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
My weekend at the National Patchwork Championships
Exhausting but fun seems to be the way that shows go for me these days; this one started early with my first turn at judging – I really enjoyed it and it is amazing how different quilts are when you are asked to study them as opposed to just walking by and waiting for one to jump out at you.
More inspiration from our workshops
Just to let you know I really enjoy your video clips on techniques and workshops and find them very easy to follow, I watch the same ones over and over especially Jennies and Maggie Davies techniques on applique. Please see the attached photo of a cushion I made using my new embellishment equipment, I was going to make a picture but after seeing Jennies video on piping a cushion thought why not give it a go and I was very pleased with the outcome and think I will get more use of it as a cushion (only to look at not use, couldnt ruffle the lambs coat) I also put a zip across the back.
National Flag mania
Flag mania seems to have hit the Home Dec market but you don't have to be traditional : here are some examples of other colourways: