A Guest Post by Linda Cee.

I first heard about freeform crochet when I was exclaiming over a beautiful white shawl, I knew it looked complicated and like nothing I had previously seen, so I asked the lady who made it, what sort of pattern she used and she laughed and told me that she just made it up as she went, then she said she would be happy to show me how to make a scrumble. Well my first reaction was, huh? But then she explained that a scrumble usually starts with one piece, a circle, a square or anything else you would want and then you just start crocheting! You could make up stitches, add different colors and textures and use a variety of hooks to achieve whatever you can possibly imagine, I got incredibly excited when I saw a blue and purple scarf she had made that had beads, feathers, and thin gold ribbons crocheted right into it. Some people compare freeform with sculpting because many freeformers make objects that are 2 or 3 dimensional and while some are very abstract, others are more realistic and recognizable, like a barn scene on a blanket for instance. Thanks to my current obsession with the craft, I found Renate Kirkpatrick’s Freeform Crochet~Knit~Fibre Designs which is a blog that is delightful to read and has a great introduction to freeform (with pictures!) I was very lucky to be able to interview Renate Kirkpatrick, who besides being a very gracious lady is also a teacher, fibre artist, and the author of three crochet books (with a fourth coming soon) and so without further ado here it is:

How did you get started crocheting and when did you get interested in freeform?

I made my first granny square in my mid-teens from an old tattered ‘How to crochet’ pamphlet that I found in an opportunity shop.

In my late twenties when the children were in bed asleep I crocheted granny square rugs (afghans) for fun, relaxation and gifts but I soon became bored with the repetition and began searching for more interesting, challenging patterns. I had never read a pattern before, let alone decipher what the heck all those odd abbreviations meant but, I persevered and, over the years, through trial and error, gained confidence and experience.

Freeform was introduced to me by a student while teaching at a local craft shop and has become my passion and creative joy.
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It’s always fun showing off your crocheted work and getting to see what others have made as well! Here is a quick round up of the recently submitted crochet photos from Crochet Spot readers like you. If you used a Crochet Spot pattern and would like to be included in a future roundup feel free to submit your crochet pictures. Enjoy the roundup!
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Have you ever injured yourself while crocheting? Cramped your hand up, cut yourself, poked an eye out? Now there’s a medical code for that – Code Y93D1: Injured While Crocheting or Knitting.

Hospitals and doctors in the U.S. use thousands of codes for medical services when billing to insurance companies. In a recent article it discusses over 120,000 new codes that are being added, one of which is the crochet/knitting code. The purpose of these new codes is to help describe as best as possible how or where the injury occurred.

Other than the code for crocheting there are other fun codes, such as being injured in an opera house, being injured by walking into a lamp post, injured from a burn due to water skis on fire, etc. Here’s a link to the original article: Walked Into a Lamppost? Hurt While Crocheting? Help Is on the Way Feel free to search though the different codes if you’re interested!

What do you think about Code Y93D1 – Injured While Crocheting? Have you ever injured yourself while crocheting?

First, I want to say hi to everyone and thank you for your kind words about my posts. I’m glad to be able to share my ideas with all of you.

I have been crochetng since I was 19 years old. I actually started not long after I first picked up my kntting needles. Since then, I’ve also learned to spin. My fiber stash is a testament to my love of things that are different–the colors and fibers are quite diverse, as is my shopping list. While I have acquired a deeper appreciation of the “good stuff”–soft wools, alpaca, silk, camel, cashmere, and all the rest–I still like a good, washable acrylic.

I also enjoy writing and reading as well as drawing, making jewelry, learning languages (I’m working on my fourth), and cooking. Basically, I like to learn and create.

Don’t you just love seeing what everyone has been up to? Here is yet another fun roundup of crochet photos submitted by readers and links to the Crochet Spot patterns they used. Feel free to leave comments at the end of the post to share with us your favorites in the round up. Have you crocheted something you’re proud of using a Crochet Spot pattern? Feel free to submit your crochet pictures to be included in a photo roundup!
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I received an email a couple days ago from Laura, a Crochet Spot reader, who told me about a charity that she’s involved in called Bundles of Love. Bundles of love is a non-profit organization that collects and sends essential baby items, including crocheted items, to families who need them. What really got my attention wasn’t just the wonderful things that they do, but the tragic incident that recently happened to Bundles of Love. Here’s an excerpt from Laura’s email to tell you all about it:
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Time to show off some awesome photos! Thank you to all the readers who’ve sent in photos of their crochet work. It’s always fun to see what everyone crocheted! Have a blast browsing the photos and don’t forget to leave a comment at the end of the post to share your likes. If you’d like to be included in a future roundup feel free to submit your crochet pictures.
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Are you ready to get started on crocheting for the holidays? I hope you don’t plan on making all those gifts at the last minute! To kick off crocheting for the holidays and to spread some Christmas joy in July, we’re hosting a 40% OFF all Christmas themed crochet patterns along with select patterns (ranging from toys, bags, clothing, home decor, etc.) that you can make awesome gifts with!

To get 40% off, simply add the item your want to your shopping cart (the sale items are already marked down), no need to enter in a code or anything. Don’t forget to look through each category to see the patterns you’re interested in as there are select (non Christmas themed) patterns that are on sale as well!

The sale ends on Wednesday, July 27, 2011 at 11:59PM EST. Have fun shopping for the holidays everyone!!

Thanks everyone for participating in the giveaway and a special thanks to Rebecca for giving away the book! I hope everyone had fun looking inside the book Teach Yourself Visually Crochet and is inspired to learn something new. After reading all the comments I noticed that there are common techniques and stitches that folks were interested in learning. So even if you don’t win the book or can’t get a hold of a copy at the moment, here are some links to tutorials on Crochet Spot that may help!

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Thanks to Rebecca, a Crochet Spot reader, we have the book Teach Yourself Visually Crochet to giveaway! Rebecca loves this book and claims that it did a great job helping her learn to crochet. Her goal is to spread more “crochet joy” and help others to learn this fabulous art form. She donated a brand new copy of this book to Crochet Spot so that it can be given away to a Crochet Spot reader who would like to learn how to crochet or improve his/her crochet skills. Even though this book is great for beginners it is also a great reference guide for those who already know how to crochet the basics.

To enter the giveaway, please visit the Teach Yourself Visually Crochet page on Amazon and click on the “Click to Look Inside” picture. Look inside the book to see what you are most interested in learning. Then leave a comment at the end of this giveaway post stating what you’re most interested in learning. Please stay on subject and only comment one time, multiple comments will be deleted.

All participants must be either a Crochet Spot Newsletter subscriber or a Premium Pattern Member at the time the winner is drawn. If you are neither, feel free to sign up for the newsletter or a membership.

Giveaway ends on Wednesday, July 13, 2011 at 11:59PM EST, where a winner will be randomly drawn.

Good luck everyone and thanks again Rebecca for donating the book for the giveaway!

Update: The giveaway is now closed. The winner will be announced shortly. Please check back later!