About Gaynor
Gaynor is a crochet-obsessed teacher and pattern designer from Wokingham in Berkshire.
She learned to knit and crochet as a child, trained and worked as a French teacher for over 10 years, and then picked up her hook again 10 years ago. Gaynor jokes that she is “lucky enough to call myself a full-time hooker…”
In 2012, Gaynor set up The Barkham Hookers crochet group with a few friends in her living room. They now run 4 group sessions a week as well as many regular private lessons with over 600 members on Facebook alone. You can find them on Facbook via The Barkham Hookers’ Charity Group, where many of their charity projects can be seen.
She is very proud of the fact that The Barkham Hookers raised over £60,000 for various national and international charities, £52,000 of that for the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal. Click here to watch Gaynor share a quick and easy method for crocheting a poppy.
Gaynor loves designing and making blankets, many of which can be found as free CALs (crochet-a-longs) on her blog: Confessions of a Barkham Hooker. During the pandemic, she designed the Coronavirus CAL, posting a new section daily then weekly with colourful pictures and detailed notes.
Signature Technique
Crochet Blankets incorporating a variety of patterns and colours
Top Tips
- Crochet is very forgiving. Don’t be afraid to adjust or change the pattern to suit your needs or likes. And remember, if in doubt pull it out!
- Use a larger hook to work a long foundation chain to avoid it curling up.
- If you work quite loosely choose a slightly smaller hook than advised and a larger hook if you work tightly.
- When working in rows do not forget to work into the last stitch – – which is probably the chain 2/3 made at the start of the previous row.
- Use military buttons as the centre in poppies to add something special.
- If you are working with several balls of yarn, chuck them on the floor and let gravity help you keep them untangled.
Videos
Patterns
Posts
Life Can Be Like a Quilt
One lady in our community, Em Bayly from Florida has asked us to share her story with you. A few years ago I made my first queen-sized quilt to give to my son on his 50th birthday. He had just gotten out of the hospital following a difficult time in his life. I composed the following comments on a scratch pad to use on his card attached to the quilt.
20 July 2018
New Videos Every Friday Navajo Blanket Quilt - [...]
Scandi by Makower
This lovely Christmas range, designed by Makower, lends itself beautifully to be made up into Christmas Table Mats, and Valerie has taken a pack of preprinted Quilt-as-you-go placements designed by June Tailor to make an early start. (click through to the shop to buy some for yourself!) These fabrics should be in your quilt shops now and there is also a delightful quilt designed by Lynne Goldsworthy, which is a free download from the Makower website - if you feel like making something bigger and more exotic.