Formal Jewelry by Karen McKenna

So - you know how to crochet. You can chain, do a single crochet, and make a slip stitch to join. Guess what? That's all you need to know to crochet any one of the twelve patterns in the book - Formal Jewelry, by Karen McKenna. And all twelve patterns are rated "easy". And easy they are. I love the necklaces and bracelets that you can crochet. And I wanted to try making some - but I didn't have the pearls, nor the metallic thread needed for some of them. So - I improvised. I found some large beads in my stash, and some elastic yarn for one necklace, and some nylon "yarn" for another necklace. I wanted to crochet the Sparkle necklace with the elastic yarn, and the Black on Black necklace with the nylon cord. I realized that I didn't have enough beads for the Sparkle Necklace - so I thought I would make a headband instead, using the techniques in that pattern. I did have enough beads for the Black on Black necklace - they were green, but my nylon cord was green, too. So I had a Green on Green necklace instead of Black on Black. 
Here is the Sparkle Necklace from the book:

And here is what I made - using the same technique. I can use it as a wrap-around bracelet, or give it to my niece's daughter to use as a headband or to wear it wrapped around a ponytail.

Here is the Black on Black necklace from the book:

And here is my Green on Green necklace. This took me all of 15 minutes to crochet. Or less. 

The book is full of projects like this - quick, but gorgeous looking. You can make them with pearls or pearl-like beads, like Karen shows them - to make Formal Jewelry, or make them with colored beads, like I did, to have a more informal touch. Whichever way you decide, you won't be sorry.

And, Karen doesn't just tell you how to crochet these jewels. She explains in detail how to finish them - like how to put clasps on. She also tells you just what tools you'll need - like what kind of pliers to have on hand so you can open and close an Eye Pin, what kind of End cones are needed, and which clasps would work. All of these tools can be found in the beading and jewelry section of your local craft store. 

Oh - one more thing. On the cover, do you see the camera with the words: Bonus, Online Tutorials? When you see the camera on a pattern page, that means that you can go to the link and see video tutorials. So if you can't figure something out from the directions and patterns in the book, you can go to the website and look at the video!

Interested? Check out the book, or e-book at:
Leisurearts.com or Amazon.com, and get started crocheting your bling today!


Be sure to check out what some other crochet designers have to say about Formal Jewelry.
January 19:  Amy Shelton from Crochetville  http://crochetville.com/
January 21:   Marty Miller  designer, teacher, authorhttp://thecrochetdoctor.blogspot.com/
January 26:   Tammy Hildebrand   designer, author  http://hotlavacrochet.blogspot.com/
January 28:   Sharon Silverman    designer, author    http://www.sharonsilverman.com/crochet/
February 2:   Jennifer Ryan    designer  http://celticknotcrochet.blogspot.com/
February 5:    Gwen Blakely Kinsler  author, founder of Crochet Guild of America  http://crochetqueen-royalramblings.blogspot.com/
February 10:  Karen Whooley  author, designer, teacher    http://www.krwknitwear.com
February 11:  Sandy Huff   designer  http://knittyknittychainchain.blogspot.com/
February 16:  Linda Dean    designer  http://www.lindadeancrochet.com/blog/