DW4 | Issue 7 by Design Wars Challenge

Sneak Peek Week!!!

Whose got a crochet mustache, and

is totally excited about sneak peek week? This gal is! This aspect of Design Wars is like Christmas Eve for us here, because (apart from me) none of our challengers have any idea as to what the others have designed! The final reveal will be a surprise for everyone, and we hope you’re looking forward to it as much as we are! Enjoy this first round of peeks (p6-11), and let us know if you think you have any figured out; we’d love to hear! I’m happy to share that part II of our interview with Where Women Create was just released with lots of great insight from our DW4 challengers! Also, Crochet World Magazine gave us a mention on their fan page to help promote DW4, and we’re expecting an article in the next issue of Inside Crochet Magazine about our designs this round! We are feeling the love! Peace, love, happiness and crochet mustaches for all! - Salena

DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES? | We are actively searching for fresh, original talent for future rounds of Design Wars! If you would like to be considered as a guest challenger, click right here to read our requirements and to submit an application! 3

NEW VOTING STRUCTURE |

Voting Categories

this round! Brush up on the categories, because we are really

1. Best Use of Yarn

looking forward to see how you will categorize our designs! One final category not mentioned here will be the overall

Design that best embodied the yarn

challenge winner; the designer who receives the most votes

2. Best Use of Color

Remember folks, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got a brand new voting structure

overall!

Design that best used colors from line

BEST

3. Most Original Design

DESIGN

Design that is most unique

4. Best new Gift Idea Design that you are most likely to give

5. Best New Design to Wear Design that you are most likely to wear 4

ANNE GEDDES BABY YARN | Anne Geddes Baby Yarn We love this line, and hope you do too! Be sure to get your stock right now in time for the release of our Design Wars patterns! They should be out shortly after issue 10 of our newsletter on 26 August (see individual shops for specific pattern releases).

ABOUT YARN | SHOP!

SNEAK PEEK WEEK PART I | If this is your first time experiencing a Design Wars Sneak Peek, you’re in for a real treat! Well, if you think suspense, ambiguous photos, and cryptic descriptions are a treat, that is! This part of our challenge is probably the most fun we have with our fans because it’s a blast seeing what your guesses are, and the conversations these sneak peeks spark are a ton of fun! Because we have 10 challengers this round, I’ve decided to split our sneak peeks into two parts: this issue of our newsletter holds the first 5, and issue 8 next week will hold the last 5. This will give you time to consider the vague clues provided, and we hope that they have been ambiguous enough to blow your minds at the final reveal of all 10 of these designs in issue 9 of our newsletter on 14 August. Enjoy!

Get this blank template on our blog and insert your own caption! What would your duelling dudes say? If you think you have a good one, post it on our fan page; we’d love to see! 6

JUST BE HAPPY |

Since the yarn chosen for this round of Design Wars was Anne Geddes, I decided I wanted to make something for children and I also wanted to make something I have never done before, then an idea came to mind: decorative stools! My son is 4 years old and really loves them so much that he helped give them names, they are Moo Moo, Mud Mud and Beak Beak. I love bright and fun colours, so that is what I wanted to use in my design. I think fans will love these stools, they are perfect to decorate a brand new baby's nursery or for a fun play room!

ALESSANDRA HAYDEN

I worked on the round to create my base,

DW4 Guest Challenger

so there are no seams, but I made them

facebook | ravelry

pop and gave them character with the pieces that make them come to life.

design

shawl/wrap

made

from

connected motifs, in watermelon-y colours. I'm thinking of calling it the Frilly Flower Summer decided. Because it has motifs that need to be connected, the size and shape is very easily customizable. Fans will love it because it's a fun design that can be made in a plethora of colours and colour combinations, making it a versatile product. It's my first garment and I'm very proud of the design. It's clean, simple, yet effective. It drapes wonderfully because I used a J/6mm hook with this yarn. The flowers are very open, which also helps the drape. I use a 3 treble popcorn stitch for the centers, giving it a

A CREATIVE BEING |

Wrap or something like that; I haven't quite

personal touch and making it a recognizable design from my hand.

WINK DW4 Guest Challenger

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MAMACHEE |

These fingerless gloves are so much fun to make and even more fun to wear. This design comes in four sizes, baby, toddler, child and adult. Layers are always good, right? I love layering, layers can really help an outfit seem more put-together. These fingerless gloves have 2 layers. The base layer is a simple fingerless glove with finger and thumb holes and the top layer is an open work layer that

Tara Murray

resembles a long sleeve. You can pull the top

Mamachee: DW 1, 2, 3 Challenger, DW1 Winner

layer up over the base layer or scrunch it down. Two looks in one great design! I'm really loving this new design and hope you do too!

round of Design Wars I wanted to do something new and different, something very colorful, cheerful and household. After much thought I decided to make a Owl Rug. I made some crochet stitches that had not used before and I'm very happy with the result. I think it's a original and fun element that brighten up any place of your home. It can be a perfect gift for Christmas, or you can do it for you. About the yarn that was used in this

ONE & TWO CO. |

Color your home. Color your life. For this

round of DW I think it's perfect for my design because it is very soft, and is a pleasure walk on and stroke it. It also has a very wide range of colors. I'm very excited about this design, and I hope the Design Wars fans like it because it's a great decoration item, very fun to make and can be customized in thousands of

ways.

HOLLAND DESIGNS |

Such a classic style! Crochet this adorable pullover for a new baby or a special little toddler! This pattern uses just a few basic stitches: ch, sl st, sc...Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s it! Worked in vertical rows, the body of this pullover has a unique mesh appearance which is off set with contrast ribbing at the neckline and bottom edges. The neckline features a shawl collar to keep your little one snug and warm. The design works up quickly using DK or worsted weight yarn and crochet hook size G (4.5 mm) or similar.

.com | ravelry

CRAZYSOCKS DESIGNS | I caught up with our Design Wars 3 champion for a peek into her life since the big win! Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m always interested to see what inspires and motivates others, and what their plans are in pursuit of new goals. So, hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 5 Q&A with Danyel Pink, enjoy!

Danyel Pink CrazySocks Designs: DW 1, 2, 3 Challenger, DW3 Winner.

craftsy | ravelry | .com

1. How did you settle on your DW3 winning design concept? Cotton yarn always makes me want to make stuff for the kitchen. Although the Creme de la Creme yarn was very soft and would've worked for just about anything, I couldn't get out of that mind-set. I considered making placemats, but that didn't feel quite right. A friend of mine suggested making an apron, and my daughter has this cute little fabric apron that her Nana bought for her, so I put together my own crocheted version of it. 2. You won, but are you satisfied with the overall design? Do you wish it was different (do you second guess yourself)? I ALWAYS second guess myself right before the voting begins... but actually, yes! I'm quite proud of my design! I have plans to write up instructions for adult sizes, too! Oddly enough, the part that gave me the most trouble was the strap. I was having a hard time making a 2-color strap to finish off the piece. After about 5 failed attempts, a light bulb turned on over my head and I was thrilled. I celebrated with a quick dance around the living room & a glass of wine. My husband thinks I'm crazy. Ha ha!

3. What skills have you gained / fine-tuned since joining Design Wars? In the past, I'd dream up a design & then go pick out yarn I liked. Having the yarn in hand first has been a big challenge for me. I've learned how to let the yarn 'speak' to me. I've learned to appreciate the various aspects of the yarn, including colour, texture, drape, durability, weight, etc. and then create a piece that works best with the yarns we have. It's been very enlightening! 4. Other than your own designs, what have your favorite 3 DW designs been? ALL of the DW patterns have been SO good! Seriously excellent. I'm really proud to be part of a group of ladies with such amazing talent! It was hard to pick just 3 favorites, but since you're forcing me... in no particular order: Frayed Knot's "Perfect Bag" from DW3, One and Two Co's "Olivia Bunny Security Blanket" from DW2, and Baca Creations' "Stephanie Shell Cap" from DW1. 5. What do you hope to accomplish next? Any goals? I'm updating some old patterns, trying to write up some new ones, and just enjoying my hooks and yarn again. I've pretty much stopped taking custom orders because it was starting to feel too much like work... and I have all these great ideas in my head that I need to get on paper! So, I'll just pull out my lawn chair & get busy crocheting while the kids run and play in the yard. Oh dang, July is over... I should probably start working on Christmas gifts! Ha ha!

DW4 GIVEAWAYS | Red Heart Yarn Prize Pack!

Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what will be up for grabs: 1 ball of every color Anne Geddes Yarn (19 balls), 1 set size 8 Susan Bates Tipping points Knitting Needles, 1 Susan Bates Bamboo Crochet Hook, 1 Red Heart Thread Cutter Pendant, 1 Crochet Today Magazine, and 1 Red Heart Tote Bag. Want to win this? Details to comeâ&#x20AC;Ś

Weekly Giveaway 2!

Every single week of Design Wars we will feature one huge giveaway, and each of our challengers will donate 1 pattern from their shop to 3 fans! That means 10 patterns will be provided to 3 fans every week! Our second giveaway begins today, 31 July, and will conclude on Sunday, 4 August! Love our patterns? Click on over to enter!

*RHY to render prize pack, photo may not represent actual prize.

Red Heart Frock Malonie Ellingson (of Hook, Loop & Singer) shared this picture of the Red Heart Frock that she worked up (Bottom, Left). This is a garment from our Design Wars 2 round, pattern by Salena Baca of Baca Creations.

Molly’s Summer Slippers Lisa Dean (of Loops of Love) shared this picture of the Molly’s Summer Slippers she worked up (Top). This is a pattern from our Design Wars 3 round, a design by Tara Murray, of Mamachee * Crochet Makes Me Happy! (Left).

If you have completed a Design Wars Pattern, or used one of our past yarn picks that you would like to share with us, please e-mail your submission for consideration to: DesignWarsChallenge@yahoo.com

WHAT’S NEXT? ISSUE 8: AUGUST 7 >>>

 Sneak Peek Week, Part II  Weekly Giveaway  Fan Contributions  New Lovely Sponsors

Click here to reserve; some ads are as little as $15!