Curvy Crochet: Plus-Size Techniques
Marly Bird
Class Preview
1:18
- In-depth Instruction; over 200 mins
- On-demand video access anytime
- Bonus downloadable PDF resources
- Access to class Q&A
Introduction
6:21
Meet Marly Bird, knit and crochet designer who loves to create beautiful things for curvy women. Discover what you'll learn in this class and what skills you should have to best appreciate the course.
Honest Measurements
22:06
Job One to achieve perfect-fitting garments is to know your dimensions, so grab a tape measure and some friends, and prepare for an enlightening experience. Marly explains what your favorite sweater will teach you, and shows you how the lacy patterns and motifs of crochet are perfect for plus-size women.
Duct Tape Dress Form
28:56
Here's where you put those measurement skills into practice. Make a life-size mannequin of yourself! It costs $50, not $400, and helps you check fit as you crochet. Round up some friends and let the duct taping begin!
Choosing Patterns and Yarn
18:00
Garment design and yarn choice can make a big difference between crocheting something that you'll wear often and something that simply doesn't show off your best. Marly explains how to choose a pattern that will flatter you, and select the best yarn for fit and appearance.
Swatching: Creating Your Fabric
19:01
Creating a fabric sample tells you a lot about how your garment will perform, before you waste money and time crocheting a garment you don't really like. You'll learn how to use oversized swatches as a stitch library and a test platform for shaping and garment care.
Designing With Charts
18:13
Charts and diagrams will help you figure out how to take the information from your favorite sweater and use it to change patterns and motifs to make them your own. Marly shows you tricks to make thinking in pictures easy and practical.
Shaping Waist and Hips
17:30
Using the Amimono Kimono, a simple dolman-sleeve sweater in an asymmetrical stitch pattern, Marly breaks charting down to show you how straightforward it is. You will learn how to use shaping so your sweater fits perfectly, adding design elements that flatter.
No More Pain in the Neckline
13:20
A sweater's neckline frames your face, so if your pattern includes a neckline that doesn't flatter you, change it! Marly explains how and gives tips about shoulder shaping.
Demystifying Armholes
21:30
Properly sized armholes make a big difference in comfort as well as how your garment looks. Marly walks you through the math and charting so you see how armhole shaping is done, and how to adjust an armhole without a lot of complicated stitch pattern changes.
Shaping Sleeves
34:47
Ill-fitting sleeves pose problems for many plus-size women. Take your sleeve and armhole measurements, and let Marly show you how easy it is to adjust a sleeve cap to set in perfectly and fit like a dream.
Have you ever set out to crochet a sweater and spent days of work and hundreds of dollars on yarn, only to end up with something you never wear because it just looks wrong? Marly Bird to the rescue! In Curvy Crochet, you’ll select the perfect pattern for your shape and make easy fit adjustments to bust, sleeves, neckline and other trouble spots. You’ll discover the luxurious yarns that make great plus-size clothes, and the ones that spell disaster every time. And you’ll learn how to transform swatching from a tedious task into a valuable tool. You’ll use your favorite sweater, right out of your closet, to tell you things you never knew about yourself. And you’ll make your very own custom dress form … from duct tape! Get advice and help from Marly as you learn the same techniques designers use for a perfect fit and finish every time. Marly’s energy and humor makes it all fun!
Marly Bird
Marlaina "Marly" Bird fled the world of financial services to launch her Yarn Thing podcast and hasn't looked back since. To Marly, a bi-craftsy girl who both knits and crochets, the yarn is the star, not how you work with it. She's National Spokesperson for Red Heart Yarns and the co-author of Curvy Crochet (Leisure Arts, 2011). You've seen her designs in Knit Simple, Interweave Crochet, Knitscene, Inside Crochet, Wild Fiber and Petite Purls, and in the books Perfectly Plus and Knitting Plus. In her spare time she raises three kids in suburban Denver.
Bonus materials available after purchase