Crochet Queen: Royal Ramblings

WomanMade Gallery: 685 N. Milwaukee, Chicago Yes, my specialty is crochet, and yes I am the author of the  Fine Art of Crochet: Innovative Works from Twenty Contemporary Artists.  However, I love fiber in all of its forms and Art-To-Wear is no exception. The Art Wear movement established firm roots in the decade of the eighties with the publication of Julie Schafler Dale's incredible book,  Art To Wear . Dana Balwin: Wild & Wooly Bride, lamblocks, embroidered, beaded, felted , Deborah Hirshfield: Triumverate of Maladies, silk, dye, wood, thread, wool roving Deborah Hirschfield: Untitled Melis Agabigum: When You Told Me to Go Along, I Should Have Asked How Far, coppper, powdercoat, waxed cotton Suzanne Peterson: The Weight of Overindulgence , glass, nicket, video Cydney Lewis: Blackberry Necklace, plastic bags Dawna Davis: Elizabethan's Treasure, wire The above work is the closest they came to choosing a "crochet-like...

Monday, September 23, 2013 Have you ever crocheted with cabochons? Do you know what a cabochon is? Well, it's a french word meaning,  a gem or bead cut in convex form and highly polished but not faceted. Because I am on a mission to "cover my world in crochet," I've been intrigued by cabochons for quite a while.  Today my favorite cabochons come from Tanya McGuire Lampwork & Jewelry. We met a few years ago at a fiber show and Tanya is a gem of a person who creates fabulous "gems" with her lampwork. I fell in love with her pieces and this past summer I bought my first cabochon from her. Here's what I created... Tanya McGuire Lampwork-cabochon bead-crochet brooch Tanya gave me a shout-out this week on her blog Following is a little history of how I got started making brooches from cabochons. I love the colors, designs and the possibilities. Some of the first cabochon brooches I made were done with cabochons I made myself from postcard...