Preview to the Monique Beret!

It's getting close to the release of the Monique Beret!  Just a few more weeks and you can get this elegant beret pattern here for free!  If you would like the add free version please visit my shop and purchase the downloadable PDF for a small purchase price.

A little story behind this hat. My mother helps me out a lot with Knottie Hooks, so when she worked up this cutie, I insisted we publish it! She hesitated for a bit feeling unsure that her ideas would be liked by others. Haven’t we all been there as designers and crocheters!

I finally got her to write it down. I then typed up what she had written and started working it up myself. I started making changes to the stitches to allow for a more even flow of increasing and decreasing, all the while making sure she agreed with the changes being made.

I really had to work with the beginning numbers to get it right so it would flow without odd and weird ending numbers. Finally, I went with my tried and true base number of 10. The hat worked up beautifully from there.

This is the most difficult part of writing patterns. I not only write them so I can do them, but I also need to imagine what others may see when reading them, and what they may produce from what they read.

My mom crochets very tight, so her initial math was not working for me, I crochet somewhere in the middle of tight and loose. This is also why testing is so important.

This is my future; I am building a business based on other's thoughts and opinions of my product. Having the opinions of people worldwide is truly special and I thank all of you so much for that!

Share your thoughts! I want to hear what you have to say. What do you struggle with regarding crochet?