Good morning everyone. I would like to introduce you to Manda Nicole from MNE Crafts. Today she will be sharing with us her journey in the crochet, pattern writing world. Please be sure to visit her blog and see what other amazing patterns she has to offer.
I first learned to crochet when I was a pre-teen. A woman I
knew was making baby blankets and I admired how she took basically nothing and
turned it into something amazing. I wanted to do that. I struggled to get her
to teach me. She showed me how to make a chain but, for whatever reason, I
could not grasp the idea of turning around. Until, one day I got it. From there
I continued practicing. People gave me pointers here or there but, for the most
part, I taught myself.
The first free pattern I have listed on my blog is for some leg warmers I made for my daughter back at the
It wasn’t until I was pregnant with my daughter that I truly
got into crochet though. I wanted to make her something special and was bound
and determined to make her a blanket. That blanket took me from 17 weeks
gestation to 39 weeks gestation. I finished it about 2 days before I had her! I
even made her matching mittens with the left over material. That was in 2010
and I’ve not stopped since!
Pattern writing was something I had absolutely no interest
in. It seemed like to much work. Every now and then, I’d write down what I did
and share it on my blog. I didn’t really have an audience so I didn’t put much
work into it. It was as simple as “I did this, this and this… good luck!” I can
say I have a completely different attitude about designing now and wish I’d
realized earlier that it was my calling. I love everything about it and almost
wish I could go back in time and start sooner!
The first free pattern I have listed on my blog is for some leg warmers I made for my daughter back at the
end of 2012. The pattern
includes one size, the format looks completely wonky, there is no gauge listed,
no material listed…. Just an image (no watermark), the size, the hook and the
pattern. Even then, the pattern leaves
so much to be desired simply due to the horrid formatting!
My latest free pattern is one I call the Vintage Tulip Sun Hat and I made it for no particular reason at all. The image includes two
angles, the name and a watermark to make pinning easier, I start the pattern off with the hook, the
material I used and the “in pattern” gauge. I then follow that with a Hints
& Tips section. I include any questions my testers had (I actually have my
patterns tested before sharing them now) as well as anything I thought was a
little outside the pattern norm and might confuse people. I also use this space as a little “cheat”
spot – hehe. For example, instead of writing Ch 1 (doesn’t count as a stitch) at
the start of every round, I just put it at the top that it doesn’t count. It
makes things so much easier! The formatting on this pattern is completely
different from the leg warmers as well. I have the instructions numbered and
use bold lettering to make it easier to keep track of where you’re at in the
pattern. I also include three different sizes!
When I was first asked to share how I write patterns now to
how I wrote them then, I knew there would be some big changes but I don’t think
I fully realized just how different the two patterns would be! If I didn’t know
better, I’d think they were written by two different designers. Looking back
and comparing myself has really given me a perspective of how much I’ve grown
and changed as a designer and I feel a sense of pride right now!
I’ve been crocheting off and on for over ten years and
actively for about four. In that time the three tips I’m most grateful for
learning are:
1.The magic circle and making sure it is tied so
it doesn’t come out!
2.Mark your stitches if it tells you to! – I once
didn’t and had to completely start over!
3. Gauge is not something to be ignored. It’s
actually VERY important.
