Crochet and the seventies are back with a vengeance and combine in Get Your Crochet On! Afya Ibouma, custom crocheter to the stars brings you a funky collection of streetwise crocheted hat patterns as functional as they are fashionable.

With easy-to-follow instructions and encouraging photos, Get Your Crochet On! makes this timeless tradition accessible to crocheters of varied skill levels.

In this book you'll find:

• The basics of crochet: stitches, techniques, and tools
• The freedom to express your own style through 20 original patterns
• Hip designs that add flair and pizzazz to your wardrobe
• Priceless, one-of-a-kind gift ideas
• Hours of crochet fun
• A renewed motivation and appreciation for the art of crochet

A great thing about crochet is that it is a very inexpensive craft (many of the patterns in this book can be made for $12 or less). All you need is a skein of yarn and a hook and you're on your way to creating personalized, funky knitwear. Using your two hands, you'll create memories that become a part of people's lives.

Introduction

Getting Started

What You Need

Yarn
Hooks
Additional Tools

Colors, Colors, Colors

The Color Wheel and Basic Color Theory

The Basics

Making a Slip Knot
Holding Your Crochet Hook
Yarn Over
Chain Stitch
Slip Stitch
Single Crochet
Half Double Crochet
Double Crochet
Triple (or Treble) Crochet
Puff Stitch
Working in Rows
Working in Rounds
Getting Your Gauge
Joining New Yarn
Changing Colors
Fastening Off

Finishing Touches

Joining Seams
Weaving In Yarn Ends
Weaving In and Covering Elastic
Edging
Making a Bib
Making Earflaps
Making Pom-Poms
Making Fringe

A Little TLC

The Patterns

Mellow Moods
Bunny
The MC
Queen
Square Biz
Talkin Blues
Jam Pony
Vizor
Kinky Reggae
Be Easy
Soon Come
O.G.
Soldier
Top Rankin
Skully
Lively Up
Kool Rock Ski
Tam
Notty Dread
Superfly

Resources
Index

Get Your Crochet On!: Hip Hats and Cool Caps is a trendsetting crochet artist's dream. The patterns featured in this book are as functional as they are fashionable. Whether cleverly concealing a "bad hair day" or boldly making a fashion statement, crocheted caps are appropriate for all seasons. These caps are extensions of their creator's and wearer's personality. With easy-to-follow instructions and encouraging photos, Get Your Crochet On! makes this timeless tradition accessible to crocheters of varied skill levels.

I wrote this book to capture and express the fresh and innovative styles of a funky, creative new generation of crochet artists and fans. My own personal style is a mix of street, hip-hop, '70s vintage, and new millennium.

Needle crafting runs in my family. I have aunts and cousins who crochet, knit, sew, do needlepoint, and quilt, and I guess you could say that my own journey with crochet began in the womb. My mom crocheted the entire time she was pregnant with me, but, as soon as I was born, she put her hook and yarn down and did not pick them up for 22 years. My grandmother was a wonderful seamstress. She made elaborate, detailed wedding dresses and all the dresses for wedding parties. I grew up going to the fabric store with her to pick out my own material and patterns, usually something from the McCall's New York section.

It wasn't until my early 20s, though, that I finally learned to crochet. I was working as a merchandiser at a one of the busiest retail stores in New York City, where I had started as a sales associate and worked my way up to head merchandiser. I really learned a lot about color as a merchandiser.

One day I was sitting in the lunchroom, where a woman was crocheting. I asked her if she would show me what she was doing, and she did. I caught on fast. I started off making bags. They were simple-basically two rectangles joined together. Ironically, I had the hardest time trying to make a hat. But as soon as I got the basics down, my hats began to sell, and I started a custom hatmaking business called Who The Cap Fits. I now sell my hats at international festivals, at boutiques on the East Coast, and to celebrities. I have made many items for people like Common, Erykah Badu, Dead Prez, Talib Kweli, and Musiq (Soulchild), and my hats have been seen in music videos, on album covers, and in fashion magazines.

One of the great things about crochet is that it is a very inexpensive craft. All you need is a skein of yarn and a hook. Many of the patterns in this book can be made for $12 or less.

In Get Your Crochet On! you will find

• The basics of crochet: stitches, techniques, and tools
• The freedom to express your own style through 20 original patterns
• Hip designs that add flair and pizzazz to your wardrobe
• Priceless, one-of-a-kind gift ideas
• Hours of crochet fun
• A renewed motivation and appreciation for the art of crochet

Crochet transfers your energy and brings it to life through a hook and yarn. Using your two hands, you have the ability to create memories that become a part of people's lives. So grab a skein and a hook and Get Your Crochet On!