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
To wash or not to wash your fabric ?
In today's world of pre-cuts pre-washing your fabric is not always possible; Question: Some time ago you had a little talk with Jenny about the pro's and con's of washing or not washing patchwork cotton material.this means I do know that it appears to be an individual choice.---- However, I found that the limpness and the sometimes distorted outcome of the washed material quite a challenge when doing small precision pieces.
Spray starch is also not the answer, as it invariably is not applied equally over the fabric.
I really do not feel like washing any more except where the material has either been from an old garment/article or it is soiled.
Have you got any kind of advise I might have so far overlooked?
The Most Watched for 2014
Top 15 films in 2014 Midsummer Mystery Quilt Miniature Quilts with Julia Gahagan Hexagons with Carolyn Forster Owl Bunting with Jennie Rayment Courthouse Steps Scrap Quilt with Valerie Nesbitt Quick-Strip Childrens Quilt with Valerie Nesbitt Lily Block with Jennie Rayment Wrist Pincushion with Jennie Rayment Chicken Pincushion with Jennie Rayment Strip Pieced Diamond Quilt with Valerie Nesbitt 40 Minute Scrap Quilt with Valerie Nesbitt Hexagon Tree Decorations from Jennie Rayment Tucked Up band with Jennie Rayment How to Make Secret Pillow with Valerie Nesbitt Your First Sampler Quilt with Valerie Nesbitt Did you miss?
9th January 2015
Happy New Year What was your new year’s resolution- to [...]