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
S.A.Q.A. 2012 Benefit Auction
This auction started at 2pm Eastern/11am Pacific time on 10th Sept: its being held at www.saqa.com and it is a reverse auction of 288 glorious small works of art crated and donated by SAQA's members to raise money to support SAQA's exhibition, education and outreach programs. Three groups: Group 1 starts Sept 10th Group 2 starts Sept 17 Group 3 starts Sept 24 and a special group will be auctioned at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas from Oct 31st-Nov 4th.
Granddaughter’s Memory Quilt
Lyn seems to be such a busy grandma. She says: Am just coming to the end of my Granddaughter's memory quilt...my daughter Ali couldn't bear to part with Izzy's old baby clothes so asked if I could do something to 'keep': all the sashings are from her dresses and I used the bibs and babygrows for the pictures. also stitched in the age labels on the tangled star pillow front....Lyn
Twisted Tote
More from Lyn Butler - this time with a twist: (and don't the flowers look good too!)