Customer Reviews

Blueprint Crochet

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After reading the other reviews of Robin Chachula's book, I felt compelled to write a review because I don't think any of them address the purpose of her book - to teach the reader how to crochet from symbols. There are alot of Japanese patterns I've wanted to buy and make but didn't because I didn't really know how to read the symbols and I can't read Japanese. I wanted a book that taught me how to crochet from symbols and Chachula's book is it! Her engineering background shows in her meticulous explanations and her charming use of the word "equipment" for yarn and hooks. I enjoyed the stories that introduced each project. There are a wide range of projects, my favorite being the "Quick Stitch Patterns."

All in all, Chachula's book succeeds in it's goal, to teach the reader how to crochet using symbols through a variety of beautiful patterns. This is definitely a must for any crochet enthusiast - it will open up the world of symbol crochet and you won't have to read Japanese to make your favorite crochet pattern!

A fast-rising star in the crochet world, Robyn Chachula has offered up a great little book that easily gets crocheters excited about the projects and teaches 'em some new tricks to boot!

The first section of this book explains symbol crochet - graphical representations of crochet motifs and patterns. If you're a visual learner, this method makes it easy for you to follow around, and you can even follow along if the pattern isn't in a language you can read.

Section two outlines motifs in projects. Here you'll find the Julie Cuff pattern that's been circulating around the web, as well as a bag and jewelry set.

Section three offers some relatively simple patterns to help you learn symbols as you go. These projects range from a simple belt to a pretty tunic.

Section four glorifies the granny square. Granny squares seem to get such a bad rap because of their obvious connections to old-fashioned patterns, but these projects are anything but old-fashioned. In fact, in many cases you'd have to look at the lacy finished products pretty closely before you realize they're squares. For those crocheters who are wary about having to whip-stitch aaaaall those squares together, Robyn provides an easy way to join them as you go. There are some very pretty projects in this section, including a wrap bolero and lacy short-sleeved cardigan.

Section five continues what section two began, but with slightly more challenging techniques to produce a cute tennis-style eyelet vest and a swing jacket with an adjustable waist.

Robyn makes this book fun to read, with her easygoing, casual style; and as all of the patterns are named after women in her family, you come away feeling like she's a friend. Combine that - and the patterns - with extensive knowledge and obvious passion for the craft, and you've got a great debut book that you'll be sure to use for its patterns and refer to for its techniques. A great addition to my crochet-bookshelf!

I must admit that I am not a totally unbiased reviewer, as Robyn is one of my friends from college, but I absolutely love her book! The book contains 18 patterns, all of which look amazingly fun to crochet. There is a pattern for a purse, a belt, and a scarf that are great ways to enter into the world of symbol crochet. She has both written out and shown the symbols for the first group of patterns. By the time you get to the "Vogue Granny Motifs" you'll be a pro! And the granny motifs are where I think the symbol crochet really shines. The grannies are so much easier to work because you can always look at the diagram and see where you are. I have already made the "Katie Bolero" (a pre-version last year-not today!), and while I was initially worried that my squares would not match up or that somehow the whole thing would come out wonky, the pattern really allows for some variation because of the construction. Unless your gauge changes wildly from square to square, it really will come together well. And it is exciting watching the piece come together. Of course, as in making any sweater, there is always that point in the middle where it seems as if you will never finish, but we all know that's when you push on through and end up with a wonderful piece!

I especially love the Isabella Wrap, the Megan sweater, the Maggie Wrap, the Paige Sweetheart Top, the Rachel Swing Jacket, and the Christin Crop. (So like I said, I pretty much love them all!) But probably my favorite part of the book is the writing and the glimpse of Robyn's personality that shines through. Robyn's love of crocheting is infectious. (It got me! I used to be a primarily a knitter!) Plus, after her introduction to symbol crochet, you will be able to make a whole new world of patterns! Literally-you can make foreign patterns that also use symbols. So dive into the symbols. And to help, the back flap of the book has a little cheat sheet for reference until you get more familiar with the symbols. One last important note, the patterns do all have an introduction, diagrams, and finishing instructions, so it's not as if all you get is a picture of the pattern. The non-granny patterns have more of a combination of words and symbols.

So now I'm off to scrounge through my stash to see what yarns I could use on some of these projects!

Visual crochet is new for me so I'm a bit balkish. I'm getting used to it and hopefully this will be the future for all of those German and Japanese patterns I'd love to try, but I digress. The patterns in this book just seem sort of skimpy and unfittable. Everything looks small even for small people. For me I will rework the patterns I want for myself and since that may mean simply adding extra motifs it won't be tough to do. Once again I love the styles and would love bigger closable pattern instructions.

If you need to be taught how to read Japanese Crochet Symbols, this book is for you.

If you are a VERY small person you can use the patterns without altering, this book is for you.

If you are interested in creative uses of lace motifs, this book is for you.

I am a large person who taught herself how to read Japanese Patterns long ago.

But, many of the motifs are really great and the patterns are modern.

This may be just the book for you but it's not for me.

The idea of crocheting from a "blueprint" is great. It is especially nice for the granny square designs. I started the Katie bolero today, and even with the smallest hook, my motif was 5" wide, rather than the 4" the design says it should be. Now, normally, I'd switch to a smaller hook, and all would be well; however, this WAS with the smaller hook, and I crochet TIGHT (usually have to go up 2 hook sizes to get the gauge given in a pattern). Perhaps the yarn weight given (worsted) was wrong, but I'm working with TLC cotton plus, slightly smaller than worsted weight already, so I see no way that a true worsted could give a 4 inch motif. Luckily, my training is in math, so I'll work things out with a modified diagram, but for non-math people, this could be a real issue. Also, MANY of the really pretty designs are done in size 2 or 1 yarn, and alpaca to boot. This is not a book for the "average" crochet budget. That said, I love having the diagrams for fitting squares together to make garments, and the schematics are marvelous for being able to alter things to fit other between sizes. The shaping is also nice, though it is not as customizable as that in Everyday Crochet by Doris Chan. So, I'll use this book, but it will take way more work in converting patterns and gauges than I thought when I first saw it. Keep the diagrams coming, though! THEY ARE AWESOME!


Part 2: Finally made a 4 inch square for the Katie Bolero...with a D crochet hook and 2 weight (baby) yarn. Definitely check gauge!

I am a new crocheter, but not an absolute beginner. I have made scarves (who hasn't?), afghans, pillows, dishcloths, slippers, and toys, but no garments (yet!). I bought this book because I liked the patterns for the garments (designs are good, explanations are good, very adaptable to your own projects)(for when I decide that I have enough experience to make garments) and wanted to learn symbol crochet.

This book *teaches* you symbol crochet. Most patterns are written with BOTH the symbol crochet and the written out row by row style. I started with the easy stuff, like the cuff (cuff does not have written out instructions, only symbol instructions) and the necklace, from the beginning, because I wanted to really understand how to read the symbol patterns without getting invested in a whole garment.

The explanations are great, and with a little effort you won't have a problem reading just the pictures. It's actually a great system and very useful. Perfect for all the granny square styles and variations in this book. This is a great book to read and understand in order to transition to those Japanese and European symbol crochet patterns everyone is interested in ;) (The patterns in those books are much nicer than the ones in the American crochet books -- but they do not have written out patterns like the American books do, you need to know how to work off just the symbols).

This book has a similar premise to the book Loop-d-Loop Crochet: More than 25 Novel Designs for Crocheters (and Knitters Taking Up the Hook) (Hardcover) by Teva Durham (teach people symbol crochet), but a lot of people seem to not like Ms. Durham's designs as much. I loved Ms. Durham's designs, they were funky and fun and very wearable (I'm in my 20s, though, so perhaps older crocheters did not appreciate the inventiveness of Ms. Durham's designs). For them, there is Ms. Chachula -- her designs are very wearable, very classic.

Frankly, I purchased both books and I really liked Ms. Durham's book. There are elements present in it that would make Ms. Chachula's book better. For example:

1) an indication on the pattern of the level of expertise required for the project (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
2) more beginner level projects for those of us who just want to get our feet wet (Ms. Chachula's book seems more geared to advanced and intermediate crocheters)
3) a quick and dirty guide to how to do "dc-cl" and "double treble" (and the other stitches, too!)
4) more information on what "SR" and "AR" mean when looking at a pattern

Again, this book seems more meant for intermediate and advanced crocheters, so maybe that explains why I'm a bit out of my league here. And it's not impossible to learn or "pick up" what the above terms mean from the pictures and the context (which is what I did). I just think it would be nice to have a bit more explanation.

So buy this book (and/or Ms. Durham's book), learn the symbol crochet, and then move on to the Japanese and European books that you like!

Robyn Chachula's book is a 5 star book because of several reasons. First, she TEACHES a new way of looking at crochet with symbol diagrams that will unlock the mystery for many beginner crocheters and intrigue us veterans. She offers beginner projects to warm up with and works her way up to the show stoppers. Even the most complex patterns are made manageable by her stitch diagram lessons. In addition to her signature granny-square construction, she also offers other construction methods. The granny-style square method is made modern by the joining methods that create an illusion of seamlessness. Fantastic. I can't wait to see what Robyn comes up with next.

If you don't already know how to read crochet diagrams, don't worry--this book makes it easy to learn! The designs are unique but very wearable, which is nice because some other books have patterns that seem to either be really boring, or really weird. Now I wish she would write another book--it is going to be sad when I've done all the patterns in this one.

The concepts and designs of the crocheted items are beautiful. But be warned, things will be tedious with the amount of joining and other construction required with these pieces. Overall, a great concept but does not lend itself well to those of us with limited time. I want great-looking crocheted items, I just don't have a weekend off to do them.