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Rating: 
Summary: Too Many Pattern Mistakes
Review: I consider myself an intermediate level crocheter and I really like a lot of the designs in this book. However, I made the "Learn to Crochet Afghan" and found A LOT of mistakes in the instructions. Even some of the basic stitch directions have typos. I'm hesitant to start another project for fear of having to start over due to pattern mistakes.
Rating:
Summary: Too Many Pattern Mistakes
Review: I consider myself an intermediate level crocheter and I really like a lot of the designs in this book. However, I made the "Learn to Crochet Afghan" and found A LOT of mistakes in the instructions. Even some of the basic stitch directions have typos. I'm hesitant to start another project for fear of having to start over due to pattern mistakes.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent beginning
Review: I had in mind to learn to crochet in order to make a baby blanket for my brother. I wanted to learn a variety of techniques but didn't want to tackle an ENTIRE article comprised of just a few stitches. In my search to find a good book to learn from, I had purchased several but none of the learner projects did what I wanted. I got bored too quickly. Then I found this book. The afghan they feature has 20 different squares, each square features a few rows of new stitches/techniques in ever escalating difficulty levels. They are sized so that each section is enough to get the hang of what is being asked for, and then moves on. In addition, when the squares first start they not only explain the stitches in plain english as well as throwing in the abbreviations commonly used, but they also have a row by row diagram. As the squares progress, they gradually replace the english and the diagrams with the typical language you'd find when reading a crochet pattern. I can also tell by looking at the organization and how the information is arranged that if a new crocheter skips the afghan, they are going to be thrown into the deep waters (so to speak) of funky patterns, abreviations galore, and little explanatory text. That would be confusing as all heck - and that's not how this book is intended for teaching. It's in the afghan squares where the user picks up all the crochet pattern and technique training, so skipping around would not be advised for this book.
I also changed the thread type and colors. I figured the "recommended" colors and thread were just that, so I changed them to suite my tastes. I'll be doing the lovely shawl pattern in the book in a rough woolen alpaca blend, not the tiny worsted thread they used. This replacement of suggested items has had no effect on the learning of this art. The only thing I had difficulty with was attempting to translate the pictures - which were nice and clear - into actual ACTIONS. For this, I found just the help I needed at http://www.stitchguide.com which features little Quicktime videos of the basic stitches. Better yet, site is FREE! Once I actually SAW someone make a few stitches, now the pictures in the book were fully translatable. I'm currently on square 13 of the 20 and am going strong. When I'm finished with the learn-to-crochet afghan, I KNOW I will have the confidence and skill to begin on some of the clothing they feature.
The only thing I would have recommended is that they take the "How to Tie Off" Tip OUT of the "tips" boxes and make it a make more obvious section. They go over color changes and adding/dropping stitches, ways to tie off should be just as obvious but it isn't. I interupted my learn-to-crochet blanket in order to get the baby blanket done, but I had no idea how to make good strong knots to end the piece with. It will eventually unravel as a result, and I'm not too happy about that, but live and learn (this is why I rated 4 stars instead of 5).
So - in essence - clear language, good organization, fast paced without going TOO fast, and challenging without being overwhelming. All in all, I would say excellent book for fast learners who don't want to do that same thing over and over again without going so fast that they loose you!! I would definitely recommend this book - coupled with looking at the basic stitch videos on the mentioned site - to anyone with the gumption to actually sit down and figure this craft out for themselves.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic First-Timer Book
Review: I learnt to crochet with this, have just finished the 20 block afghan and I think it is great. I have already got plans for more of them. I love the way that you can incorporate so many different stitches in the one project, it stopped me from losing interest (as has happened to me in the past!).
I am sure I will still use this book once I have developed my skills more, am so glad I bought it.
Rating:
Summary: Very Informative
Review: My sister is left-handed and I wanted her to learn crochet (My addiction:-).
She's very happy with the book and details. I found that the stitches that are offered are very detailed and creative.
Rating:
Summary: Buy for the instructions, not for the patterns
Review: The first part of this book is wonderful for anyone starting on crochet for the first time. It's got terrific and throrough visual instructions for dozens of different stitch variations. So I highly recommend it to a beginner looking for a place to start.Unfortunately, I found all the pattern ideas to not match my taste. I am very turned off by their choice of yarns and color combinations in nearly every project. A large portion of the book is devoted to a "sampler afghan" where each square focuses on a different stitch or color pattern. This a great idea in principle, but the color combinations they used seemed rather gross to me, and I haven't been able to visualize a set of colors or yarns that might look better. There are a number of adult sweater and shawl ideas - the most I've seen in any book. Again, the colors turned me off. (Remind me of well-meaning, ugly gifts from Grandma.) And I found many of the designs seemed rather bulky looking. I prefer lighter-weight creations using more intricate patterns. So, I realize this is all a matter of taste. Looking through this book, it is obvious the authors are very creative and taking crochet in innovative directions. I think as I become more advanced in my crochet skills and design my own projects, I may use some of their design ideas in my own designs. However, I would have appreciated this book much more if the authors were more into my taste in colors.
Rating:
Summary: Not a bad book....just not a "must have" with better choices
Review: This book is divided into 3 sections. The first section covers technique, including instructions for left-handers as well as covering the symbol equivalents for each pattern stitch. At first I thought all the technical info was of great value but after having this book for a while now, I have not found it to be the best of references for everytime I had a technical question, I could not find the answers I was looking for. The second section is an afghan project achieved by practising the techinques from the first section to make afghan squares which will be joined once completed. Though the concept is good, I personally do not like the look of this afghan and would have preferred it to be made up of smaller squares. I would have liked the authors to include information on the number of stitches required for each pattern stitch such as is done in the Harmony Guide pattern stitch books, or Lily Chin's Mosaic Afghan book. That way, I could actually get some good use when referencing the pattern stitches should I want to adapt a WIM (work in mind). The third section takes all the stitches learned in the sampler afghan a step further by implementing them into various projects. A few of the projects are gorgeous but many, if not most of the patterns are outdated. I have to agree with one of the other reviewers that you will prefer Melissa Leapman's sweater designs. Something I also did not like about the pattern section is that many patterns did not use easy to find yarns and the authors did not simplify the task of finding a replacment yarn as the yarn weights were not specified. I went out and bought this book because of its outstanding reviews but after having accumulated a lot of different crochet books, this one I could have done without.
Rating:
Summary: THE best and most helpful crochet book I have ever read!
Review: This book is fabulous. I just got it today, and have been reading it for two hours. BEAUTIFUL patterns, great instructions for both beginning crocheters and those who are very experienced. I wish I had this book when I first learned to crochet! I would like to respond to the review left by Dana Hudson. She states she's had much difficulty with the sweater pattern on page 156. After reading the pattern, I've come to the conclusion that the pattern itself is not incorrect. Both the Back and Front pieces of the sweater are worked from the bottom for 46 rows. Then the armholes are shaped for 33 rows on the Back piece, and 19 rows for the Front piece, to the neckline. The Front piece has FEWER total rows than the Back. This is because, as you can see by laying any sweater on a flat surface, a front neckline is lower than a back neckline. I wish I could contact Ms. Hudson and clarify this for her. It is a beautiful sweater. The other patterns in the book are quite delicious-looking, too! This book is ESSENTIAL for any crocheter!!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good Book...
Review: This book is GREAT for showing lots of stitches, and I really like the idea of making squares of each type of stitch and then making an afghan out of them! The only problem I have with this book is that I have seen at least 3 of the patterns shown in the book in OTHER publications, so I felt a little "cheated" on the sweater pattern front.
I would like to comment on the above review about the patterns being incorrect...it has been my experience with almost every pattern I have used that at some point what I think the pattern means and what it actually means are different. I just then study the pattern and think through what the designer really meant. Nine times out of ten the pattern was actually correct, just unclear. It is a fault of the crochet shorthand that is used for most every pattern---it is too ambiguous in places.
Rating:
Summary: Inspiration for beginners and long time crocheters alike
Review: This is a great crochet book for many reasons. One reason is the wonderful photographs and the clear consise instructions that come with the projects. Another reason is because it shows crochet being fashionable and easy to make as opposed to being something "old fashioned" looking. When my youngest neice asked for a crochet book as a gift, this is the book I picked to give her. It has good instructions for beginning crocheters (which she is) and has enough innovative patterns to keep her interested past the initial frustration of learning a new craft. This is a high compliment from me because I've been crocheting over 30 years and have seen many crochet books and I thought this one was the best for a young woman just starting to crochet. (I may have chosen the Lily Chin one, but it wasn't out at that time.) I recommend this book highly to anybody who wants to expand their crochet skills. The projects are beautiful and instructions are clear. (No, I _didn't_ see the "mistake" on page 156. I'm wondering if the other reviewer may have misread the instructions.) If you know a crocheter and he or she doesn't have this book, give them this book at the next gift giving opportunity. If you crochet, you should get this book and enjoy it.
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