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Tool School: Jumbo Amour Crochet Hooks
What is it? -There was a time when almost all of the gals and some of us guys grew up learning how to crochet from our moms or grandmothers. It was a necessary skill that seemed to play out as life became more fast-paced. All of a sudden it was more economical to purchase finished goods than to buy materials and devote the time required to complete a project. Times have changed and creativity is making a comeback. Crochet now goes to places where grandma never imagined. And what takes…
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Mini Beading Loom Woven Ring by Carol Porter
We’ve had a lot of fun learning what can be done on this mighty little loom. One evening my son Jon and I were talking about how to create a ring on the loom. Here is how we figured out how to make the ring. We needed the warp to be stretchy, but realized the weft could be done with the regular 100% polyester thread. A great bead design and we were ready to weave! Supplies Mini Bead Weaving Loom Clover Art No. 0.5 mm clear stretchy cord 100% polyester…
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Takumi Tuesday: Sea Breeze Bag Hack!
You know that old adage, “It’s a woman’s prerogative to change her mind?” Well, the same thing holds true for knitters (and crocheters!) We can find a project pattern we like, but then decide to adjust the finished size, the yarn type, or as in the case with today’s Sea Breeze Bag hack, completely change the gauge. With the help of a little math, the will to swatch, and by swapping out embellishments you’ll find that accessory patterns (which translate easier than garments, because fit isn’t as important) can often…
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Flex ‘n Bodkins Project Sheet with Nancy Zieman
Enjoy this free project sheet featuring Nancy Zieman’s new Bodkins, items will be available for purchase the beginning of June. Want to print the project sheet? No problem download it here, under project sheets. Nancy created this project sheet to show you the many uses of her new bodkins. You can see them in action at Spring Quilt Market in Minneapolis at Clover’s booth # 2301!!! My excitement has been building as I’ve awaited the launch of Clover’s new bodkin tools. The wait is now over! I’m pleased to introduce…
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Sewing and Quilting Items for Spring!!!
See what’s new for Spring!!! Clover is excited to introduce items in the sewing and quilting category. Come see these items in action at booth # 2301 at Spring Quilt Market in Minneapolis on May 15-17, 2015. We look forward to seeing you there!! Flex ‘n Glide Bodkins Art No. 9581 The Flex n Glide Bodkins by Nancy Zieman are long, flexible bodkins that will swiftly pull elastic or ribbons through casing. Two available in each package. Clip ‘n Glide Bodkins Art No. 9582 The Clip n Glide Bodkin by…
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Tool School: Bodkins
Class 19 Tool School with Instructor Steve Butler What is it? – Bodkins. Only someone who sews would know what a bodkin is. Simply put, a bodkin is a tool that is used to pull various thin materials through a sewn fabric casing. Elastic, ribbon, cording or other “drawstring” type materials can all be pulled through the casing to serve any desired function. A bodkin usually resembles an over-sized sewing needle with a blunt point and a large eye. The bodkin is attached to the cording and manipulated through the…
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Rainbow Booties with Repeat Crafter Me
I had the pleasure of trying out the Clover Amour crochet hooks this past week! This was a big deal for me because I’ve been using the same hook for 3 years. But when the Clover hooks arrived in their pretty packaging with 10 brightly colored hooks in a rainbow of colors, I couldn’t wait to get one in my hands and around some yarn! All Clover products can be found at www.clover-usa.com The colorful easy grip handles inspired me to make these rainbow baby booties! The first thing I…
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I *heart* Weaving Sticks!
Last year I was at TNNA (an industry trade show) where I spied Clover’s Weaving Sticks for the first time. I was mesmerized by these wooden tools that looked like my beloved bamboo knitting needles, but with a hole at the bottom and held together in sets of 2-6! I hovered around the booth for a bit, but for some reason felt shy about asking to use a pair. When I got home, however I went straight to the craft store and bought a pack. I’d been crushing on some of…
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Clover’s Weaving Sticks
Clover’s Weaving Sticks are a great way to create basically anything you want!! How do you use them? First you have to decide whether your project requires a thick or fine weave. Depending on your project will determine the size of weaving sticks you use for example; a thicker weave would be needed for a rug and a thinner weave is necessary for a bracelet. Once you decide how thick you want to weave you have to decide how wide you want your project. You are able to make your project…
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Tool School: Straight Pins
What is it? – In some of the oldest archeological digs around the world you can find ancient straight pins. They’ve been around that long and probably always will be. There are so many uses for them and in many cases there really is no substitute. We use them to hold patterns in place on our fabric, bind fabric pieces, tailor fabric to our bodies, hold seams together, anchor trims, beads or other embellishments in place and even block knitted products. Because of this wide variety of uses for straight…