Cold Weather Crochet by Marly Bird – Book Review and Pattern Excerpt

This book review is written by me on behalf of Interweave/F+W. I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book to complete my review, but was not financially compensated. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Title: Cold Weather Crochet: 21 Cozy Garments, Accessories and Afghans to Keep You Warm
Author: Marlaina “Marly” Bird
Published by: Interweave/F+W
ISBN: 978-1-63250-125-7

 

Cold Weather Crochet by Marly Bird, published by Interweave/F+W, contains 21 of the most gorgeous patterns for warm and cozy items. If you have brutal winters where you live, those cold weather accessories like scarves and hats are essential to keep yourself warm. You will find all sorts of patterns in this book to fit your cold weather needs. Marly provides patterns for scarves, hats, wraps, afghans and more. Plus, there are patterns for both men and women! There are a lot of patterns that are quick and easy to whip up, that would make great gifts for friends and loved ones. There is really something for everyone in Cold Weather Crochet.Here are some of my favorite projects from Cold Weather Crochet:

Big Pink Hat (p 96)
I absolutely LOVE the Big Pink Hat! This project uses bulky yarn and simple stitches with a pop of color. It’s quick and easy to make which means it makes a great gift!

African Flower Afghan (p 55)
This beautiful afghan is filled with bright colors to cheer you up on a gloomy winter day. You can make the African flower motifs in several different colors to create endless color combinations.

Thrummed Slippers (p 37)
These basic slippers are dressed up with a variety of colored thrums. Mix and match colors for colorful and cozy footwear or make the thrums the same color for an elegant two-tones slipper.

Pretty in Pink Infinity Cowl (p 23)
Get a classy chevron look without actually making a chevron with this infinity cowl pattern. You can mix shades of pink with other colors or make it all pink for a stunning look.

The patterns in Cold Weather Crochet range in level of difficulty but no one should be afraid to conquer these patterns. Marly provides clear instructions for each pattern along with charts and other visual aids for added help. Each pattern contains finished measurements, a list of yarn, hook size and other materials needed for each project, as well as the pattern gauge. There is also a full list of abbreviations at the end of the book (in US Crochet Terms) and a guide for some simple techniques.

Want to try some of these cozy projects for yourself? You can get Cold Weather Crochet by Marly Bird from the Interweave Store for just $22.99

Bonus Content!

Thank you for reading my review! I want to give a special thank you to Marly Bird and Interweave/F+W for allowing me to review Cold Weather Crochet and for letting me feature this amazing excerpt from the book!

I hope you all enjoy the pattern and go out and scoop up your very own copy of Cold Weather Crochet.

Excerpted from Cold Weather Crochet: 21 Cozy Garments, Accessories, and Afghans to Keep You Warm by Marly Bird. Copyright © 2015 F+W Media, Inc. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved. Photography by Joe Hancock.

Log Cabin Blanket

A log cabin quilt is a quintessential design most quilters make and one that is easily translated into crochet. I chose to make this blanket in my favorite crochet stitch and use really bright colors to make it more modern! The yarn used is 100 percent wool, so this is a blanket that will keep you warm on that cold winter night.

FINISHED SIZE

About 51½” (131 cm) by 51½” (131 cm) after blocking.

YARN

Worsted weight (#4 Medium).

Shown here: Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted (100% wool, 245 yd [224 m]/3½ oz [100 g]): #730W Natural (A), #108W Cherry Delight (B), #120W Cresting Waves (C), #105W Bougainvillea (D), #137W Cobalt Blue (E), #109W Spring Green (F), and #207W Alpine Violet (G), 1 skein each.

HOOK

Size I-9/5.5 mm hook. Adjust hook size if necessary to obtain the correct gauge.

NOTIONS

Yarn needle.

GAUGE

11 sts and 8 rows = 3½” (9 cm) in block pattern. 1 block = 9″ (23 cm) by 9″ (23 cm) in the pattern after blocking.

NOTES

* Change colors on the last stitch of row or round when indicated.

STITCH GUIDE

Beginning shell (beg shell): (Dc, ch 1, 2 dc) in same st or sp.

Shell: (2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc) in same st or sp.

Corner shell: (3 dc, ch 1, 3 dc) in same sp. V-stitch (V-st): (Dc, ch 1, dc) in same sp.

Blanket

CENTER SQUARE

With A, ch 12.

Row 1: (RS) Sc in 2nd ch from hook, *dc in the next ch, sc in the next ch; rep from * across, turn—11 sts.
Row 2: Ch 2 (does not count as a st here and throughout), dc in the first sc, *sc in the next dc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 1, sc in the first dc, *dc in the next sc, sc in the next dc; rep from * across, turn.
Rows 4–9: Rep Rows 2–3 three times, changing to B on the last stitch of the last row.

FIRST RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with RS still facing and working across the side edge of the Center Square, work 13 sc evenly spaced across, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 1, sc in the first dc, *dc in the next sc, sc in the next dc; rep from * across, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to C on the last stitch of the last row.

SECOND RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with RS still facing and working across the side edge of the Block, work 18 sc evenly spaced across, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last sc, sc in the last sc, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next dc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last st, sc in the last dc, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to D on the last stitch of the last row.

THIRD RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with RS still facing and working across the side edge of the block, work 20 sc evenly spaced across the row, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last sc, sc in the last sc, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next dc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last st, sc in the last dc, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to E on the last stitch of the last row.

FOURTH RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with the RS still facing and working across the side edge of the block, work 25 sc evenly spaced across the row, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 1, sc in the first dc, *dc in the next sc, sc in the next dc; rep from * across, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to F on the last stitch of the last row.

FIFTH RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with the RS still facing and working across the side edge of the block, work 27 sc evenly spaced across the row, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 1, sc in the first dc, *dc in the next sc, sc in the next dc; rep from * across, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to G on the last stitch of the last row.

SIXTH RECTANGLE

Row 1: (RS) Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with the RS still facing and working across the side edge of the block, work 32 sc evenly spaced across the row, turn.
Row 2: (WS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next sc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last sc, sc in the last sc, turn.
Row 3: (RS) Ch 2, dc in the first sc, *sc in the next dc, dc in the next sc; rep from * across to the last st, sc in the last dc, turn.
Rows 4–5: Rep Rows 2–3 once, changing to A on the last stitch of the last row.

MOTIF EDGING

Rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, ch 1; with the RS still facing and working across the side edge of the block, work 34 sc evenly spaced across the row to the next corner, ch 1, rotate the block 90 degrees to the right, work 32 sc evenly spaced across the row to the next corner, ch 1; rep from * once, join with a sl st in first sc. Fasten off.

ASSEMBLY

Weave in the ends. Wash and block all of the blocks to size. With all of the blocks facing the same direction and using a mattress stitch, sew the blocks together in a square 5 wide by 5 deep. Block the strips to size.

BORDER

With 34-sc edges at the top and bottom and 32-sc edges on the sides, join A with a sl st in the top right-hand corner of the blanket, *ch 1; with RS facing and working across the long edge of the blanket, work 230 sc evenly spaced across the row to the next corner, ch 1, rotate the blanket 90 degrees to the right; working across the short edge of the blanket, work 209 sc evenly spaced across the row to the next corner, ch 1; rep from * once, ch 1, join with a sl st in the first sc, turn—878 sc.

Rnd 1: (WS) Ch 1, *(sc, ch 1, sc) in the next ch-1 sp, sc in each sc across to the next ch-1 sp; rep from * around, join with a sl st to the first sc, turn—886 sc.
Rnd 2: (RS) Ch 2 (counts as hdc here and throughout), *hdc in each sc across to the next ch-1 sp, (hdc, ch 1, hdc) in the next ch-1 sp; rep from * around, join with a sl st in the top of the beg ch-2 sp, turn—894 hdc.
Rnd 3: (WS) Ch 2, *(hdc, ch 1, hdc) in the next ch-1 sp, hdc in each st across to the next ch-1 sp; rep from * around, join with a sl st in the top of the beg ch-2 sp, turn—902 hdc.
Rnd 4: (RS) Ch 3 (counts as dc here and throughout), beg shell in first st, sk the next 2 sts, ** *shell in the next st, sk the next 2 sts; rep from * across to the next corner ch-1 sp, corner shell in the next corner ch-1 sp, sk the next 2 sts; rep from ** around, join with a sl st to the top of the beg ch-3 sp. Fasten off.
Rnd 5: With the RS facing, join D with a sl st in the first ch-1 sp, ch 3, beg shell in the same sp, *shell in each ch-1 space to the next corner shell, sk the next 5 dc,(shell, ch 1, shell) in the corner ch-1 sp; rep from * around, join with a sl st in the top of the beg ch-3 sp. Fasten off.
Rnd 6: With RS facing, join E with a sl st in the first ch-1 sp, ch 3, beg shell in the same sp, *shell in each ch-1 space to the next corner shell, (dc, ch 1, dc) in corner ch-1 sp; rep from * around, shell in the next ch-1 sp, join with a sl st in the top of the beg ch-3 sp. Fasten off.
Rnd 7: Ch 1, *sk the next dc, sc in the next dc, (sc, ch 3 sc) in the next ch-1 sp, sc in the next dc**, [sk the next 2 dc, sc in the next dc, (sc, ch 3 sc) in the next ch-1 sp, sc in the next dc] across to the next corner V-st, sk the next dc, sc in the next dc, (sc, ch 3 sc) in the corner ch-1 sp, sc in the next dc; rep from * around, ending the last rep at **, sk the next dc, join with a sl st in the first sc. Fasten off.

Finishing

Lightly steam the block edging. Weave in the ends.