Hello, hello!
It’s been a hot minute.
Life has been life-ing lately (as it does), but I’m well, the family’s well, and the weather has been surprisingly lovely—so no complaints from me this morning.
A couple of weeks ago, I had the joy of being interviewed by my friend Christina Hadderingh for her podcast, Mind of the Crochet Designer. If you don’t know Christina, you’re in for a treat—she’s the brilliant designer behind patterns like the Hotel of Bees Shawl (19,000 likes on Ravelry!) and the d’Histoire Naturelle Scheepjes CAL.
Hotel of Bees Shawl
We thought we were sitting down for a quick chat… and then it turned into a two-parter!
I shouldn’t have been surprised—Christina and I share a deep love for storytelling, both through our designs and our day-to-day connection to craft. There’s just something about talking to someone who gets it—the why behind every stitch, and the joy of building community one square or row or round (or heart!) at a time.
Apart from being a talented designer and blogger (A Spoonful of Yarn), Christina is also a crochet coach with a real heart for guiding designers through their creative journeys. If you’re an aspiring crochet designer—or want to deepen your understanding—I’d encourage you to explore the resources she offers HERE.
In our two-part chat, we covered so much ground:
- The science (and mystery) of stitch anatomy
- All things gauge (spoiler: it’s more nuanced than you think)
- The trials and triumphs of designing in the round
- Behind the scenes of Sophie and Charlotte
- How do we foster community as designers
- And whether I ever regret offering my patterns for free (you’ll have to listen in to find out)
You can find the podcast episodes on Christina’s website or watch them on YouTube:
- Episode 31: The science behind crochet stitches with Dedri Uys
- Episode 32: Creating one of the most popular designs ever made with Dedri Uys
Hopping back to the GAUGE topic for a sec… In the podcast, we talk about how I made the same square multiple times, using the same yarn and the same hook size (tapered and inline), using varying techniques. The results were staggering.
Gauge: Same Pattern, Same Crocheter, Same Yarn, Same Hook Size… SO Many Different Sizes
Here are two squares laid on each other, and they aren’t even the smallest and largest!!
And just for a bit of geeky fun, here are some of my results plotted out. A-J signify different techniques, with the circles showing the squares made with a Clover Amour (tapered) hook, and the crosses showing the squares made with a Furls (inline) hook. My crochet style is illustrated by the green circle (picking, riding, light tension).
After recording, Christina and I actually met up again to dive even deeper into the world of gauge and technique. I thought I’d be teaching her a few tricks, but—true to form—I walked away having learned more than I shared. That’s the beautiful thing about collaboration: it reminds you that even as a teacher, you’re always a student too.
Speaking of things I’m learning… this year seems to be all about hearts… and Love in all its guises.
I’ve been pouring my love (and quite a few hours) into designing a blanket full of bright, rainbow hearts using Yarnsmiths Pebble Haze Prints DK (shade 2D350).
I love this yarn so much… particularly this colourway. Making these hearts was such a joy. Watching each colour flow into the next is one of my favourite non-therapy therapies!
The border took me ages to figure out, but once it clicked, I fell head-over-heels in love with it.
So much so that I’ve started working on a second blanket—this one featuring the border as a continuous square all on its own.
I hope these bring a smile to your face, and I cannot wait to share the finished patterns with you.
Until then, thank you—as always—for being part of this incredible, generous, creative community. I hope you have a fabulous weekend!
Oh, before I go…
Would you be interested in hearing more about my journey with gauge? Do you have any thoughts, questions, or concerns about gauge yourself? And how do you crochet?
I’d truly love to hear from you. There’s always more to learn, and your experiences might be just what someone else needs to hear. Let’s learn from each other so that we can keep sharing that knowledge with the wider community.
If you want to connect with Christina, you can also find her HERE:
This blog post contains affiliate links. I only link to products I personally use or would use. All opinions are my own.
saranya says
This was beautiful Admin. Thank you for your reflections.
Helen Crosbie says
Thank you for such a heartfelt blog and interview. I love your designs, not only because they give beautiful results from accurate patterns, but because they are so cleverly constructed and push me to achieve something I didn’t think I could manage. I can’t wait to see what you have coming up later this year. Take care and hang on to the golden threads as you navigate through some difficult times.
Jenny Lowman says
Thank you Helen :)