Customer Reviews

The Complete Book of Crochet Border Designs: Hundreds of Classic & Original Patterns

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

 

 

This is the best book I've got on the subject of crochet edgings or borders or trims. There are 342 different stitches and they are organized in groups: single crochet and chain, sc, chain and picot, dc, sc, chain and picot, hdc, triple st variations, mixed stitch, v stitches and small shells, staggered squares, dropped stitch and crossed stitch, simple filet and shells in grid, inverted v stitch and inverted shell, small shells, shells-large patterns, lace patterns, puff stitch, popcorn stitch and cluster stitch. Before this however is an illustrated section on working the stitches followed by 3 pages of international crochet symbols. Last page is an index to the photos. The instructions are on a facing page to the photos in black and white of the stitches and each instruction is written out plus having a chart in symbols which means that the book can be used by a crocheter who can't read the instructions in English. This book uses American crochet terms.
I don't have the revised edition but the first edition which I own has the same number of pages as the revised one.
If you want to crochet an edging this is the book to get.

You think it would be easy to find the right border but now my problem there are so many to choice from. A wonderful reference book.

This is a very nice book with good diagrams and pretty photos. Lots of different edgings are shown, most with a few rows and several with very ornate stitch patterns. If I were only going to have one edging book, this would be it.

I browsed this book at a local bookshop, as I usually do for crafts and recipe books to see if I like it. I loved some of the designs, and was about to buy the book until I realized there were no instructions or diagrams for the corner parts of the borders. I mean, I'm no novice crocheter, and for simple crochet projects I could do it just by looking at the finished product without needing the pattern. However, aren't corners the more challenging part of borders? Without them, for me, it wasn't worth getting the book. (If someone owns this book and if I missed the instructions for the corners in some obscure part of the book, please let me know!)

THIS IS A DEFINITE KEEPER, ONE THAT YOU'LL GO TO OVER AND OVER AGAIN, AND PROBABLY HAVE POST-IT NOTES STICKING OUT ALL OVER. YOUR HARDEST DECESION WILL BE DECIDING WHICH BORDER OR PATTERN TO USE. YOU WILL USE THIS FOR ALL YOUR CROCHETING PROJECTS AS WELL AS YOUR KNITTING PROJECTS. TRUST ME THIS BOOK WILL NEED TO BE IN REACH ON YOUR BOOK SHELF, AND YOU WILL FALL IN LOVE WITH IT LIKE I HAVE, IT IS DEFINITELY WORTH THE PRICE!!

I am a life-long knitter who just learned that crocheting doesn't mean the wildly colored granny squares I crocheted in the 70s. So, I am playing with crochet again. This book has loads of beautiful edge stitches to add that special touch to your designs.

This is the type of book I have been looking for!~ I make a lot of afgans. The book gives me tons of ideas for any type of blanket I make. The diagrams and pictures are easy to understand. I am happy to have this book in my collection.

I rented this book from the library first to see if I would like it. I also wanted to know how it was written because I find many crochet patterns very confusing (what can I say.... I was born a knitter now I am learning crochet) I really wanted to teach myself to crochet pretty borders for pillowcases and afghans so this crochet thing was something I really wanted to tackle. Anyway, I really like the book because it contains both GRAPHIC and written designs which makes it really great for when I get stuck or confused.

Definitely a worth while buy!

I just got this book but I am more impressed with it than any other crochet book I have gotten so far. I'll try to list the reasons in order.

1) Every stitch pattern is given with a picture, chart and written instructions so you can move back and forth while you are working a stitch. Sometimes that is so necessary because the written instructions *can* confuse even an experienced crocheter but with the chart right there you can figure out what needs to be done with a glance.
Note: The charts are made for Right handed crocheting. I'm a leftie but I've worked with charts enough to flip it in my head. This is typical for all crafting books so I don't count it off on them. But if you have trouble you can always take a picture of the chart and flip the image in any image manipulation software program and on some printers.

2)Every photo of a pattern is shown done in white yarn. The advantages to this aren't immediately obvious but I've noticed with other crochet books that I tend to try the patterns that are worked in the colors I like and not the colors that don't appeal to me. With them all in the same color I can evaluate the stitches better.

3)All of the stitches are listed by number. It makes a certain stitch easier to find rather than sorting through stitch names that don't always mean anything about the stitch. This is extremely handy and also I find I'm more focused on the stitch again; like having them all in white helps with focus as well.

All in all the only thing I might like added to this book is for each stitch pattern to have listed with it a way to increase and decrease stitches. I know some of them simply can't be but for others that I want to use for garments it would save me a lot of time if the increase and decrease methods had already be worked out. Not everybody uses crochet only for afghans and such. But still that is also something I've never seen in a crochet book; somehow no one seems to think of it so I'm not going to count this book off for it. All in all i think it's the best book for crochet I've ever purchased and I just ordered the matching edgings book today because I was so impressed.

I just wanted to put some traditional crochet trim on a little Mexican-style dress I made for my granddaughter. I searched the web for a free pattern that I could do - found hardly anything useful out there. I didn't want to spend money on something so basic - BUT my eyes popped when I saw the cover of this book and I knew I needed it in my reference library. This book has it all for me - plain and fancy borders, excellent photographs, clear written directions AND charts. I need it all. I'm a visual learner but sometimes I overlook the obvious and need it spelled out. I learned a lot just reviewing the basic stitches at the beginning and to my great relief I learned - from the excellent illustrations - that I have been crocheting into the wrong part of the chain for lo these many years - which had made crochet a miserable task until now. No this book does not instruct how to go around corners or adapt for an inside curve, but I can figure that out if I can figure the basic stitch out. And I am thrilled that very sample lacks color. They are stitch samples not samples of color work. I am so grateful that they are ALL done up in the same ecru cotton thread - certainly no color feast but very appropriate for a stitch collection. I can instantly compare each pattern to all the others in terms of size,scale, complexity, and overall effect. Color does not work well when you are trying to photograph for detail in a stitch sample. Shadows in ecru don't obscure stitch details but actually enhance them -unlike most colors. And ecru is traditional and these are really traditional patterns. I have tons of knit and crochet stitch books that just don't quite work for me due to samples being done up in various garish colors when it's not even about color work, it's about how the stitch is made. This is a wonderful book for those of use who are good with our hands but have difficulty following directions and want to SEE every detail. Many thanks to the author!