always, always, always, make them pay for the yarn.

Even if it is something as simple as a hat or scarf, make them buy the yarn... it is your choice whether you keep the leftovers or not- as payment for your time.

Give the specifics on the yarn, such as brand names, weights, and the needed amounts for the project and let the person who ‘ordered the piece’ go to the store to buy the yarn. This gets them emotionally and financially invested into the project, and they just might have fun ‘petting’ all the yarn and want to learn how to crochet for themselves.

Also, once they see how expensive yarn can be, this gives them the choice of gracefully backing out of the arrangement and opting for a different gift.

Tomorrow's Post....I can buy that at WM for half that much!

© Angela ‘ARNie’ Grabowski 2008. All rights reserved. For more crochet fun, visit ChezCrochet.com
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Howdy!

2008-02-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm always a few steps behind on this technology path. I'm just now starting my own blog.

I have begun to think of myself as a Crochet Missionary, spreading the word of Tunisian Crochet specifically. So for all the names I could think of... Crochet Coalition is probably the most appropriate for what I'd like to accomplish here.

I look forward to sharing some of the steps I've made along the way, and the steps I take in the future towards spreading Tunisian Crochet. I am excited to hear from others who are Crochet Missionaries spreading and teaching crochet or making strides on the behalf of crochet.

Crochet is much more than your Great Aunt M's doily or granny squares configured and distorted into a million different projects... most of which none of us really liked; we just admired the ingenuity and tenacity of the creator to put that much work into something that no one else had thought to do. We respected the talent, even if the finished product was 'not the best representation' of crochet.

ARNie
Owner of ChezCrochet.com