Monday, July 21, 2014

Book Review: Crochet for Baby All Year

Title: Crochet for Baby All Year
Author: Tammy Hildebrand
Year Published: 2014; printed in USA

Dee's Rating: 10 Hooks out of 10

In my last blog post I revealed the big family secret, so now that I have the baby blanket project completed it was time for me to move on to a little sweater.  So when I was asked to review Tammy Hildebrand's new book, Crochet for Baby All Year, the timing couldn't have been better!

Flipping through the book I instantly loved that the little outfits were organized by month; and that it offered more than just baby sweaters -- it also has outfits for the football enthusiasts, for Halloween, even for a day of total beachin' fun.  I decided to give the "Fall Festival Cardigan" pattern a try. The pattern calls for a variety of colored yarn but I opted to go with just two colors, blue and white. I was amazed with how quickly the project worked up.  I think I spent more time deciding which buttons to go with! (lol)
Tammy's Fall Festival Cardigans featured in her new book,
"Crochet For Baby All Year"

There are no symbol charts offered for any of the projects, but I don't think they were needed as I found her written instructions easy to follow. The project Skill Levels focus mostly on easy, but there are some intermediate patterns, and one experienced. Tammy and I both agree that Skill Level should not discourage a crocheter from trying something new: as long as you are proficient with the basics of crocheting, and diligent in counting and using stitch markers when needed.
Dee's two-color version of Tammy's
"Fall Festival Cardigan" pattern

I think this book offers a great collection of patterns for baby's first year, for both boys and girls. And since babies tend to grow quickly, Tammy's quick patterns will help ensure your project is well off the crochet hook before that next growth spurt.

Want to see more photos of patterns offered in this book?  Visit Stackpole’s Look Book here.  Want to get to know Tammy? Follow her on Facebook here.