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Meet and Make: Mikey aka Michael Sellick

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Mikey akA MichaeL Sellick at The Crochet Crowd StudioI am Michael Sellick, online I’m known as Mikey. I am totally consumed by the crafting ideas that bounce in my head. I social network most of the day, every day, and end up crafting in bed at night time watching Netflix. I am the creator of The Crochet Crowd . My website is dedicated to giving away free patterns and tutorials on how to create projects.

10 Fun Facts About Me

  1. I’m addicted to two things; spending a lot of time on the computer creating content and crafting. Thus making what I do true passion.
  2. I listen to the same music playlist on YouTube virtually everyday to fill in the white noise of a quiet house as I work.
  3. Kraft dinner is the best meal ever invented.
  4. When teaching live in person, I’m known to “Queen out and break creativity wide open”.
  5. I sometimes go grocery shopping with my Crocs on… please don’t call the fashion police.
  6. I struggle to back a car into a parking space. Ironically, I used to be a truck driver and could do that fine.
  7. The sound of the cat licking itself is a sound that drives me up the wall.
  8. I love dry, sarcastic and witty humour.
  9. If I could start a collection right now, I would collect high heel stilettos.
  10. Netflix is the next best thing to sliced bread.

Here’s Your Project Today

Beanie Hat For Men with Style

The Crochet Crowd's Design Hat

A new pattern released by Michael Sellick.

Materials

  • Size H or 5.5 MM Crochet Hook
  • 2 Ball of Bernat Mosaic Yarn

Notes

  • I used 2 balls of yarn at the same time to double up the thickness of the yarn to provide better insulation and texture.
  • When using two yarn at the same time, it’s cooler to not have the yarn shade colours to not match each other. This creates a more interesting and unpredictable look to your beanie hat.

Definitions

  • sl st – Slip Stitch
  • beg – beginning
  • sc – single crochet
  • rep – repeat
  • ch – chain

Pattern

    • Chain 4 and sl st to the beg ch.
    • R1: Ch 1, work 6 sc in ring, join with sl st in beg ch.
    • R2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each sc, join with sl st in beg ch, 12 sc.
    • R3: Ch 1, *sc in next sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 18 sc.
    • R4: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 2 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 24 sc.
    • R5: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 3 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 30 sc.
    • R6: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 4 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 36 sc.
    • R7: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 5 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 42 sc.
    • R8: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 6 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 48 sc.
    • R9: Ch 1, *sc in each of next 7 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in beg ch, 54 sc.
    • R10: Ch 1, *sc in next 8 sc, 2 sc in next sc; rep from * around, sl st in beg ch, 60 sc.
    • R11-22 : Ch 1, sc in each sc around, sl st in beg ch.
    • Fasten Off. Weave in ends.

 

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Bernat Twist & Twirl Yarn

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New Fancy Scarf Yarn For Knitters or Crocheters

Bernat Has Launched Twist & Twirl for Crocheters and Knitters

Twist & Twirl was added to Bernat’s line up of yarn on September 1st of this year; available in 7 different colours. There are a few advantages to this yarn that I really like.  You can see the colour swatches to see all the different colour combinations that are available.

  • Great choice of colours
  • Price factor
  • Easy Knitting
  • Pattern & Ball Count Realism

I think the colours are super modern and trendy. Most people can’t envision the yarn being done up in the way that makes it very desirable. Once completed, the scarves look extremely random and unique to themselves.

Using Bernat’s distribution power, they have brought this yarn line to market that is comparable, if not, cheaper to the end consumer.

Knitting with this is much simpler than people realize. Learn with this AllFreeKnitting video on how to use it.

Finally, I love how the designers have provided enough yarn in the ball that you don’t need to buy extra. I find most patterns on store shelves force you to buy 2 balls. Usually using 1 full ball and then a very small portion of another ball. With Twist & Twirl one ball equals one completed full size scarf. This makes the consumer only have to buy just one for each scarf they want to make.

For more inspirational knitting patterns, see AllFreeKnitting.com. 1000’s of great free patterns by designers and enthusiastic knitters.

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Crafting Creates Communities

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I love when communities come together and no one is holding fire torches or pitch forks. It reminds me how amazing our Facebook groups are at The Crochet Crowd and AllFreeCrochet.

Today, I happened to notice a comment that suggested to me that a woman writing a comment sounded a bit lonely and was needing a friend. I sat back and thought.

“If my hunch is right, what can I do to help her?”

The woman is a great crocheter and she’s in a group of amazing other crocheters… maybe she just needs someone to connect with.

So this thought pattern led me to post a comment about making new friends. I am still in disbelief about how many people were interested in creating friendships. Some people got so excited they made so many friends they got a locked out from making more Facebook friends for 48 hours. I never thought Facebook had a spam protector like YouTube.

This is a strong reminder to me that “we need each other”. I love when flukes like this happen. Many people had a great day today over a very simple idea. It’s amazing how little it takes to make a difference.

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Bernat Mosaic Afghan Kits exclusively by The Crochet Crowd

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Bernat Mosaic Afghan Kit by The Crochet Crowd for Creativ Festival
In cooperation with Bernat, The Crochet Crowd will have mosaic afghan kits available at Creativ Festival.

At Creativ Festival on October 21 – 23, The Crochet Crowd will go live once again. This is our 3rd time going and we are more serious than ever with providing our followers with ground breaking deals on the show floor.

As advertised by Creativ Festival, we will have Bernat Mosaic Afghan Kits at the show. You can see all the swatches of Bernat Mosaic selections; we will not have every colour at the show. Based on a random poll to our audience, we selected the top 6 preferred colours.

The Bumble Berry Afghan that I presented is a representation of what each kit will do. This afghan took a certain amount of balls to achieve this. Using 100% of the same colour but due to the slow transition of colours, it really comes out to be a show piece at the end.

When making the above sample picture, I realized that if I would have raised my hook size up to 6.5 or size K, that I would get fewer squares out of my skeins but my afghan would have been much bigger. However, my kits are put together to accommodate getting yourself a complete afghan done just as you see in the video. The creativity in the end is really up to you.

So what’s in the kit?

  • You are going to get all the balls to complete an authentic afghan.
  • You are going to get a free written pattern to follow along to make this afghan.
  • We are throwing 2 complimentary gifts inside the kits that are practical and you will, in fact, use.

So Here’s The Deal!

  1. The total value of this kit as it stands just under $100. We don’t expect you to pay that.
  2. We don’t expect you to pay for all of the yarn either. This kit has been priced low so that the you are receiving free yarn balls.
  3. The two complimentary gifts are indeed free with your purchase.

You will be saving about $25.00 if you were to purchase everything at full retail price.

So what’s the catch? 

  • We have only the top six colour choices on hand.
  • We have only a few of each kit on hand.
  • Once gone, we don’t have the power to re-stock at the show.
  • First come, first serve.
  • No holding or shipping will be done with our afghan kits.

See you at Creativ Festival on Oct 21 – 23rd.

For more inspiration, come to my most favourite resource site for Crocheters! AllfreeCrochet.com

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Whatever Happened to Serenity Looms?

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Serenity Looms sold by Hobby Lobby
Whatever happened to Serenity Looms?

Ranking extremely high on my daily views of video tutorials at about 800 views per day is Serenity Looms. Interestingly enough, a regular email and posting I get weekly, is Where can I  find one of these looms?  They are currently off the market. Even though I have posted on the videos they are not available, people are still inquiring where to find them.

Serenity Looms to me were anything but serene, in fact, I swear the ‘S’ configuration was short of “Satan”. Not surprising, the Serenity Looms couldn’t be found on shelves by spring of 2009. They had all vanished without a trace.

The only reason why I have two of them now, is that a viewer found them on the clearance shelf for nearly half price. So she bought the entire shelf out thinking she was getting a bargain. For me, I hadn’t used one yet but was fascinated by the afghan design. I’m not selling them.

I got my Serenity Loom eventually and I was so disappointed with it. My serenity loom fell from my lap and hit the floor and broke as I was starting my first project. The plastic was too flexible and snapped a peg off at the bottom. With no replacement pegs, my loom was garbage. I was pretty ticked off. I found the loom to be too flexible that I believe that if I did something big on it, the loom could potentially snap in half.

I have a rule, I don’t like to criticize current gadgets on the market. However, knowing it was off the market, I figured I can be honest about my feelings and interactions with Serenity.

I ran a second video on how I felt about the loom and its draw backs. The Truth About Serenity Looms. This video got some attention and executives involved with this loom got a hold of me. Knowing already that it went off the market, there were key issues shared in this video which could lead to the re-creation of a similar loom and address the faulty problems going on with it. I was told that it came off the market because the manufacturer’s plant had caught fire and burned to the ground. Regardless of that unfortunate circumstance, this is actually an opportunity for a re-birth to a product that was not doing the greatest.

I’m about giving the consumers choice,give them the knowledge whether it’s good or bad; allow viewers to make the choice. Though my review about Serenity is still negative, there are people who still want the looms. I think human curiosity compels us to want products though others aren’t too happy with it.

So the answer right now is that Serenity Looms are not currently available.

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Just Released – Free Men’s Beanie Hat: Free Crochet Pattern

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The Crochet Crowd's Design Hat

A new pattern released by Michael Sellick.

 

Winter is now coming and I am in full winter mode for making crochet goodies to match Daniel and I’s winter wardrobe.

I created this pattern using Bernat’s Mosaic Yarn Line. The colouring in the picture is called “Into the Woods”. I used two balls of yarn at one time to give extra thickness for those cold winter days.

I used a size H hook or 5.5 MM. This was done in less than 2 hours. It fits Daniel like a charm. There was a bit of research & development involved to ensure the sizing would properly fit a grown man.

This Men’s Beanie Hat is a completely free pattern by Mikey; follow along with this pattern right now.

For more free hat patterns, be sure to check out AllFreeCrochet’s Hat Library.

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How To Crochet A Basket Weave

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Howto Crochet Tutorail, Front and Back Posts for Basket Weaving

Watch Howto Craft Video Now

This and many other free video tutorials can be found at AllFreeCrochet’s YouTube Channel.

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How To Thread Bobbin on Brother LS 2125 Sewing Machine

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How To Thread Bobbin on Brother LS 2125 Sewing Machine

How To Thread Bobbin on Brother LS 2125 Sewing Machine

You may find this tutorial hard to believe as being popular, but it has nearly reached 55,000 views. As crazy as this sounds, in my speed and excitement to get the machine unpacked, 3 components fell out of the machine. There was no instructions provided on how to get it back into place. 2 Hours of fiddling and trying to problem solve this, I finally figured it out.
I had turned to YouTube to get a video from someone that did the same thing. There was nothing. So I said, after I figure this out, I am going to film how to get these components back into position.
As simple as it appears in my video, there is no instructions on a diagram to show how the components are to work together. I hadn’t seen it in much detail before taking it out and therefore I wasn’t sure where things were suppose to go.
This video is one of the highest commented videos in my collection. It’s people merely stating the obvious! “Thank You” for showing me the way.
Behind the scenes, Daniel criticized it was a stupid video to film and I said no… it’s an opportunity to show how to fix something because I am sure I am not the only person that has done this and needs help.
I credit myself with how many refunds and store returns has stopped as a result of this video. YouTube can be really phenomenal when it comes to learning something.
Watch Howto Craft Video Now

Play Tutorial Now

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Free Admission Tickets: Giveaway for Creativ Festival

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Free Ticket Giveaway for Creativ Festival in October 2011

Free Admission Tickets: Giveaway for Creativ Festival 2011

The Creativ Festival is back again on October 21 – 23. This is their 24th year. Find out details about location and time.

What is Creativ Festival?

Infused with inspiration, creativity and shopping! Stay in the know and pick up the latest fabrics, fibres, papers, beads, notions, patterns, books, kits, tools, equipment and how-tos. See what awaits you!

ENTER FREE TICKET GIVEAWAY

The Crochet Crowd is giving away 5 pairs of tickets. This means there will be 5 winners that will each receive 2 tickets. These tickets are good for getting free admission into Creativ Festival on one of the three days of this weekend event. All you need to do is leave a comment on the blog telling us why you’d like to win these tickets. The winners will then be chosen at random; your comment is your entry.

This ticket is your gateway to inspiration and jaw dropping creativity that can be explored on the show floor. There are many free Make’n Takes in progress that you can participate in.

Draw takes place October 14th. You will be notified by email if you are a winner.

Come Visit Us At Hooker Alley

Regardless if you are a winner or not but are still attending Creativ Festival. We would love for you to stop by our Interactive Hooker Alley. We have many Howto Demos and Hands On Activities planned. Each station at our display will be doing something different. Learn loom knitting on regular retail looms and high end looms, conventional knitting, and twistz bandz creation.

Show Stopper Shopping

We will have some show stopping specials to purchase as well as 100’s of vendors will have amazing inspiration and deals too!

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