Tag: conference

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Simple Tunisian Lace Nets: Day 2 of 50

Tunisian extended stitches (Tes) crocheted into each row four different ways (Tefs, Teeks, front post etc)
Four of many simple ways to vary a Tunisian net lace.

Class Handout Progress: Steeking Tunisian Lace

The graphic above completes a section of the Steeking Tunisian Lace class handout. The base stitch is Tunisian Extended Stitch, or Tes. This chameleon-like stitch has other names and many variations (discussed in newsletter #49). It’s versatile, slightly odd, and one of my favorites, so I’m delighted to teach this class topic for the CGOA conference.

These four swatches contrast some of the simplest variations of this Tunisian lace net.

“Teeks” stands for Tunisian knit stitch extended twice. Easier to say than Tkse².

I’m also creating a graphic of fancier variations of these nets for comparison (and inspiration!). Have a look at this ripple variation! And I love these two-color versions.

I plan to pin them to my Pinterest boards like when I swatched and pinned a slew of star stitch variations a few years ago.

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Day 1 of 50: Crochet Conference Prep

“Day 1 of 50”?

Yes. Fifty days of updates. Fifty is 7 weeks-and-a-day, a nice round number. I need all 50 because I’ll be teaching 5 different 3-hour classes at a crochet conference while managing a booth in its market. It’s epic.

A friend is preparing to teach at the same event for the first time, and another friend is considering it in the future. They’re on my mind as I do this prep again. (It’s my 2nd time having a booth and I think the 6th time teaching lots of classes.)

I’m going to track my progress and thoughts out loud as I go. Some days it’s teaching prep, other days it’s booth merchandise/yarn company stuff, and always lots of swatching and designing. Most days it’s a jumble and I’ll blog a highlight of it. Years from now I’ll enjoy looking back over this.

Today I Cross a Big Teaching Item Off the List

The yarn used in a crochet conference class can matter immensely. Having also taken many crochet classes, I know how hard it is for students to choose which yarns to bring to class.

I asked a yarn company if they would sponsor my Stitch Games class at the crochet conference. This means they would donate enough yarn for all the students to use. Today they said yes. 

This makes my week. Their hand dyed yarn is my first choice for this class! (Below are swatches of this company’s yarns in soft colors. These are tests for other class topics.)

I’ve used it so much while developing the Stitch Games swatches and designs. I know its fiber, weight, bounce, and twist work for key stitch patterns, and I find the color sequences are dependably easy and fun for crochet. I want each student to have the best possible experience learning something unfamiliar. This yarn helps guarantee it!

This colorway is custom hand dyed for my local yarn shop. It’s called “Grape Jelly” and is based on the colors of the Crown Jellyfish photographed by the yarn shop owner in Fiji’s Rainbow Reef.

Bare Bones Scarf is crocheted corner to corner as a “game” in which you assign stitch groups to yarn colors! It’s one of three patterns in the Crochet to the Colors Playbook.