I spent a lot of my crochet day working on two additional washrags for project 8 using stitch patterns from my brand new copy of The Complete Photo Guide to Crochet.

I purchased this book several days ago in large part because I was in a place where it was meltingly hot, and I had gone to a bookstore to escape the heat. I had only meant to go somewhere that it was possible to get a cold drink and where the ambient temperature was below 93º F, but this offered what for me was a total bonus of having a small collection of crochet books, some of which I did not already own.

My first post-granny-square effort was made with yellow Peaches & Creme, a 4.5 mm hook, and the Tiny Mock Popcorns pattern on page 71. The skill level is described as “Easy” which is slightly misleading. I did not always pay as close attention as I should have, so at times it was very much a 3 stitches forward, two stitches back process, but here was the end result:

My personal evaluation is that while the pattern is not “difficult,” it is also not suitable for those times you want a project to do while thinking of other things.

For my second post-granny square effort, I used the Petite Shells stitch pattern shown on page 55. One thing I added was that on the last row of the wash rag I made, I chained three, *worked a sc into the ch-1 space, chained 1, then repeated from * until the last chain space. There I chained 1 and then made an hdc into the turning chain of the previous row. Here is the result:

Of the books I had collected to look at while drinking my cold drink, this was the one I least expected to buy.

I have a reasonably complete collection of stitch dictionaries, but after looking it over, I decided that while I would not describe it as exhaustive in its stitch dictionary holdings, it did have a lot to offer.

So what are the hidden charms of this volume?

First, on page 51, there is a pattern for a Denim Ruffle Bag.

Based on this 2005 Fendi Chef Bag:

The Complete Photo Guide to Crochet version has a charm that might not make fashionistas swoon, but it will get my mother’s attention, and she will want one. I’m not sure how I will incorporate my affinity for color into the design, but I can guarantee, that when I finally make one, it will most likely be a minimum of 10 colors or more.

The other bonus of this book is that while Margaret Hubert is credited as the author, there are substantial contributions from other crochet-world rock stars, namely, Julia Bryant, Jennifer Hansen, Melody MacDuffee, Prudence Mapstone, Tatyana Mirer, Nancy Nehring, Pam Shore, Pauline Tuner, and Myra Wood.

So, if you, like me, find that the CGOA Chainlink Conference does not fit into your vacation schedule this year, you can get this book, pull out your hooks, and either refresh or pick up some new skills.