Crochet - Yer Doin' It Wrong

You know, I like being a member of the Crochet Guild of America. Even if it's true that I knit now far more than I crochet, still, I like that sense of belonging. Especially since having been featured in Interweave Crochet's reader's gallery.

But, I cannot help but cringe at what the crocheting ladies of the guild consider to be fashion-forward examples of their illustrious craft. Each Crochet! Magazine (the guild's own publication) that finds its way into my mailbox every other month has me gasping in horror. Why they continue to insist on publishing (and naming as Editor's Choice, no less) the spectacularly tacky works of Tammy Hildebrand is beyond me:

And that photo doesn't even SHOW the "edgy, asymmetrical hem." Seriously, people, it doesn't matter how many times you try to convince us that asymmetrical buttoning is trendy or daring; you will always look like Seymour Krelborn.

Of course, Crochet! Magazine wasn't satisfied with merely one eye-searing masterpiece from Ms. Hildebrand. Oh no. Take a gander at this beauty:

I get good laughs out of my Crochet! Magazine subscription (which, after all, is free with guild dues), but if I actually want to crochet anything out of a magazine and not open myself up to public ridicule and personal mortification, I think I'll wait for my Interweave to show up.

Interweave Loves Me

So, I'm pretty damn excited. I got a message on Ravelry from one of the editors of Interweave Crochet indicating that I have been chosen to be a part of their Reader's Gallery in the next issue. This particular reader's gallery will apparently focus on hats.

For those of you who aren't regular readers - the Reader's Gallery is a collection of something like four to six photos of finished projects made from patterns published in previous issues. I've always been mildly jealous of the people who get featured, but I never thought my stuff was nice enough to submit.

Turns out, I didn't even have to! They contacted me! The nice editor lady - one Toni Rexroat - asked if she could use a photo of my Chullo Hat, which I made last winter. I asked, of course, if I could take some truly nice pictures of the hat to send her so that she wouldn't publish the rather half-handed pics I snapped back when I made the hat. Those pictures were merely for Ravelry and Facebook. THESE pictures will be going in a nationally distributed magazine in all its full-color glossy glory.

This afternoon it turned unexpectedly sunny, and with the trees in our yard turning some pretty rad colors, we whipped out the camera and I posed my yarnie heart out on the back deck. In the best pics my eyes are either downcast or closed entirely, since, of course, to get the good light, the sun needs to be shining right in my eyes.

So, without further ado, here are my submissions, the two best of the lot: