Inside Crochet Book Club: Your views on the latest books

Helen has been crocheting since she was a child and over the years she has tried her hand at many different types of crochet. She's always willing to try something different and her most recent forays into "something different" resulted in a set of four fabulous wall hangings (below), one for each season.

Visit her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/RainbowValleyCrochet

Crochet Gifts: Irresistible Projects to Make and Give by Kim Werker

"The book looks quite understated. The blanket on the cover uses muted colours which are very much “in” at the moment. It is a neat, easy to handle size and the design of the blanket is a hint of things to come. I have to admit, I wasn’t a least bit surprised to find it was a Doris Chan design.

I showed the book to my crochet class, mostly beginners. They loved the baby hat and booties, possibly because some of them have had recent additions to their families. The cover blanket was commented on as were the bed socks. My personal favourite was the “Babymoon" robe. However, I felt something that pretty was a waste for around the house. I would wear it out as a jacket.

This book has something there for most levels. Beginners could make some of the easier items and this would encourage them to move on to the more difficult patterns.  There is also something there for most tastes and styles." - Helen Free

Final mark: 8/10

Crochet Gifts by Kim Werker and published by Interweave.

What we said:

Crocheted Gifts will refresh your crochet ideas and offers plenty of unusual projects to help you transform your crochet skills into treats for yourself or gifts for others. This isn't a book for beginners, but if you've already had some practice with a hook then the clearly laid out patterns and charts should prove easy to work with. Each gift comes with a little introduction, which includes helpful hints on where to start if you're intending on crocheting as a gift (choosing colours and sizes for example). We particularly like some of the more unusual projects, such as the delicate Little Star pendant, which you could make up quickly as a special last-minute surprise. The Berry Baby hat and booties are adorable - perfect for an expecting mother or newborn. There is such a variety of projects here - you can pick from items for the home, for women or men, accessories or garments...and best of all, you can give each pattern your own touch with colour and yarn substitutions.