Crocheting in Plain English: Easy-To-Follow Lessons in Patterns, Sensible Solutions to Nagging Problems, the Only Book Any Crocheter Will Ever Need

by Maggie Righetti and Maggie Rightetti

Book Overview

At last, crocheters without the benefit of a friendly instructor can find th help they need in Crocheting in Plain English. Even if you've never held a crochet hook before, Maggie Righetti's sound instructions and encouragement will help get you startd. If youre an experienced crocheter, you'll find dozens of tips for perfecting your techniques. This comprehensive, common-sense guide covers virtually everything you need to know about crochet: Selecting...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312014120
• ISBN13: 9780312014124
• Release Date: February 1988
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 7.3" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

Not helpful here

Not a helpful book with extraneous info not relevant to instruction. The least interesting purchase out of all of my crochet books. I have nothing else to say except that it does not feel aimed at anyone under 50.

Crocheting in Plain English

Book was packaged beautifully and shipped quickly. I would definitely order from this vendor again.

good and bad

This book is helpful, but needs improvement. If u r teaching yourself, u will probably need a 2nd book to get started, as I did--- It shows u well how to make the 1st loop & 1st chain, but next, with single crochet, the very 1st diagram, showing u where to put the hook, is awful, leaving u stuck. Once u learn single crochet elsewhere however, this book can help in other regards. Other diagrams nicely clarified details that other books do not. This 'good' & 'bad' occurred throughout the book, for example: The BAD: The diagrams are all black & white, small, hand drawn, & I've seen much clearer diagrams in other books. Sometimes the author uses a term before explaining it. I read some chapters that really did not tell me anything. For ex, the chapter on yarn tells u to use good yarn, but does not tell u HOW to specifically know which yarns are good. While a matter of preference, it is wordy at times. There were a few spots where no diagram at all was provided coupled with explanations that were downright bad & NOT in plain english (such as in the FIRST few 'fancy' stitches after the basics). The problem was with the book, because I worked all of the way through the book up to that point & read & practiced everything, ( & also got A's in physics, biochemistry, etc)... there is no reason why I should have been stuck, except that the book 'plain' & simply has bad spots. It had an annoying order at times: When u are just getting started, trying to learn basic stitches, a lot of side info is thrown in (for ex, how to make buttonholes), which could have better been dealt with later. The GOOD: 1 aspect of the book great for beginners is how it leads u slowly along into developing ability to read crochet shorthand & diagrams, which other books neglect. It has a nice section on more fancy patterns & motifs. It provides helpful tips that could be beneficial as u progress in crochet. If u take time to carefully work thru the book & practice, it can help u develop a very clear sense of how to begin & end rows & keep them neat, (which also helps in counting stitches for patterns). In sum: Overall, if u need a book to explain things, this book is fairly good, as many other books do not provide such explanation, even though this book does do so in a wordy manner at times, provides some useless info & has some bad spots. Lastly, I dispute its claim that it's the only book u will ever need... there are many good pattern/ motif books, etc, to expand your skills beyond this book.

Good instruction book but .....

I like this book and the way M's Righetti writes about crochet and her love of the craft. The instructions are generally good but the diagrams leave a lot to be desired. They are difficult (to me) to understand and I wouldn't choose this as a first crochet book for anyone wanting to learn to crochet.Part of the reason for my opinion is that M's Righetti has a very strict view on how a crochet hook is supposed to be held. There is more than one way to hold a crochet hook and a person should be able to hold the hook comfortably in her/his hand. M's Righetti's recommendation of how to hold the hook makes my wrist sore and I have a great deal of difficulty crocheting in that position. I have been crocheting now for over 30 years and I get good results by holding the hook the way it comfortably fits my hand.Outside of her reprimands/criticisms of the "proper" way to hold the hook and the difficult to understand diagrams, this is a good book and I recommend it highly for folks who already know a little about crocheting and want to learn more. Stitches are explained well and her instructions on cutting a piece of crocheted work is definitely liberating. So buy the book and expand your knowledge of one of the greatest needle arts, crochet.

Crocheting in Plain English

I decided I wanted to crochet and ordered this book. It was absolutely wonderful! The instructions were fitting for the title - they were in "plain English" and very easily understood. I had never crocheted and am now completing my third project in just a few short weeks. I have shared this book with one friend in particular that has been crocheting for years. She has now mastered stitches that she has never before quite understood. I would recommend this book for crocheters of all levels.

Fantastic resource!

I knew nothing about crochet when I picked up this book, except that I was interested in learning it. I was crocheting within hours! The instructions make it sooo incredibly easy - this book is exactly what I was looking for. I'm looking forward to buying the author's knitting book and learning how to knit, too! I can't recommend this book highly enough for anyone who wants to learn crochet but is afraid it'll be too hard.