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National Crochet Month:
Welcome to Crochetville’s third annual Designer Blog Tour, taking place all throughout March 2015 in celebration of National Crochet Month (NatCroMo). Each day on our blog, you will find 1) in-depth profile posts for two crochet designers, with a link to their blogs so you can see what specials (free patterns, discount coupon codes, tutorials, etc.) they may be offering for NatCroMo, 2) a daily giveaway post with entries open from 8:00 AM CST to 8:00 AM CST the following day, and 3) during the last week of the month, daily posts from a Crochet Guild of America board member. Join us each day for a new surprise!
Today’s Posts: Jenny King, Jenny King Designs | Karen Ballard | Delma Myers, CGOA Board of Directors | Daily Giveaway | Halos of Hope Hat Collection | Complete Designer Schedule
Jenny King, Jenny King Designs
Crochetville is very proud to have designer Jenny King with us today, March 31st, as one of the featured designers on our 2015 Designer Blog Tour in honor of National Crochet Month (NatCroMo). Jenny has been a professional member of the Crochet Guild of America (CGOA) for about 12 years.
Jenny is wearing her own design, Blue Moon Wrap.
Three Truths and a Lie:
- Jenny married her husband 11 months after meeting him for the first time.
- When Jenny enrolled at college to study to teach Home Economics, she had never threaded a bobbin.
- Jenny drives a vintage Austin Healy car.
- When Jenny first traveled to USA from Australia by herself for a CGOA conference 17 years ago, she slept with five people she had never met before.
Jenny’s Designs:
If you’re not familiar with her work already, we’d like to share two of Jenny’s designs with you.
About Jenny:
Crochet Beginnings
Jenny has been crocheting for over 40 years. She was taught by her aunt. Jenny’s first project was a bun cover for her hair like ballerinas wear. When Jenny was 30 years old, she taught her mother to crochet.
Becoming a Designer
Jenny says, “I think i have always been designing, I just didn’t know that was what it was initially.” When she was just 15 years old, Jenny designed her own range of bikinis, which helped pay her college fees until she was 21. She started self-publishing pattern books in Australia over 17 years ago, and has since self-published 13 books. Then Jenny began designing patterns for Annie’s and has done seven pattern books with them.
Jenny’s Specialty
In the book Crochet Master Class, Jenny was the master of woven crochet. At the time that book was published, Jenny was best known for her Tartan/plaid afghans. Today she is probably best known for her Bavarian crochet.
Jenny is also skilled at designing beautiful, fashionable garments that are easy to make. Jenny says, “I love and constantly design crochet clothing and specialize in garments for curvaceous women. In the future my legacy will be Get Squared for Perfect Fit. This technique is in a video format and allows garments of any style to be made with any weight yarn and to be guaranteed to fit and flatter any size women without a wordy pattern. It believe it is truly revolutionary.”
You will be amazed by Jenny’s Get Squared technique. This video is a quick overview of what you can do with Get Squared. Once you watch it, you’ll be so curious for more! You can sign up for Get Squared on Jenny King Designs.
On Designing
Jenny shares with us, “I see designs in my mind’s eye and work at them over and over again until they look like the picture in my mind.” She admits she is a bit of a perfectionist. She also goes shopping and buys garments that makes her look good and then translates that shape into crochet. She seeks out clothing styles that are new and interesting.
Jenny says, “When I’m designing I like to use my crochet hook to emulate what I would call designer knits.” Other times she embraces “the beauty and delicacy of crochet lace to create garments.”
Jenny lives in a tropical place, so bright colors are an obvious signature of her designs. She says, “I look for color combinations that make my heart sing and translate that into my designs.” In addition, Jenny tells us, “I like my designs to be a bit quirky.”
Greatest Crochet Accomplishment
When asked about her greatest crochet accomplishment, Jenny is torn between two: (1) her crochet wedding dress, which finally got into Vogue Crochet after 30 years of dreaming about it and (2) being part of The PANEL Panel at Stitches last year.
Fun Story
When asked about a fun story, Jenny says seeing Tammy Hildebrand crochet with her feet has to be one of the funniest things she has seen. Tammy once broke her arm, and rather than wait until it healed, she figured out how to crochet with her feet. What a great skill to have!
Other Crafts
Jenny tells us, “I sew my own range of ‘Jenny’ dresses and module pieces that work well as a backdrop to my crochet garments in non-iron, ready-to-wear, travel pieces.”
Advice for New Crocheters:
Jenny suggests, “Remember when you first learnt to ride a bike. It didn’t happen straight away and you had help. Keep asking for help. Knock on doors until someone opens up. Crocheters love to share. And don’t point out a mistake. Most people wont even know it is there unless you tell them.”
Advice for New Designers:
Jenny shares, “I love what I do and would never want to do anything else, but it probably won’t make you rich. Get computer savvy, write a business plan and go the CGOA for the best advice and contacts in the world.”
Next Big Trend in Crochet
Jenny believes we are heading into the new crochet revolution. She says there will be crochet like we saw in the 1970s: “hippie fringing gypsy boho style.”
Some of Jenny’s Favorites:
Favorite Books: Burda Stitch Guide (1974, from Germany), 262 Crochet Patterns by Nihon Vogues, and for mitered squares, any book from Vivian Hoxbro.
Favorite Hooks: The discontinued Clover crochet hooks without the handle.
Favorite Yarn: Jenny loves all the natural fibers: cotton, silk, linen, wool, mink, yak, and quivet, but she’s allergic to alpaca. Jenny adds, “Some are too warm to wear here in the tropics but they feel so lovely.”
Favorite Thing to Crochet: Jenny’s favorites are definitely clothing — or necklaces, or accessories — “anything to make a person feel lovely.”
Favorite Designers: Jenny’s favorite knit designers: Hane Faklenberg, Sally Melville and Jane E. Slicer-Smith — Jenny says they all explore interesting clothing shapes and colorways. As for crochet designers, Jenny loves the work of Doris Chan and Yumiko Alexander.
Visit Jenny’s Blog: NatCroMo Sneak Peek
You will definitely want to visit Jenny’s blog today! She is offering a great story behind this little crocheted birdie, as well as a FREE pattern for it. Don’t miss out on this cutie!
Find Jenny Online:
Website: jennykingdesigns.com
Blog: jennykingdesigns.com/_blog/Jenny%27s_Crochet_World
Ravelry Designer Page: ravelry.com/designers/jenny-king
Ravelry Profile: ravelry.com/people/mudjimbagirl (must be logged in to view profile)
Facebook: facebook.com/JennyKingDesigns
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jkdcrochet
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/jkdcrochet/
The Truth
The truth is that Jenny does not drive a vintage Austin Healy car.
Additional Blog Tour Information:
Links to All the Info
Daily Giveaway Schedule
Daily Designer Schedule
Learn About CGOA
Halos of Hope: Make Hats
I love Jenny King’s designs. Especially the High Street Poncho!
Love the little birdie! Thank you!
Very nice designs!
As someone who has a very hard time finding flattering clothing, I look forward to learning more about the Get Squared technique. And I really like Jenny’s tartan crocheted pieces!
Love the wrap she has on in the pic!
Thank you for Bobin and introducing me to this designer. Love Michelle and so many of her designs.
So many pretty designs…sparkle shrug, salsa, michelle. The bird and bath time buddies are adorable. I love your star ratings!
That Michelle top is awesome. How tenacious of Jenny to learn to crochet with her feet.
Thanks, craftyone! It wasn’t Jenny who learned to crochet with her feet, it was Tammy Hildebrand. Jenny was sharing the funny story. 🙂
I totally got it all wrong. Thanks for setting me straight! 🙂
that birdy is so cute. 🙂
Jenny’s work is AMAZING! I am going to sign up for her Get Squared. I love learning new crochet. Thanks for sharing this with us. I will be visiting her blog for sure. That little birdie is so cute. A Wedding Dress in Vogue! Be still my heart. What an accomplished crocheter. Fingers crossed on the giveaway. I have entered every day this month. Loving #NatCroMo!
~Crystal
Crochet, A Day In The Life
http://krystlewv.blogspot.com
I too design my own things. I love the idea of selling, but know it’s a very difficult thing to make money as a business doing this. I think it’s terribly funny that someone she knows learned to crochet with their feet! I think by the time you master it, your arm would be healed! (:
The get squared technique looks so awesome!! I might have to try that out. My mom taught me to crochet but now I’m teaching her Tunisian after teaching myself 🙂
Jenny, looking forward to learning from you in San Diego during your Master Star Stitch class! Swaantje
True re mistakes! That is like in dancing–you just keep going and no one knows you made a mistake.
Love the poncho! the birdie is very cute too! Thanks!
Cute! Can’t wait.
I love Jenny’s book, Fashions to Flaunt Crocheted with Noro Yarns – especially the Bobble Scarf, which I have made several times.
Jenny has been crocheting for over 40 years. I like your Michelle top, look forward to hearing more about square.
Your High Street Poncho design is beautiful.
Hi Jenny, LOVE your designs, especially the Blue Moon Wrap! Just added it to my Ravelry queue.
Thanks for introducing me to another designer I wasn’t aware of yet!
What an inspiring designer! Love the fashion designs! Can’t wait for the video!
Beautiful designs!
I just LOVE Jenny’s designs. They are so beautiful. And her patterns are clear and easy to follow.
So many of us learned to crochet from our mothers, but you taught yours! Wonderful!
I wish I could have seen Tammy Hildebrand crochet with her feet – that’s true dedication!
I love Jenny’s designs! I went straight away to her Ravelry and Facebook pages to take a peek!
The High Street Poncho is fabulous!
Love that she designs with full figures in mind. Also, I MUST have one of those hook usb’s! That is awesome!
little twitter bird
As a beginning crocheter, & a curvaceous woman, I’m very excited & looking forward to learning your ‘Get Squared’ technique. Thank you for sharing!
Love your patterns
When Jenny was 30 years old, she taught her mother to crochet.
Jenny’s designs are beautiful. Thank you for sharing with us.
Jenny is a great talent.
Thank you for designing for women with curves!!!! You High Street Poncho is great.
Don’t point out a mistake, I have to remember that one…….
I love your angular designs. And I’m a big bohemian fan when it comes to clothing, so I’m going to check your stuff out!
Love the poncho, and I’m intrigued by this get squared technique!
What an exciting new concept in garment design! And love the Crochet hook USB. Delighted to learn about Jenny!
I really like Jenny’s clothing designs, but I love the flower designs. “Jenny’s Bouquet” is one of my favorite pattern books.
Jenny was a BIG reason I signed up for The PANEL Panel at Stitches Midwest in 2014, and she didn’t disappoint. I think her takes on the PANEL idea were the most original and they looked fabulous in person. I also had the chance to take a couple of classes with Jenny at that show and I highly recommend her as a teacher. My next goal is to purchase her Get Squared class.