DW4 | Issue 9 by Design Wars Challenge

The biggest news of the week?

Honestly, it’s a very hard choice between the final reveal of our Design Wars 4 patterns, and the phone interview I had with Debbie Stoller! First, the final reveals are the pinnacle of our challenge; this gets us all excited the most, and is a moment of pure fulfillment as we share our work for the first time publicly! Second, I got to chat with THE Debbie Stoller; author of numerous books including the Happy Hooker, owner of BUST magazine, and the lady who practically invented the modern day stitch and bitch! Yeah, that’s the one! She was very kind, and I’m still so amazed that she allowed this enthusiastic amateur a personal interview for Design Wars. I’m thankful for the opportunity, despite my numerous stammers! Her showcase will be held after DW4, and details will come, I promise! In the meantime, we’ve got 11 full days of voting, and 5 categories in all will be available for you to consider. You’ve got some tough decisions before you, so be prepared, and enjoy! Peace, love, happiness and Stitch Nation yarn for all!

Get Ready To VOTE! Now that our designs are out in the open, here’s where the “challenge” comes into play: you vote! In Design Wars past, we offered one poll and lumped all designs together asking fans to vote for their favorite. This round, however, all our patterns will be available in a series of 5 polls held on our blog, and you will vote for the best design in each given category. Fans will be able to cast only one vote per poll, and we will keep the polls open from 14 to 24 August (11 days total)! All category finalists will be announced

issue

our

newsletter, and you can click on over to

cast your votes RIGHT HERE!

RED HEART YARN PRIZE PACK |

Enter For Your Chance To Win Our HUGE Red Heart Yarns Prize Pack Giveaway! We will be accepting entries for this gigantic, amazing prize pack from 14-24 August *RHY to render prize pack, photo may not represent actual prize.

Click on over to enter! 4

FINAL REVEALS |

Aaaannnnnddddd… You’ve waited long enough! We’re proud to share our Design Wars 4 patterns with you, and hope that you enjoy what we’ve been slaving over for the past month or two, at least! Each pattern is designed with our best patrons in mind, and are a flavourful representation of our creative process and tastes in action. Anne Geddes inspired the yarn that has in turn motivated these designs. Enjoy!

Have you used our eCard yet? What do your Duelling Dudes say? We’d love to see, so be sure to share yours on our fan page; we love to laugh! 5

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, and 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! I worked on the round to create my base, so there are no seams, but I made them pop and gave them character with the pieces that make them come to life.

ALESSANDRA HAYDEN DW4 Guest Challenger

facebook | ravelry

My design is a shawl/wrap made from connected motifs, in watermelon-y colours. I call it the Dancing Hearts wrap, because of the frilly-ness of the flowers and the big heart shape of the piece! The size and shape is however 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 customized popcorn stitch for the centers, giving it a personal touch and making it a recognizable design from my hand.

WINK DW4 Guest Challenger

facebook | blog 9

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 resembles a long sleeve. You can pull the top 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!

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

Color your home. Color your life. For this 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 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.

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

Being a sucker for color, I wanted to see what I could make that had a punch of bright and light tones but was indeed simple to make. I've focused on creating a beginners pattern this round (the main body uses single crochet entirely) but with a little kick to make even this simple stitch have some character. This project focuses mainly on color change and color combinations to give it an intricate beyond beginner feel while remaining accessible to any crocheter! Inspired from Mexican folk art the color changes are fun to watch as you work and each new addition of color brings more life and vibrance to the project. The edging and appliques are worked in high contrast black and white for a showy finish. The pattern is simple to modify to any size as well. I hope you enjoy this throw and dare to make one yourself. Enjoy! 17

Charissa Ragsdale Mad Mad me: DW 3 Challenger

blog | craftsy

Man this round was a challenge! It was coming down to the wire and I had NO idea what I was going to make. Then all of a sudden I remembered an idea i had from DW2 but the yarn was too thick and the design wasn't working. Ding ding ding!!! Light bulb came on and with this beautiful sport weight yarn I can happily introduce you all to the Not Your Granny's Leggings! Aren't they adorable? I'm a huge fan of granny squares and have been dying to design a pattern around them. The best thing about them is their versatility and endless color combinations. The color of these leg warmers I chose to use makes me think of candy! I would describe these ones as totally girly, all things cute, with a side of funky. This pattern will come in 3 sizes, infant, toddler, and child size so all the little ladies in your life will have the opportunity to fall in love with these leg warmers!

Jonna Ventura Frayed Knot: DW 1, 2, 3 Challenger, DW 2 Winner

The Cora Capelet is a warm and lightweight accessory for girls of all ages. The soft, light texture of the Anne Geddes Baby yarn spoke to me and said, "This would be fabulous yarn for a spring or fall garment." I love chevrons, but I wanted to give the capelet a more feminine texture, so I decided upon a pretty wave stitch. I have used nearly every color of the yarn I was given to create capelets in fun, colorful stripe patterns. I just know fans will love the Cora Capelet pattern because it's a very easy project, enjoyable to crochet, and they can whip one up in any combination of colors imaginable. You can dress it up or down, embellish it in various ways, or wear it with your favorite jeans. The pattern includes instructions for toddlers, plus size women, and many sizes in between. Happy Crocheting!

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

facebook | ravelry

This is the perfect Summer dress for the little girls in your life. Featuring diagonal chevrons on the camisole top, an optional 3-tiered attached wavy skirt, and either adjustable halter or classic spaghetti straps, it’s adaptable for every toddler girl. You can even make matching leggings for the cooler Fall days! It works up beautifully in any color combination. It comes in 4 sizes ranging from 6 months to 3T. A big part of Design Wars is testing yourself as a designer. That’s exactly what I set out to do with this design. I usually don't work with lightweight, DK, yarn and I rarely make something gender and age specific. But when we decided to use Anne Geddes Baby Yarn, I knew that I wanted to go for it. I’m glad I did!

Liz McQueen Playin’ Hooky Designs: DW 3 Challenger.

facebook | ravelry

I have wanted to make a hat and blanket set for years but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been hard to commit to any one design in particular. As soon as I felt the Anne Geddes Baby Yarn I knew exactly which design I wanted to use with it! I want this to be a pattern that any crochet lover will be proud to gift; the simplistic pattern is easy enough to follow, but is textured slightly for appeal! I used double strands of yarn to give this design a plush, cozy feel which makes the set warm, yet airy and light! And, the two slits worked into this design will allow you to easily strap a small portion of the blanket into place for use in a car seat or stroller! This is one stress-free set that you will enjoy making more than once, and your friends will appreciate and cherish this gift set for years to come!

Salena Baca Baca Creations: DW 1, 2, 3 Challenger

ANNE GEDDES BABY YARN | Anne Geddes Baby Yarn Just for baby? We think not! This yarn is versatile enough for so much more: did you see the wrap Wink made? What about those gloves by Mamachee? We’re sure you can find quite a few other designs that this yarn will be very well suited for, so we provide these links to tempt you, enjoy 

ABOUT YARN | SHOP!

I feel that our Design Wars community is a great one! And, sharing inspirational figures with you good folks is just one small way I can keep this community great, and interested, and enlightened! I’ve been an admirer of the crochet community for long enough to have no fear in reaching out to even the best known artists of our time, even if they don’t write back… Therefore, when I reached out to BUST Magazine and asked to interview Debbie Stoller, I’ll admit that I didn’t think I’d be getting a response. However, when I got an immediate response, and a request for a phone interview, I fell out of my chair. Literally. I still have a bruise from it! In result, I’m very proud to announce that an interview with Debbie Stoller will be part of our Vendor Showcase segment of Design Wars, beginning in September! 27

WHAT’S NEXT? ISSUE 10: AUGUST 26 >>>

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